Once one develops a system for implementing a pedagogical intervention, there's an underlying hope that it will work at least one more time. Cue the crying laughter. I thought once I had figured out the ungrading process, it could be used with every exam. What I forgot was the years of practice I've had simply … Continue reading Ungrading: Reframing the Experiment (Part 4)
5R Adult Learning Assignment 7: Experiential Learning
Synopsis/Reflection – Experiential Learning: Summary, Reflection and Praxis Experiential learning has been the major hallmark of my formal higher education in many ways. From my experience in the 5th grade when I shadowed my sister during her music theory and application classes at Southwestern University to my undergraduate and first graduate degrees in Chemistry to … Continue reading 5R Adult Learning Assignment 7: Experiential Learning
Ungrading: The first exam (Part 3)
There's a major difference between wanting to accomplish something pedagogically and actually implementing it. I forget this important little fact every time I attempt something new. And every time, learning the tacit knowledge needed to implement my vision feels like recreating the wheel. Ungrading was both the same and a different kind of experience than … Continue reading Ungrading: The first exam (Part 3)
5R Adult Learning Assignment 6: Andragogy and Oppressive Pedagogies
Synopsis/Reflection – Andragogy vs. Pedagogy and “Pedagogy of the Oppressed” According to Merriam-Webster, andragogy is the art or science of teaching adults; pedagogy is the art, science, or profession of teaching. Both words derive from the Greek. Pedagogy’s roots - agogus means “leader of” and paid means “child” - combine to form paidagogus, a slave … Continue reading 5R Adult Learning Assignment 6: Andragogy and Oppressive Pedagogies
5R Adult Learning Assignment 5: Learning – The Neuroscience and the Neuromyths
Synopsis/Reflection – What does it mean to learn? (from a neuroscience perspective, that is) Learning, at its most fundamental, is a process that changes the brain. According to Gary’s warm-up video, neuroscience states that “learning has occurred when information can be retrieved after a period of disuse and applied to new situations.” This neuroscience definition … Continue reading 5R Adult Learning Assignment 5: Learning – The Neuroscience and the Neuromyths
5R Adult Learning Assignment 4: Learning Theories
Synopsis/Reflection – Why all traditional learning theories fail to describe the entire experience of learning Merriam and Bierema (2014, p. 25) state that a learning theory is an explanation “of what happens when learning takes place”. While this definition is simple, it doesn’t really effectively capture what learning theories should entail. Illeris (2018, p. 86) … Continue reading 5R Adult Learning Assignment 4: Learning Theories
5R Adult Learning Assignment 3: Mastery Learning, Practice and Feedback
Synopsis/Reflection – Mastery learning, Practice and Feedback: Essentials for Learning According to Ambrose et al. (2010), to achieve mastery in learning a certain domain, students must acquire key component skills, practice integrating those skills effectively, and apply those skills in appropriate contexts. We would like our students to achieve mastery because experts (interchangeable with masters … Continue reading 5R Adult Learning Assignment 3: Mastery Learning, Practice and Feedback
5R Adult Learning Assignment 2: Prior Knowledge and Misconceptions
This is a blog series detailing my seven 5R assignments for Adult Learning, an 8-week course I'm taking at UNM with Gary Smith. The name 5R comes from the requirements for each assignment: Read, Reflect, Research, Relate, Resources. Read reflects checking off a box - reading the assignment and working through the learning module components, which … Continue reading 5R Adult Learning Assignment 2: Prior Knowledge and Misconceptions
5R Adult Learning Assignment 1: The Adult Learner
This is a blog series detailing my seven 5R assignments for Adult Learning, an 8-week course I'm taking at UNM with Gary Smith. The name 5R comes from the requirements for each assignment: Read, Reflect, Research, Relate, Resources. Read reflects checking off a box - reading the assignment and working through the learning module components, which … Continue reading 5R Adult Learning Assignment 1: The Adult Learner
Ungrading: The First Day (Part 2)
I was prepared. I was ready for almost any student argument. I had thoroughly thought through how I would "sell" ungrading to my Organic Chemistry II students. And then the first day happened. It was yet another reminder that we're never truly ready for new pedagogical implementations, no matter how ready we think we are. … Continue reading Ungrading: The First Day (Part 2)