OSU Center for Teaching and Learning

Despite the preponderance of research documenting the limitations and inappropriate use of students’ ratings instruction as a primary evaluation of teaching quality,  many universities continue to rely heavily, if not solely on eSETS to make professional decisions. Check out this NPR blog to see why this practice is, at the very least inappropriate and as some claim, unethical.

“The better the professors were, as measured by their students’ grades in later classes, the lower their ratings from students.” Just one quote of many worth reading in the blog below…

http://www.npr.org/blogs/ed/2015/04/26/401953167/what-if-students-could-fire-their-professors?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=npr&utm_term=nprnews&utm_content=20150426

Article in the Chronicle of Higher Education outlines four broad characteristics of powerful teachers: Personality,Presence, Preparation and Passion. http://m.chronicle.com/article/The-4-Properties-of-Powerful/228483/

Using their article as a launching point, I have added a few tips and tricks below.

Powerful teachers have personalities that are, in general, good natured and approachable.  Students are not intimidated by you and all that you know; instead students feel welcome to ask questions and seek your support.

“Presence” refers to the teacher’s engagement in the course.  Students can easily discern whether the content and teaching is of interest to an instructor.  If you are burned out on teaching a particular course, talk to your chair to see if you can get some renewal by designing and/or teaching a different course.

Preparation, as you might guess is the longest entry in this article.  Because knowledge is generating so quickly now,it is critical that teacher’s revisit their courses to ensure modernization of content. But modernization is not the only thing to analyze about your course design.  think about the course as a whole and identify the points in the course that are consistently difficult for students and consider ways you can further scaffold or support their understanding.  Often the incorporation of analogies and metaphors work, or perhpas a visual demonstration will assist students in making the connections you intend.  Most importantly however, is to ensure your course activities and assessments are directly aligned to what students are supposed to learn in your course (the course objectives).  When the alignment is off, all kinds of issues arise: students may not learn what you intend, tests may be contested, and most assuredly student success is jeopardized. Powerful teachers are well prepared and enter the classroom clear about what the students are to learn during the upcoming class.

Passion, the magic behind the personae, can be simply defined as the love a teacher has for the subject matter and for the act of teaching.  For those of us who love teaching, we are familiar with the creativity and joy that can be a part of the teaching experience.  We are also well aware of the sorrows and disappointments as well, but much like childbirth, we forget the pain and focus on the rewards.  If you aren’t feeling more joy in your teaching than overt frustration, then consider coming to the Center for Teaching and Learning to re-ignite your teaching and discover professional renewal.

We have a dine and discuss next Wednesday.  Please join us and preregister at: http://oregonstate.edu/ctl/spring-2015-symposium

Dear Colleagues,

Vicki Tolar Burton and I recently received an interesting question from a new OSU teacher: What [are the] general expectations at OSU for undergraduate writing competencies, and what resources are there for a student whose skills are less than adequate?

CTL Response:

Your question is appropriate and pertinent.  At this point, no institutional proficiency levels have been set for writing, thinking, fitness, or general broad based knowledge: our general education outcomes.  Proficiency levels in knowledge-in-the-majors are sometimes set for graduates by specific programs, but unfortunately, the “everybody outcomes” (general education) continue to be the “lost child” in the larger institutional curriculum.

Our faculty must set minimum proficiency levels for graduation by designing and embedding writing assessments at entrance, midpoint and exit from OSU.  Until that happens,  students can maneuver through the institutional curriculum without language literacy.  Students do this by focusing course work primarily in areas that require numeracy literacy and avoiding courses that require much writing (there is a vibrant undercurrent of “advising” going on among students about which teachers [and courses] are more rigorous than others). As a faculty, we have not sufficiently woven writing into all Major curricula, therefore  students can (and do) AVOID writing practice over the course of their 4-6 years on our campus. (It is important to note here that students with low numeracy literacy can also avoid math skill development simply by careful selection of courses).  This phenomena is not unique to OSU…but nevertheless troublesome.

