the science behind engaging students in class
DESCRIPTION
This is the expanded version of 'How to Fight Lecturalgia'. The enhancements from the peer-reviewed literature and science behind aspects of visual design were added in response to feedback after presenting the former version. This was presented as the keynote of Faculty Development at the University of Louisiana - Monroe.TRANSCRIPT
Kevin A. Clauson, PharmD
The Science
Behind Engaging
Students in Class
Which College are you
representing today?
1. Arts and Sciences
2. Business
Administration
3. Education and
Human Development
4. Health Sciences
5. Pharmacy
6. Graduate Studies
Which best describes your
formal training on how to teach?
1. Modeling based on observing professors
2. Periodic faculty development after becoming a teacher
3. Teaching certificate/track in residency/postdoc
4. Education degree
5. Other
What best describes your use of
an audience response system?
0%
0%
0%
0%
0% 1. I have never considered using clickers
in my class
2. I have considered clickers, but never
tried them in class
3. I use clickers sometimes in my classes
4. I use clickers frequently in my classes
5. I should probably be teaching YOU
about clickers
Objectives
1. Discuss underlying causes and treatments
for lecturalgia
2. Discuss communication and visual design
concepts including dual channels, split
attention effect, and cognitive load
3. Explore the benefits and hurdles with an
audience response system (ARS)
4. Formulate a plan to increase student
interaction and engagement with ARS
What is Lecturalgia?
1. Endangered species
of microplankton
2. Type of nail fungus
3. Word from Greek for
„painful lecture‟
4. Word I just made up
Med Educ 2001;35(12):1135-42.
Causes of
lecturalgia
Poor
organization
The Craft of Scientific Presentations
Poor judgment
Poor
delivery
Pipeline
(unidirectional)
Beyond Bullet Points, 2008.
Pipeline
Beyond Bullet Points, 2008.
No
learning
Fragmented
learning
Meaningful
learning
“My Time” vs “Our Time”
Be flexible in your approach
Avoid educational constipation
Which type of memory has the
most limited capacity?
1. Sensory
2. Working
3. Long-term
Sensory Long-termWorking
Three Types of Memory
Psychol Rev 1956;63(2):81-97.
Nat Rev Neurosci 2003;4(10):829-39.
Sensory Long-termWorking
Three Types of Memory
Psychol Rev 1956;63(2):81-97.
Nat Rev Neurosci 2003;4(10):829-39.
Mental
processing
Mu
ltim
ed
ia L
ea
rnin
g, 2
00
9.
Co
mp
utE
duc
20
03
;41
:77
-86.
Step 1
Put words into
auditory working
memory and
images into
visual working
memory
Co
mp
utE
duc
20
03
;41
:77
-86.
Step 2
Organize
information
separately in
auditory and
visual memory
Co
mp
utE
duc
20
03
;41
:77
-86.
Step 3
Integrate
representations
with prior
knowledge
Dual Coding
Mind and Its Evolution, 2007.
Visual Channel
Audio Channel
Lack of channel synchronicity
Lack of channel synchronicity
Split attention effect
Lack of channel synchronicity
Split attention effect
Increased cognitive load
We can speak at ~ 125 words per
minute (WPM), but we read at:
1. 25 WPM.
2. 125 WPM.
3. 150 WPM.
4. 200 WPM.
5. >250 WPM.
Putting all of the text on the screen of what
you will say and then essentially reading
that text is the surest way to induce the
redundancy effect which basically means
you are presenting the same information at
the same time via both visual and audio
channels so you force the working memory
of the students to work twice as hard to
reconcile those two sources of information
leading to cognitive overload which
ultimately impairs learning
J Educ Psych 2001;93(1):187-98.
Perfect storm created that
reduces learning
Multimedia Learning, 2009.
The perfect marriage of audio and visual can enhance conceptual recall
Co
gn
itiv
e L
oa
d, 2
01
0.
However, slides containing
text with unrelated or visually
discordant images could
negatively affect learning
J Am Soc Info Sci 1996;47:437-48.
