DESIGNING COURSES for
SIGNIFICANT LEARNING
Workshop by:
L. Dee Fink, Ph.D.
Educational Consultant in Higher Education
Author: Creating Significant Learning Experiences
BYU-Idaho
April 16, 2012
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
MY GOALS FOR THIS WORKSHOP
My hope is that, by the end of the workshop, you
will…
1. Be persuaded that course design is the most
important single thing you can learn about
college teaching.
2. Be able to design your courses more
intentionally to achieve a high level of
SIGNIFICANT LEARNING among your students.
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
THE AGENDA FOR THE WORKSHOP
1. Big Picture of Teaching – Place of Course Design
2. Integrated Course Design:
 Situational Factors
 Learning Goals – “Dreaming” Exercise
 Teaching/Learning Activities
 Feedback & Assessment
 Making Your Course Integrated
4. Question: “Will it be worth the time it takes?”
3 FEATURES OF A HIGH QUALITY
LEARNING EXPERIENCE
During Course/College:
1. Students
are:
ENGAGED
End of
course
After College:
2. Student effort
results in:
SIGNIFICANT
& LASTING
LEARNING
3. The
learning:
ADDS
VALUE
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
FUNDAMENTAL TASKS OF TEACHING
Knowledge of
the Subject
Matter
Interacting
with
Students
Designing
Learning
Experiences
Managing
the Course
Beginning of
the Course
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
Question:
What are some common problems
you encounter in your teaching?
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
THREE COMMON PROBLEMS:
• Lack of Interest: “Students are bored
with my class and lose interest quickly.”
• Poor Preparation: “Students don’t do
the assigned readings before class.”
• Poor Retention of Learning: “Students
do well on the test, but on the next test or
in the next course, they seem to forget
everything they learned earlier.”
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
Lack of Interest
1.
Enhance the teacher’s lecturing
skills.
2. Use more material from “cutting
edge” research.
3. Re-design the course to replace
lecturing with more active learning.
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
Poor Student Preparation
1. Assign more severe penalties for
not doing the readings beforehand.
2. Give students a pep talk.
3. Re-design the course to give
students a reason to do the
readings.
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
Poor Retention of Learning
1. Make the tests better (or
tougher)
2. Require students to complete a
refresher course
3. Re-design the course to give
students more experience with
using what they have learned
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
3 Ways of Designing Courses:
1. “List of Topics”
2. “List of Activities”
3. Need a way of designing courses that is:
• Systematic
• Integrated
• Learning-Centered
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
Integrated Course Design:
OVERVIEW
INTEGRATED COURSE DESIGN:
Key Components
Learning
Goals
Teaching &
Learning
Activities
Situational
Feedback &
Assessment
Factors
Criteria of “GOOD” Course Design
Significant
Learning
Learning
Goals
Integration
Teaching and
Learning
Activities
Feedback &
Assessment
Active
Learning
Educative
Assessment
SITUATIONAL
In-Depth
Situational
Analysis
FACTORS
Readiness Assessment Test
(RAT)
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
# of SCRATCHES:
# of POINTS:
1 -
-
-
-
4
2 -
-
-
-
2
3 -
-
-
-
1
4 -
-
-
-
0
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
Integrated Course Design:
SITUATIONAL
FACTORS
Criteria of “GOOD” Course Design
Significant
Learning
Learning
Goals
Integration
Teaching and
Learning
Activities
Feedback &
Assessment
Active
Learning
Educative
Assessment
SITUATIONAL
In-Depth
Situational
Analysis
FACTORS
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
Situational Factors:
Collecting information about…
• Specific Context
• Expectations by people
outside the course
• Nature of the Subject
• Nature of Students
• Nature of Teacher
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
Situational Factors
• Specific Context of the Teaching/Learning
Situation
–
–
–
–
Number of students
Level of course
Time structure
Delivery: Live – Hybrid – Online
• Expectations of Others:
– What expectations are placed on this course or
curriculum by:
• Society?
• The University, College and/or the Department?
• The Profession?
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
• Nature of the Subject
– Primarily theoretical, practical, or some
combination?
– Convergent or divergent?
– Important changes or controversies
occurring?
• Characteristics of the Learners
– Their life situation (e.g., working, family,
professional goals)?
– Their prior knowledge, experiences, and
initial feelings?