In order  to spur this conversation institutionally, exit writing samples of graduating students are needed.  We need  data (writing samples) that clearly illuminate the the wide variance in writing proficiency levels of graduating seniors.  This level of investigation could be done at any program level: embed a common writing prompt(with clear parameters) into a senior level course: collect student work and review it.  There are varying opinions on what the “parameters” are for a writing prompt.  Some folks argue students’ writing  samples must be “final copy” ( that is students have had the chance to use the writing process: pre-write, rewrite and final copy).  Others argue that a “true” example of writing proficiency must be an “on demand” writing sample, in which students are given a prompt in class and required to write their response during a set amount of time.  (Frankly, it would be interesting to do both and see how much variance occurs in ONE student between an on demand assignment and a revised and polished assignment. What reflections and insights might the student have about his/her own level of writing proficiency and his/her readiness for the work place?)

Common writing prompts can easily be embedded into a classes for the purpose of  gathering data.  For assistance with this you can contact the CTL, WIC, or Tim Jensen our on-campus writing specialist.

In the meantime, refer your students to the Writing Center, located in Waldo; students get free informed writing assistance and support there. (There is also a specialist in the Student Writing Center for second language writers, Galina Romantsova.)  Because writing is a skill, and requires consistent practice over time (like ANY OTHER skill) the sooner students start working with the Writing Center the greater the impact on their writing development.  Unfortunately students don’t understand the importance of continued writing practice as the writing center is always mobbed during week 10…rather than week 1 or 2.

The Center for Teaching and Learning has posted a few rubrics under the Resource Section for your use and as Vicki Tolar Burton (Director of the Writing Intensive Courses, reminds us that if  a course is designated as WIC, “…the writing standards should be fairly high, since this is where students are supposed to demonstrate their ability to write in the field or profession. “

I recently received an inquiry in the Center for Teaching and Learning asking for advice on the “appropriate grade distribution” for a class.  In fact, there is not an ideal grade distribution.

The idea of grades, as opposed to narrative reports, were introduced to schooling early in the industrial revolution as a method of sorting and selecting quality (similar to the grading of meat quality). The truth is, there are so MANY variables in the way faculty calculate grades they are far from comparable.  (This was illustrated in a recent workshop I did twice here for OSU in which I placed a series of marks for faculty to calculate and the audience of 80 teachers produced every grade from an F to an A from the same set of marks!) Grade distributions assume not all students will succeed, and that a certain portion of them will fail.  A mathematically generated bell curve compares student to student, rather than student to academic outcomes, or standards of proficiency.  A focus on grade DISTRIBUTION, as well as “GRADING ON THE CURVE”  are therefore inappropriate when it comes to capturing learning.

Instead, we should be looking at PROFICIENCY LEVELS.   When we are clear about performance and knowledge levels, then we can compare students to  program-level (or course specific) outcomes.  Students need to know the proficiency levels so they can hit them.  When proficiency expectations, or clear criteria for academic success, are clearly and consistently communicated to, and supported by the instructor, it is possible that ALL students could work hard, and actually meet the proficiency expectations.  In that case, all students receive the grade of “A:”  the teacher delivered a well designed course, with assignments that were aligned to the outcomes, and the students worked hard to meet those clear expectations.    The questions we need to ask are: what skills and knowledge are targeted for development in our programs and courses?  What levels of proficiency must our students demonstrate at certain points in the program (or course)?  What kind of assessments will best support students in demonstrating their knowledge and skill development?

The purpose of schooling is to educate all students to the best levels possible…not to sort and select them into a statistical model.

The processes teachers use to calculate grades can be a major risk factor for students… and institutionally, we need to stop and take a look at whether we are using what the research suggests as being fair.  At Oregon State University, The Center for Teaching and Learning take this type of issue very seriously.  Last year we conducted an experiment.  We provided a room full of university-level instructors a series of assignment grades (equal to a quarter’s work) and asked the teachers to use their current grading system to calculate a final grade.  Final grades ranged from an A to D.  How is this possible?  Surely this wide variance in how teachers calculate student achievement is of concern to our students…and it needs to become more of a concern to us as a faculty.