Pastry chefs: a
brief history
(maybe if the topic
was pasty chefs…
or Vitamin D
deficiency)
When considering lecture
delivery and its visuals…
Design. Do Not Decorate.
How many slides should you
have for a 60 minute lecture?
0%0%0%0%0%
15 45 60 75 Other
1. 15
2. 45
3. 60
4. 75
5. Other
Symptoms of lecturalgia to
watch for…
Tinnitus
Loss of consciousness
Suicidal
ideation
And of course…
texting
How Do We Fight
Lecturalgia?
Revista de Informatica Aplicada 2009;5(1):51-60.
Solutions to treat lecturalgia are
not always clear
BMC Med Educ 2003;3:12.
Gamble that what you‟ve always
done still works?
Sometimes it‟s best to dive right in
Transitioning from…
QJM 2004;97(1):47-51.
Sage on the Stage eSocrates
Use as part of a
blended approach
to teaching
Ultimately, it‟s just
one more tool
When was ARS introduced
into medical education?
1. Early 1970s
2. Early 1980s
3. Late 1980s
4. Late 1990s
First generation student clicker
Mayo Clin Proc 1973;48:294-7.
Mayo Clin Proc 1977;52:556-60.
College Faculty Use of ARS
8%
13%
79%
Don't know what it is
Use it some
Never use it
Source: Faculty Survey of Student Engagement 2009
How frequently do you need to
reengage your audience?
1. Every 3 minutes
2. Every 7 minutes
3. Every 20 minutes
4. Every 30 minutes
Every
Minutes
Student
populations are
increasingly
diverse with
accompanying
differences in
learning styles
Customize the learning experience
Strategies for implementing
ARS in the classroom
What ARS strategy are you
MOST looking forward to using?
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
Medical Teacher 2008;30(2):146-9.
1. Factual questions to evaluate outside readings and content
2. Conceptual questions to drive discussion
3. Linkable pre- and post-test questions
4. Creating questions on the fly to gauge student understanding
5. Real-time course evaluations
Additional ARS Strategies
Am J Pharm Educ 2008;72(4):77.
Assess participation/attendance
Administer low stakes quiz/OSCE
Elicit opinions on
sensitive topics
Analyze data generated and
map to objectives/outcomes
Use ARS to vote on
student presentations
ARS and crowd behavior
IEEE International CCA 2007;658-663.
Types of
What type
of bacteria
is this?
1. Staphylococcus
2. Streptococcus
3. Meningococcus
What color is the cerebellum?
1. Blue
2. Green
3. Purple
4. Red
5. Yellow
What color elicits the strongest
placebo effect for depression?
1. Green
2. Red
3. Yellow
4. Pill color does not
alter response
BMJ 1996;313:1624-26.
Which course would be most useful
to prepare students for this patient?
Which course would be most useful
to prepare students for this patient?
1. Communication Skills
2. Drug Delivery
Systems
3. Pharmacognosy
4. Pharmacokinetics
5. Therapeutics/
Pathophysiology
Which country has the largest
number of English speakers?
1. China
2. England
3. India
4. South Africa
5. United States
English Mania
Hurdles
with ARS
What will the biggest hurdles be
here for using ARS?
0%
0%
0%
0%
0% 1. Maintenance costs
2. Requirement to modify teaching style
and existing lecture
3. Student resistance to change
4. Technology malfunctions
5. Time investment by faculty to learn
software and hardware
Let‟s take a look at the literature
ARS in pharmacy schools
Use of ARS in
Molecular Biology &
Physical Chemistry Courses
Am
J P
harm
Educ
20
09
;73
(2):
21
.
98% (n=109)
responded that ARS
helped pay attention
Am J Pharm Educ 2009;73(2):21.
Silver medal questions must
be answered solo by
students
For credit: 80% of the class
must answer correctly
Gold medal questions can be
answered collaboratively
For credit: 90% of the class
must answer correctly
Am J Pharm Educ 2009;73(2):21.