– Their learning goals, expectations, and
preferred learning styles?
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
• Characteristics of the Teacher(s)
– My beliefs and values about teaching and
learning?
– My attitude toward: the subject, students?
– My teaching skills?
– My level of knowledge or familiarity with this
subject?
Criteria of “GOOD” Course Design
Significant
Learning
Learning
Goals
Integration
Teaching and
Learning
Activities
Feedback &
Assessment
Active
Learning
Educative
Assessment
SITUATIONAL
In-Depth
Situational
Analysis
FACTORS
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
Integrated Course Design:
LEARNING GOALS
Criteria of “GOOD” Course Design
Significant
Learning
Learning
Goals
Integration
Teaching and
Learning
Activities
Feedback &
Assessment
Active
Learning
Educative
Assessment
SITUATIONAL
In-Depth
Situational
Analysis
FACTORS
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
FACULTY DREAMS
• If you had a class that could and
would learn anything and
everything you wanted them to
learn:
• In your “Dream of Dreams,” what is
it that you would really like them to
learn?
Taxonomy of Significant Learning
Taxonomy of Significant Learning
Learning How to
Learn
 Becoming a better
student
 Inquiring about a
subject
 Self-directing
learners
Caring
Developing new…
 Feelings
 Interests
 Values
Human
Dimensions
Learning about:
 Oneself
 Others
Foundational
Knowledge
Understanding and
remembering:
 Information
 Ideas
Application
 Skills
 Thinking: Critical,
Creative, & Practical
 Managing projects
Integration
Connecting:
 Ideas
 People
 Realms of life
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
In a course with significant learning, students will:
1. Understand and remember the key concepts,
terms, relationship, etc.
2. Know how to use the content.
3. Be able to relate this subject to other subjects.
4. Understand the personal and social
implications of knowing about this subject.
5. Value this subject and further learning about it.
6. Know how to keep on learning about this
subject, after the course is over.
Writing Significant Learning
Goals for Your Course
For one of your own courses:
• Write learning goals for Integration in
the Taxonomy of Significant Learning.
• Preface: “By the end of the course, my
hope is that students will be able to….”
• Suggestions:
 Pay close attention to your VERBS
 High “Visibility” Index
Criteria of “GOOD” Course Design
Significant
Learning
Learning
Goals
Integration
Teaching and
Learning
Activities
Feedback &
Assessment
Active
Learning
Educative
Assessment
SITUATIONAL
In-Depth
Situational
Analysis
FACTORS
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
Integrated Course Design:
FEEDBACK &
ASSESSMENT
Criteria of “GOOD” Course Design
Significant
Learning
Learning
Goals
Integration
Teaching and
Learning
Activities
Feedback &
Assessment
Active
Learning
Educative
Assessment
SITUATIONAL
In-Depth
Situational
Analysis
FACTORS
3-COLUMN TABLE:
Learning Goals:
1.
2.
3. Integration:
4.
5.
6.
Assessment Activities: Learning Activities:
Feedback and Assessment:
“EDUCATIVE ASSESSMENT”
Forward-Looking
Assessment
Self-Assessment
Criteria and
Standards
“FIDeLity”
Feedback
Feedback and Assessment:
“EDUCATIVE ASSESSMENT”
Important Learning
Forward-Looking
Assessment Task
Criteria and
Standards
Self-Assessment
Feedback
“FIDeLity Feedback”
• F = Frequent
• I = Immediate
• D = Discriminating (based on
criteria and standards)
• L = Feedback given in a
Loving or supportive way
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
Integrated Course Design:
LEARNING ACTIVITIES
Criteria of “GOOD” Course Design
Significant
Learning
Learning
Goals
Integration
Teaching and
Learning
Activities
Feedback &
Assessment
Active
Learning
Educative
Assessment
SITUATIONAL
In-Depth
Situational
Analysis
FACTORS
3-COLUMN TABLE:
Learning Goals:
Assessment Activities: Learning Activities:
1.
2.
3. Integration:
4.
5.
6.
xxxxx
????
