Getting the STEM Classroom Right: Engaging Undergraduate Students with Experiential Learning Session begins at 1PM ET/12PM CT/11AM MT/10AM PT. Please configure your audio by running the Audio Set Up Wizard: Tools>Audio>Audio Set Up Wizard. Dmitri Litvinov Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School; John and Rebecca Moores Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering; Professor, Materials Science & Engineering, Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, and Chemistry; Director, Center for Integrated Bio and Nano Systems / UH Nanofabrication Facility, University of Houston What does “experiential learning” mean to you? Respond below with the textbox tool (4 th icon on the vertical toolbar to the left) Featuring:

Welcome To Today’s CIRTLCast! Learn more about CIRTL at EVENTS JOURNAL CLUB COURSES WORKSHOPS SUMMER INSTITUTES

Getting the STEM classroom right Engaging undergraduate students with experiential learning Dmitri Litvinov, Electrical & Computer Engineering, University of Houston

About me I am a professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering (since 2003) Trained mostly as a physicist (BS/MS – Physics, MS in Electrical Engineering, PhD – Applied Physics) In retrospect, I had excellent instructors but… Rarely my instructors cared to explain the big picture More often than not it was not obvious why I had to take a particular course (e.g. Linear Algebra) or how different parts of the course fit together

Lessons learned over the years Engineering students are very practically oriented They expect to get professional training that will prepare them for a job They will evaluate anything that you teach them as whether it will help them to find that job!

Lessons learned over the years Students often do not know why they are in a particular course (except that it is required)  Work diligently on making the connection between what you are teaching and the rest of the curriculum  Keep reminding the students about this connection throughout the course Note: this requires close familiarity with your program curriculum. Invest time to understand it!!!

Lessons learned over the years Students would like to know the big picture within a course and where the course is heading Project the long-term plan for the course – it helps to be intimately familiar with the entire course content from the start Make every attempt to tie together different topics in a course Explain how each preceding part reinforces or feeds into the following part If possible, develop examples that have a common theme throughout the course – students learn better when they see familiar topics

Lessons learned over the years The best way to loose the classroom is to lecture from the book Textbooks are great resources and I strongly encourage my students to use them as such Rather than covering theory, I spend most of the classroom time on examples I do cover the theory through examples

Lessons learned over the years You don’t have to choose between using either slides or writing on a board I find it helpful to use both simultaneously. For example, use a projector to display circuit diagram and work out the voltage/current solutions on a whiteboard

Lessons learned over the years Students greatly appreciate structure and predictability Provide exam, quiz, homework schedule - be very specific with the dates and do not deviate Provide a schedule of when each topic will be covered. Include references to specific chapters if using a book

Lessons learned over the years Be highly specific about your expectations and classroom policies and stick with them. You can be as strict as you like as long as the students know it in advance. Do not bend your own policies! Examples: “Homework is due exactly at the beginning of the class.” Do not start the class until students submit a homework. Do not accept the homework 5 minutes after the class start time. “No graphing/advanced calculators in my class.” I provide simple calculators for students who need them, but I also work hard to make sure that the calculators are not really needed to do simple additions or multiplications

Lessons learned over the years Talk to you senior colleagues! They are your best resource.

March CIRTLCast Series: Creating an Inclusive STEM Research Environment March 2: No Session March 9: Creating an Inclusive Research Environment - Overview Featuring Beth Olivares and Danielle Daniels, University of Rochester March 16: Creating Inclusive STEM Research Labs in Engineering Featuring Danielle Daniels and Mark Buckley, University of Rochester March 23: Creating Inclusive STEM Research Labs in Biology Featuring Elaine Sia and Danielle Daniels, University of Rochester March 30: Creating Inclusive STEM Research Labs in Chemistry Featuring Danielle Daniels and Michael Neidig, University of Rochester