Sean McTavish (Mechanical and Aerospace) Ali Etemad (Systems and Computers)

Motivation  Classrooms are very diverse and students learn in a number of ways  We can be more effective as educators by using approaches that can reach a broad audience

Introduction  Icebreaker  Ways that students learn  Approaches to reach your audience  Ways to organise lectures and discussion groups

Ice Breaker  Place yourselves in groups  Introduce yourselves, the department that you’re from, and one teaching approach that you’ve found to be effective.  Choose one approach and share with the entire audience

Some ways that students learn*  Through their senses Visually: Slides, props, videos, etc. Verbally (auditory): Listening to the lecture, reading back notes, etc. Kinaesthetic (Hands-on): Props, activities

Some ways that students learn… Experience-based  Having an experience  Reviewing the experience  Concluding from the experience  Planning the next steps

Some ways that students learn… Context in which the material is given  Sequential Learning  Global Learning R.M. Felder, L.K. Silverman "Learning and Teaching Styles: In Engineering Education," Engr. Education, 78(7), (1988)

Ways to reach an audience  Understand that everyone learns differently and responds differently  Integrate a broad range of approaches in a single lesson Graphics, charts, images Handouts with extra content, include white space for student notes Describe what is about to be taught and what has been taught Include group activities drawing the students into the learning process

Ways to reach an audience  Balance individual steps with the bigger picture Gradually progress from the basics to ever more complicated problems Present the big picture before proceeding with the steps Involve problems which require creative or alternative solutions

Designing a lecture  Lectures typically have a more formal tone  Areas to consider: What is the nature of the material? ○ Does it lend itself to figures, models, props? How will you present the material? ○ Board, overhead, or Powerpoint? How do you intend on incorporating participation? How can you incorporate the big picture? ○ Videos, images, current events?

Working in small groups  Often of a more informal nature Discussion groups, PA sessions, labs, office hours  What kind of visual tools do you have? Can they add depth or understanding?  What experiences can you draw on?

Lesson Development  In groups, come up with an example of a lesson that you had difficulty learning from (5 minutes).  Develop a teaching strategy (10 minutes) How would you improve the lesson? What teaching approaches could you incorporate?  Share What was goal of the original lesson? How does your strategy improve upon the original? What specific strategies did you choose?

Summary  Understand and be aware of how students learn  Try to reach as many students as possible using a wide range of educational approaches