Innovative Teaching the Tasmanian Way - or bringing it all into alignment

Rick SnellSenior Lecturer in LawUniversity of Tasmania

December 2008

The Key Points

• The First Building Block - Passion• The Key - Alignment• Taking risks and willingness to fail• Use of reflective journals• Techniques for lecturing to large groups• Approaches to assessment.• Use of technology including Web course

tools, Facebook, podcasting

• 20 years of Uni teaching (18 in law 2 as a part time politics tutor).

• Chosen as a case study for a book on Australian exemplary teaching practices.

• University of Tasmania Teaching Excellence Award

• Nominated Australian Teacher of the Year• 2008 National Teaching Citation.

– “An outstanding capacity to inspire and encourage student learning across the undergraduate law degree from first year to final year students.”

My Background

• “Rick’s work and practice, for example, in use of reflective journals, reflects a student centered approach that promotes deep learning that higher education should be about.” Dr Eugene Clark, Dean, Charlotte School of Law, Emeritus Professor, University of Canberra

• “For me, this was a "Eureka" moment, and it led me to change fundamentally the way I teach. It is not at all an exaggeration to say that there is a bit of Rick Snell in every single class I deliver today.” Professor Ian Holloway, Dean School of Law, Western Ontario

• “Having taught at three different law schools...Rick is without question an outstanding teacher.” Dr Wendy Lacey, Associate Professor University of South Australia

• “He also recognizes that for most students, the assessment will drive the student learning. With this in mind, Rick has sought to develop formative and summative assessment processes that will provide students with the opportunity to succeed to the best level that is possible for that individual, without in any way seeking a punitive response to work that with more appropriate feedback could simply be improved. “ Lynden Griggs UTAS Senior Lecturer in Law

Testimonials

• 1st year class - 400+ students - 3 campuses

• 2 and 3rd year class - 150 students.

• 4th and 5th year optional class - 20+ students

• Classes presented in Ireland (complete unit), Canada (complete unit), New Zealand, US and Malaysia

Context

• “Rick's passion for his subject is clear to anyone who has ever been taught by him or even had a conversation with him!  The incredible trips that he has taken overseas to help implement or improve FOI regimes are just a part of the outworking of his expertise and interest.  Unlike many other 'experts' Rick never lectured in a style that suggested he had the answer to every question.  Instead, lectures were a series of questions and dilemmas and possibilities for us to consider, as well as key information to get us started in our search for our own opinions.  … I did not only learn Administrative Law in Rick's subject, but came to see my other subjects in a different light having applied admin issues to them.” 2007 University Medallist

The 1st Building Block - Passion

• John Biggs - Teaching for Quality Learning at University (A Tasmanian contribution)

– Constructive Alignment• A good teaching system aligns teaching method and assessment

to the learning activities stated in the objectives,– Curriculum– Teaching methods– Assessment procedures

» “In aligned teaching the assessment reinforces learning. Assessment is the senior partner in learning and teaching. Get it wrong and the rest collapses.”

– Student-teacher relation» Students change each year - the most changeable and difficult

to predict variable» Described as student centered learning - but role of teacher

important– Institutional climate

– “Norm referenced assessment is judgments about people, criterion referenced is judgments about performance.”

The Key - Alignment

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•Moving away from exam based assessment•Taking students out of comfort zones•Moving from the front of the class•Experimentation - Proceeding before evidence of outcomes•Practice reshaped by theory•Greatest threats

–Failure to build trust–Student disengagement–Heavy workload–Overselling the benefits and/or outcomes–The pursuit of the new and the tiring of the old–Overcrowding content, experiences–Misjudging workload–Dysfunction between my unit and others (within law and university wide)

Taking risks and willingness to fail

• Used first in 2003 - optional class in Canada. Now used in all subjects

• Originally 5% of marks now about 20%• “Selective Reflective Journals”• No prescription on size, content, format• Purposes of journal

– Serve three critical purposes. First, and foremost, they allow the students to reflect upon their own learning. Second, the journals allow me to understand the impact upon various students of different presentation and teaching styles, changes in content or emphasis and allows the identification of barriers or stumbling blocks to learning (whether internal or external to the class). Third, the journals allow students to display what (and how) they have learnt in a variety of mediums (notes, drawings, poetry or music) which may not be fully reflected in other work they are required to lodge for assessment.

• “The opportunity to keep a journal, is such a valuable and rare opportunity. What strikes me most is that it has been weighted as the same amount as the essays were. Rick obviously places a high regard on these journals and in turn, it has meant that I have attempted, throughout the unit, to make valuable reflections.” 4th Year student

Use of reflective journals

• The primary opportunity for learning - scheduled, venue• A performance

– 3 ‘take aways’ primary objective to inspire/encourage follow up

– Tension and release– Running schedule– Audience– Alternative content delivery (notes, recording)

• Interaction– Group work - Question and Answer (minimise the

’picking on’)– sms questions - not yet tried– Leaving the lectern

• Video Vignettes• Guest lecturers

– Generally unknown talentA segment of lecture - Top and tailedA talk show format

Techniques for lecturing to large groups

• Several pieces and types of assessment• High trust environment• No single dominant assessment task• Related to objectives of course• Criterion based• Open-ended learning tasks - allowing for

‘unexpected and unplanned’ learning outcomes• Searching for ‘functioning’ knowledge• My three major tasks (journal feedback)

– 1. Setting the criteria for assessing the work

– 2. Selecting the evidence that would be relevant to submit

– 3. Making a judgment about the extent to which these criteria have been met

Approaches to Assessment

• WEB CT (Web course tools) - supplement– Lecture notes– Pre-readings– Optional or supplementary material

• E - Newsletters - Weekly or regular– Events– Forthcoming assessment– Progress suggestions– Reading (including non-course entertainment esp first years)– Interesting questions during week

• Facebook - early days– Connections with lecturer website www.ricksnell.com.au– Class group

• Blogging• Podcasting - early days

– Visitors– Staff seminars– Special or commissioned recorded programs - associated with topics or

readings

Use of Technology - tools rather than toys