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
A MODEL OF ACTIVE LEARNING
(The Basic Version)
PASSIVE
LEARNING:
RECEIVING
INFORMATION
&
IDEAS
ACTIVE
LEARNING:
EXPERIENCE
REFLECTIVE
DIALOGUE, with:
DOING
SELF
OBSERVING
OTHERS
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
Holistic Active Learning
Experience
 Doing, Observing
 Actual, Simulated
 “Rich Learning
Experiences”
Reflection
Information & Ideas
 Primary/Secondary
 In-class, out-of-class,
online
 About the…
 Subject
 Learning Process
 Via: Journaling,
Learning Portfolios
Multiple Activities that Promote
ACTIVE LEARNING
GETTING
INFORMATION
& IDEAS
DIRECT
INDIRECT,
 Original
data
 Original
sources
 Secondary
data and
sources
VICARIOUS  Lectures,
textbooks
ONLINE
 Course
website
 Internet
EXPERIENCE
"Doing"
REFLECTIVE DIALOGUE,
with:
"Observing"
Self
Others
 Real
Doing, in
authentic
settings
 Direct
 Reflective
observation thinking
 Case
studies
 Stories
 Gaming,
Simulations
 Role play
of
phenomena  Journaling
 Live
dialogue
(in or out
of class)
(can be
accessed
via: film,
literature,
oral history)
 Teacher can assign students  Students can reflect,
and then engage in
to "directly experience" …
various kinds of
 Students can engage in
"indirect" kinds of experience dialogue online.
online
HOLISTIC ACTIVE LEARNING:
A Case Study
In a course on “Leadership for Engineers,” the
teacher does the following:
• Begins the course by asking students to think
about what leadership means to them, individually
and then collectively.
• Then the class reads a book or case study about
people in leadership positions (e.g., Abraham
Lincoln).
• Following this, they re-visit the central question of
“What constitutes leadership”? and revise their
earlier definition accordingly.
• This sequence is repeated throughout the course:
– students read something – revisit the central question
– read something new – revisit the central question
– etc.
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
Question #1:
• Which of the three components of holistic
active learning does this course include – as
described above? (More than one component is
possible)
1. Information and Ideas
2. Experience
3. Reflection
Question #2:
• How might you strengthen the “Experiential”
component?
Criteria of “GOOD” Course Design
Significant
Learning
Learning
Goals
Integration
Teaching and
Learning
Activities
Feedback &
Assessment
Active
Learning
Educative
Assessment
SITUATIONAL
In-Depth
Situational
Analysis
FACTORS
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
Integrated Course Design:
INTEGRATION
Criteria of “GOOD” Course Design
Significant
Learning
Learning
Goals
Integration
Teaching and
Learning
Activities
Feedback &
Assessment
Active
Learning
Educative
Assessment
SITUATIONAL
In-Depth
Situational
Analysis
FACTORS
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
INTEGRATING THE COURSE
1. 3-Column Table
2. Weekly Schedule
• Teaching Strategy
• Culminating Project
• String of Activities
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
INTEGRATING THE COURSE
1. 3-Column Table
2. Weekly Schedule
• Teaching Strategy
• Culminating Project
• String of Activities
3-COLUMN TABLE:
Learning Goals:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Assessment Activities: Learning Activities:
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
INTEGRATING THE COURSE
1. 3-Column Table
2. Weekly Schedule
• Teaching Strategy
• Culminating Project
• String of Activities
3-COLUMN TABLE:
Learning Goals:
1. Foundational
Knowledge
2. Application
3. Integration
4. Human
Dimension
5. Caring
6. How to Keep on
Learning
Assessment Activities: Learning Activities:
Week #: Mon
1
2
3
4
..
..
12
13
14
15
Wed
Fri
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
INTEGRATING THE COURSE
1. 3-Column Table
2. Weekly Schedule
• Teaching Strategy
• Culminating Project
• String of Activities
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
TEACHING STRATEGY:
• A particular COMBINATION of
learning activities…
• arranged in a particular
SEQUENCE
Two Examples:
• Problem-based learning
• Team-based learning
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
“CASTLE-TOP” DIAGRAM:
A Tool for Identifying Your
TEACHING STRATEGY
In-Class
Activities:
Out-ofClass
Activities:
Mon
Wed
?
?
?
Fri
Mon
Wed
Fri
Assessm’t
&
Feedback
?