University of Washington is one of the few PAC 12 institutions addressing the need for greater consistency in the grading process.  They recently established a consistent grading scale. http://faculty.washington.edu/scstroup/Gradescale.html  A common grading scale is a great beginning (91-100 is an A- to A+), but their work does not end there.  The far more complicated issue is ensuring teachers are using FAIR methods of calculating grades.

Here are a list of best practices, based on the preponderance of  research (and statistics) for your review.  And just to give you some foreshadowing…your own OSU Center for Teaching and Learning is designing a user-friendly tool to assist you in selecting a fair and user-friendly grading system for your classes.  Until then, I hope you will take the time to review and apply these 11 tips for fair grading.    If you assign a zero for missing assignments, be sure to read Tip 11!

Grading Tips

1. A grade communicates a teachers’’ culminating judgment about a student’s individual academic gains towards a clearly communicated exit proficiency level.
2. Assigning a “grade” to a student BEGINS with clear learning outcomes. The course outcomes identify WHAT students are to learn. They do not, however clarify the proficiency level students are expected to reach 5by the end of the class. Proficiency levels must be communicated through examples of student work and/or rubrics.
3. Not all classes qualify for the same grading system. Course outcomes dictate the type of grading system appropriate for that class.
4. The validity of a grade is directly related to the quality of the assessment tool. Tests are to be aligned directly to what was TAUGHT and EMPHASIZED during the course (this is called criterion referenced assessment). Exams are not meant to trick students, but rather to accurately capture how much a student has learned as a result of a course.
5. Never grade on the curve. Grading on the curve, unlike criterion-referenced assessment, is “norm-referenced.” In norm-referenced testing “…grades are assigned on how a student’s performance compared with others in the class: Students performing better than most classmates receive the higher grades,” (pg. 327, Nitko &Brookhart 2011). Norm referencing is appropriate when the “population” (the total number of students assessed) is large enough to conduct statistically significant analysis. No courses at OSU are even close to the necessary population to warrant the use of a norm-referencing approach to calculating grades; in the classroom grading on the curve breeds competition and does not accurately reflect what each student has learned.
6. In order to get a fair assessment of students’ learning, it is recommended students be given a variety of ways of demonstrating their knowledge and skills gained. Exams are one method of demonstration; others include graphic organizers, written assignments; presentations; student-teacher conferences, etc.
7. During the quarter, give frequent assessments of students’ academic progress to stay informed about their academic growth but DO NOT calculate all those “dipstick assessments” into the grade.
8. Only grade work that has been announced to students ahead of time. Provide clear expectations for assignments through rubrics on a four point scale: Exemplary, 4 points; Proficient, 3 points; Developing, 2 points; Beginning, 1 point; failure to complete, 0 points.
9. If students MISS an assignment or hand in their work late, give them an opportunity to make it up by completing some other, additional assignment. Clearly remind students of this every time an assignment is made. “If your work is late or missing, you will still be required to hand in that assignment AND watch the “make up video” posted on Canvas, and write a one page reflection.”
10. Students should never be penalized academically for a pedagogical mistake. If no one in the class receives a high mark on the exam, review the test for patterns in students’ performance. If most students miss a specific question, throw the question out; it may have been misleading or was not adequately covered in class.
11. Always give a graded assignment BEFORE the fourth week so students can determine whether they have the necessary prior knowledge or skill level to successfully complete the class. The fourth week is the last week to withdraw from a course without penalty.
12. If you use a percentage method for calculating a grade, never assign a zero to a missing assignment. Instead just assign 59; an F need not be graduated. “when combined with the common practice of grade averaging, a single zero can be a devastating effect on a students’ percentage grade.  The overall grade is unfairly skewed by that one, a typical low score.  To recover from a single zero in a percentage grade system, a student  must achieve a minimum of nine perfect papers…A single zero can doom a student to failure, regardless of what dedicated effort to level of performance might follow (Guskey, 2004; Reeves, 2004 as cited in Guskey, 2015).

