Successful science and engineering teaching in colleges and universities / Calvin S. Kalman (Concordia University).

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Kalman, Calvin S., author.

Series:

Science and engineering education sources.

Science & engineering education sources

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Science--Study and teaching (Higher).

Science.

Engineering--Study and teaching (Higher).

Engineering.

Effective teaching.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (174 pages) : illustrations.

Edition:

Second edition.

Place of Publication:

Charlotte, North Carolina : Information Age Publishing Inc., 2017.

Summary:

Based on the author's work in science and engineering educational research, this book offers broad, practical strategies for teaching science and engineering courses and describes how faculty can provide a learning environment that helps students comprehend the nature of science, understand science concepts, and solve problems in science courses.This book's student-centered approach focuses on two main themes: writing to learn (especially Reflective Writing) and interactive activities (collaborative groups and labatorials). When faculty incorporate these methods into their courses, students gain a better understanding of science as a connected structure of concepts rather than as a toolkit of assorted practices.

Contents:

Part I

Introduction, road map of the book

Writing to learn

Two goals for any science and engineering course

Questions by students

What students get out of class

In-class and out-of-class activities

Solving problems

Computer aids

Part II

Reflective writing

Freewriting

Getting students to read material in the textbook before coming to class

Gadamer's hermeneutical approach

Instructions on doing reflective writing

Samples of student use of reflective writing

Marking reflective writing

Student response to reflective writing

Reflective writing rubric

Part III

Reflective write-pair-share

Scenario for a class

The course dossier method

Transforming each lecture into a mini research paper

End of semester

Hosting an end of semester conference

Part IV

Constructing student knowledge

Cognitive dissonance students' intellectual development

Student misconceptions

Debate in the science education community

Critical thinking

Part V

Collaborative groups

Team work and group projects benefits to having students work in groups

Team formation

Team size

Team management

Team evaluation

Group development

Classroom warmups

Roles for group member

Dysfunctional groups

Part VI

Utilizing collaborative groups to promote conceptual conflict

Conceptual conflict

Peer instruction

Collaborative group conceptual conflict activity

Comparison of peer instruction with the conceptual conflict group activity

Incommensurability in conceptual change

Task sheets for warm-up and the four concept exercises

Part VII

Selected methods of utilizing collaborative groups

Labatorials

Jigsaw

The learning cell

Concept mapping

Collaborative concept mapping

Appendix

Sample labatorial worksheet

Part VIIi

Changing students' epistemologies

Developing a scientific mindset

Stages in epistemic development in students

Critique exercise

Model course: Presenting students with alternative frameworks: pre-galilean physics and newtonian physics

The calgary study: Reflective writing and labatorials

Epistemology

Students' epistemic thinking

Appendix: Critique #1

Critique #2

Critique #3

Part IX

Problem solving

Solving problems using templates versus solutions

Using paradigms

Five-step method for solving problems

Part X

Methods for training students to solve problems

Writing their way into the solution

Collaborative problem-solving groups

How many people should be in the group? Who should be placed in the group? Individual accountability

A student's advice for studying physics

Part XI

Using the computer to aid teaching

Computer-assisted instruction (cai)

Using the computer to manage laboratories

References.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Print version record.

ISBN:

1-68123-959-0