TEACHING STRATEGIES
InLecture
class:
Outofclass:
Lecture
Read
text
Lecture
Homework
exercises
Exam
Review
QUESTION:
• This strategy creates a high likelihood that
most students will…
1. Be exposed to the content.
2. Understand the content.
3. Be able to use the content.
4. Value the content.
TEACHING STRATEGIES
Readiness
Assurance
Test:
 Individual
 Group
Inclass:
OutRead
oftext
class:
Application
problems
(Small
Groups)
Homework
exercises
Exam:
 Content
 Application
Culminating
Project
Review
QUESTION:
•
This strategy creates a high likelihood that most
students will…
1. Be exposed to the content.
2. Understand the content.
3. Be able to use the content.
4. Value the content.
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
INTEGRATING THE COURSE
1. 3-Column Table
2. Weekly Schedule
• Teaching Strategy
• Culminating Project
• String of Activities
Model of:
INTEGRATED COURSE DESIGN
Learning
Goals
Teaching &
Learning
Activities
Situational
Feedback &
Assessment
Factors
Getting Better as a Teacher
Learning IMAGINED
Learning
Goals
1. Xxx
2. Xxx
3. Xxx
4. Xxx
5. Xxx
6. xxx
Learning ACHIEVED
4
1
Week:
Mon
Wed
Fri
1
2
3
4
5
2
6
7
Learning
Goals
3
Ass’m’t
Activ.
Learning
Activ.
8
9
1. Xxx
10
2. Xxx
11
3. Xxx
12
4. Xxx
13
5. Xxx
14
6. Xxx
15
3-Column Table
Weekly Schedule
5
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
Integrated Course Design:
DOES IT WORK?
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
DOES IT MAKE A DIFFERENCE?
Case #1
• Jane Connor, SUNY-Binghamton
• Course: Multi-Cultural Psychology
• Primary Learning Goal:
• To help students learn about – and learn
how to interact with – people who are
different from themselves
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
COURSE DESIGN FEATURES:
• CONTENT: Used Readiness Assurance Process
from TBL
• STORIES: Had speakers come in (students, people
from community)
• REFLECTIONS: Both before and after readings;
before and after stories
• RICH LEARNING EXPERIENCE:
• For a 4-week period, students had to put
themselves in contact with someone different
from themselves – preferably someone (or
group with whom they were uncomfortable)
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
RESULTS?
• Students did the readings – and understood them.
• As a result of the “strategy” (readings + dialogue
with others + special experiences + multiple
reflections):
• Students reported, almost to a person, that
this course “transformed” them.
• Teacher won the university’s primary teaching
award.
• Dean of Student Affairs: 11 of 16 students said
this was “the most valuable course in their whole
college experience.”
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
Does It Make a Difference?
Case #2
• Bill Weeks, University of Missouri at Rolla
• Course: Coding in Computer Science
• Small class (18 students), traditional time
structure (M-W-F)
• Initially: Lecture + homework
• Results: Students overwhelmed by
complexity of the math – frustration –
apathy – low course evaluations
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
Changes Made:
1. Completely re-wrote his learning goals:
(examples)
•
For a given communication channel, students will be able to
compute the maximum rate of reliable transmission
•
Students will learn how to work effectively in a group
setting.
•
Students will be able to direct their own learning in relation
to understanding, designing, and evaluating new codes.
2. New teaching strategy: Used TBL
3. Used reflective writing: Learning portfolios
4. Oral presentations
5. Had students re-submit their homework
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
RESULTS:
• Students did the readings, and did as well as
before on exams of Foundational Knowledge.
• TEACHER: “…drastic improvement in student
morale…They worked harder – and reported
enjoying it more.”
• STUDENTS:
• …an interesting learning experience I will
never forget…provided me with knowledge
to carry out independent study.
• I enjoyed this course to the fullest…course
was entertaining and at the same time
enlightening.
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
TEACHER’S REACTION:
• “Teaching such an excited group of
students was an unforgettable
experience.
• It made my job seem worthwhile and
very fulfilling.
• I will be feeding off that student
excitement for years.”
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
RESOURCES FOR FURTHER LEARNING:
 Print Resources
 Website:
www.designlearning.org
 Each Other
 Your Dreams
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
THE END!
Higher Education:
Let’s make it all that it can be and needs to be!
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
THE END!
??
Higher Education:
Let’s make it all that it can be and needs to be!
Designing Courses for Significant Learning
OR, A NEW START?
Teaching for the 21st Century . . .