Detour
Alternative
Grading
Schemes
Ahead
Percentages of ARS
questions answered
Participation
Points
100%-80% 5
79%-65% 4
64%-50% 3
Less than 50% 0
Sydneyeve Matrix
Hybrid ARS
Grading
Dr. Russell James III
*Previous 2 years student
evaluations (4 pt scale)
Mean course grades increased:
2006 (81.8; p<0.001)
2007 (86.1; p<0.05)
compared to 2008 with ARS (89.9)
No difference between ARS and
non-ARS performance in
Pathophysiology and Therapeutics with
memorization exam items
ARS group performed better (82.5%)
than non-ARS group (77.4%) (p=0.002)
with analytical type exam questions
Use of ARS in Cancer Module
Am
J P
harm
Educ
20
08
;72
(2):
38
.
Focus groups assessed ARS
Pilot study using ARS to
connect three campuses
Survey Item SA/A
(%)
U
(%)
SD/D
(%)
Use of ARS encouraged
me to participate in class
89.8 5.1 5.1
Because of ARS I
participated more than I
usually do
84.5 4.5 11.0
I valued that ARS let me
respond anonymously
93.2 3.4 3.4
The use of ARS made
some topics clearer
72.0 15.4 12.6
The use of ARS was
distracting
12.0 11.4 76.6
SA=strongly agree, A=agree, U=unsure, SD=strongly disagree, D=disagree
What GAPS exist in the literature?
ARS outside of the classroom
Use of ARS for paperless
live CE sessions
J C
on
tin
Ed
uc
He
alt
h P
rof
20
03
; 2
3(2
):1
09
-115
Int
J N
urs
Pra
ct
20
10
;16
(3):
26
8-7
3.
Data collection at nursing
conference with ARS
Using ARS to educate patients about
online health information seeking behaviors
Google Health Wikipedia
Where do
we go from
here?
In healthcare – if
you didn’t document
it, then you didn’t
do it
In education – if
you didn’t assess it,
you might as well
not have done it
Pay attention to the details
Have you viewed
“Death By PowerPoint”?
0%0%
Yes No
1. Yes
2. No
Free Recommended Resources
www.ted.com
www.slideshare.net www.derekbruff.com/teachingwithcrs
www.flickr.com
Recommended Resources
Summary Points
• ARS is one tool in our arsenal to increase
student engagement
• Proactively managing the hurdles with
ARS and integrating educational theory
may result in a better learning experience
• Benefits associated with ARS have been
demonstrated but additional research is
still needed
Expanded slide deck can be found at:
www.slideshare.net/kclauson
Images
• http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/312658/june-17-2010/obama-s-simplified-bp-oil-spill-speech
• htttp://www.youtube.com
• http://www.aace.org/conf/edmedia/
• http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2073/2264195999_c4cc2c9ef7.jpg?v=0
• http://www.philipcoppens.com/socrates_2.jpg
• http://www.villaware.com/Product.aspx?pid=1506
Images
• http://dclips.fundraw.com/zobo500dir/ornamental_s_7.jpg
• http://www.flickr.com/photos/spacelion/2295706021/sizes/l/in/photostream/
• http://www.wired.com/medtech/drugs/magazine/17-09/ff_placebo_effect?currentPage=all
• http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/jay_walker_on_the_world_s_english_mania.html
• www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjkCl3-PId8
• http://worldbreastfeedingweek.net/wbw2008/images/silvermedal_back.JPG
• http://media.sacbee.com/static/weblogs/the_state_worker/gold%20medal.jpg
Images
• http://blog.taragana.com/n/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/piaggio-mp3-hybrid-scooter-1.jpg
• http://www.flickr.com/photos/30211781@N04/3937853319/sizes/l/in/photostream/
• http://www.flickr.com/photos/valuecarenurses/149314448/sizes/l/
• http://neatorama.cachefly.net/images/uploads/2007/03/1292945_360x249.jpg
• http://www.slideshare.net
Unreferenced images are
licensed stock photography
Thank you for your time!
@kevinclauson unhub.com/kevinclauson