As we ready for the new academic year teachers we reviewing our course syllabi and readying for new students. Some classes are large, some are online, others are blended or hybrid courses with some teaching on line and some face-to-face. Regardless of the delivery model, there are still three critical characteristics that directly influence students’ learning.

1. Be Kind

The preponderance of research on learning and cognition confirm the importance of teachers creating “ a climate conducive to learning.”   Humans learn more effectively when they have a sense of social, physical and psychological safety…and the first week of classes is, especially for our first year students, a time of fear and trepidation.

Students arrive in our classrooms nervous, unsure whether they have the knowledge and skills to succeed; afraid they may not be smart enough or disciplined enough to “make it” in this class. The first day of class is the most important class session of the quarter because it is shape their attitudes and perceptions about you as a teacher and the relevancy and difficulty of the course. There are several strategies teachers use to create a classroom climate that facilitates learning.

a)    On the first day, introduce yourself to your students in a way that goes beyond your qualifications to teach the class…let them see the person who is their teacher. Explain how it is your responsibility to guide them intellectually from place A to place B, and that this is a collaborative endeavor: with hard work they will achieve.

b)    Establish routines – Structure provides students with a sense of predictability.

c)    Hook your students at the beginning of every class: tell a funny story, give a cool demonstration, deploy a clicker review. This ignites the brain and prepares it to integrate new knowledge. (A pop quiz would not fit into this category; quizzes are meant to support the learning and are therefore either planned or at the end of a class session.)

d)    Incorporate cooperative learning – When humans think, talk and apply knowledge they are constructing the neural pathways that allow knowledge to be retained and accessed. Cooperative learning especially contributes to a climate conducive to learning when teachers, over the quarter, require students to meet with a variety of classmates (Find a person who is from another place in the world than you and answer this question.)

e)    Never grade on the curve. When student scores are organized into a bell curve there is an assumption that some students must fail…even if they did very well on the exam. A more ethical method of grading compares students to proficiency standards rather than to one another. This requires us, as teachers, to carefully analyze our exams and assignments to be sure they are capturing the type of thinking and application of knowledge we expect at certain points in the course, and in the program. With well designed assessments students are better able to demonstrate how much they learned…and earn a grade that better reflects their efforts.

2. Be Clear

Students fear they will not have the knowledge and skills necessary to succeed in your course. Address this fear by clearly communicating what is expected of students both socially and academically.

a)    Be respectful and expect respect in return…then explain and/or discuss what respect looks like in that particular class (Ask them to turn their phones on mute during class and have a funny consequence: anyone who lets their phone ring during class has to stand and sing the school song to their peers.)

b)    Clearly explain what students are to learn in this course (outcomes) and why this particular “set of knowledge” is important to them and their lives. How does this course fit into the larger world of knowledge?

c)    Clearly identify when and how students will be assessed. The design of your course will determine the grading system that is most fair in illustrating the degree of learning students have accomplished as a result of this class.

d)    Include rubrics to clearly communicate academic expectations and levels of proficiency. Always give rubrics to the students ahead of time so they can use the rubric to guide their work.

3. Be Passionate

Our students are novices, who have varying degrees of interest in your courses…illuminate for them why this particular course is interesting and important!

a)    Help them contextualize the knowledge and skills taught in this class with the broader, more global program outcomes.

b)    Point out the relevancy of this information and how it will assist them in the world of inquiry and work.

c)    Ask them big and difficult questions that are at the center of your course: In what way has “place” shaped who you are? Where does morality come from, is it biological, social, spiritual? Does art foretell history?

d)    Integrate cool technology to illustrate phenomena

e)    Create engaging assignments that connect students with the OSU community, the region and the world.

At Oregon State University, students’ academic growth matters. OSU’s collective commitment to enhancing students’ growth will make a difference in our students’ lives…and ultimately in the health and wellness of the great state of Oregon. We recognize that what teachers do makes a difference in their learning…and for that we are grateful to you for your willingness to share your passion and expertise.

Welcome back!