Effective Teaching and Learning: Summarizing 3 Days Workshop

There is saying that   "There are no bad students, only bad teachers.” It means there is the necessity of understanding and implementing teaching and learning methods. Learning is never tiring process. Teachers are also a learner. In this age, the content-oriented teaching is now transforming into the student-oriented approach.  

The three days workshop at Kathford International College of Engineering and Management was on this issue containing the contents such as:   

Pedagogical Planning, Classroom Management, Teachers’ Professional Development, Students’ Assessment and Feedback and Action Research for the improvement of Pedagogical and Professional practices. 

In this article -Effective Teaching and Learning, the brief summary of each session has described respectively. The resources persons for this event were from the school of education, Kathmandu University(KU).

Day 1: Pedagogical Planning

Resource person: Dr. Bal Chandra Luitel, Associate Dean, School of Education, KU

Pedagogy is related to the theory and practice of teaching and how these influence student learning. Regarding this topic, Dr. Bal Chandra Luitel started his presentation from Outcomes-Driven Curriculum Planning. There are different levels of curriculum planning.

Level 1: Assessment of Interest 

• I am aware of what am I going to do.

• I am willing to do whatever I need to do.

Level 2: Assessment of relevant skills and knowledge 

• I am able to do whatever I need to do

Level 3: Assessment of Readiness 

• I am ready to do whatever I need to do.

Level 4: Assessment of Practice/ Implementation 

• I have done and I am reflecting on my success/failure!

In this way, assessment of interest, ability, readiness, and reflection are the fundamentals blocks of curriculum planning. He further added plans are the means, but they are ends to the means.  If Plan A does not work, one needs to have PLAN B or PLAN C in effect. Now the question is why we need curriculum planning?  He added, entering a classroom unprepared marks the beginning of a devastating career. The students of this group may be more knowledgeable in the subject area than those of previous year also we may encounter one day:

• A difficult question
• An uncontrolled situation
• A disruptive behavior 
• An incoherent  set of classroom activities

So, A good planner can anticipate these problems, and think of alternatives immediately. Planning gives confidence and enables us to identify the necessary resources.

 Then, who are the stakeholders for planning? Dean/Associate Deans, HoD/ Coordinators, Lecturers, Professors, Students are all responsible for this. 

Finally, how it can be done? 

There are five steps of the outcome-driven model to curriculum planning. 

Stage One: Finding the key attributes of graduates

For this, we have discussed in a group and drawn some key attributes of our graduates that they should have. 

Stage Two: Mapping those attributes into learning outcomes for our course

For project work, these are some learning outcomes:

Stage Three: Key concepts, ideas and “contents”, skills and attitudes are needed to demonstrate those learning outcomes

Stage Four: Assessing whether, or not our students achieved those outcomes

For laboratory these questions might be the tools of assessing students:

 Finally, Stage five was working interactively through those stages. 

The topic for the second session was "Taxonomy for Developing Course Learning Outcomes". According to Dr. Benjamin Bloom, analyzing and evaluating concepts, processes, procedures, and principles are higher forms of thinking in education rather than just remembering facts (rote learning). 

In this session for the different levels of taxonomy, the following learning outcomes were derived based on a topic called transducer of a subject-Instrumentation I.

For effective teaching and learning, There are different learning activities such as Individual activities, Group activities, Teacher-led activities, Shared activities, and  Student-led activities. 

Quick reading tasks, groups with the same number of members, roll numbers for each member in a group regrouping as per the same roll numbers are the examples of cooperative learning whereas lecturing, demonstration, expository teaching, problem-Solving and Q/A are Teacher-led activities. 

Case-based learning and problem-based learning are student-led activities. The case method is the best pedagogy to teach design, environmental engineering, managerial, and engineering ethics (Gorman,2000). Problem presentation, redefining the problem, identifying key elements, trying out a solution are the steps of problem-based learning.

Day 2: 

Session I: Classroom Management

Resource person:  Mr. Prabat Dhungana, Leadership Trainer, School of Education, KU, parbatdhungana@hotmail.com

The session was starting by a video of shallow dive from a mountain by the special kind of birds species showing that the early bird has a high rate of living than others. Mr.Prabat told that we should know how much skill or knowledge required in engineering education. First of all, objectives must be clear. Our power is the knowledge that's what students salute for. He added, for progress, we should come out from our comfort zone. He also showed us few unique terminologies such as:

FOLD-UNFOLD:  Do you know about this? के तपाईलाई थाहा छ यस बारेमा ? 
ANALOGY: Comparision
GALLERY: Show; What students have done?
GRAFFITI:Contribution/Value
JIGSAW: Assemble and Exchange Idea
ABC in Learning: 
A - Anticipation; like an appetizer, सिकाईको भोक जगाउने , Analogy: Soup
B- Building Knowledge; ज्ञान बाड्ने,  Analogy: Main meal

C- Consolidation; ज्ञानको मजबुतीकरण through revision and assessment, Analogy: Dessert 

About Classroom, It is like a busy road. Prabat sir demonstrated this by showing a video- Test Your Awareness: Whodunnit?. He also let us write about the attributes of classroom management that we experienced in the classroom.

Classroom management starts from the classroom building construction duration. Classroom management consists of physical management, psycho-social management, and learning management. 

A fundamental feature of management is planning. In physical management following planning activities should be included:

• Teaching-learning materials ( Instructional Material)
• CCA materials
• Text and references
• Reading material/space/ reconceptualistic learning 
• Space (floor, wall, and ceiling/ above shelf)
• Teachers space 
• Students space
• Classroom traffic and regulations
• Group workspace
• Infrastructures 
• Doors, Windows, Restrooms, hygiene, light, air, strength.
• Furniture ( Shelf, Desk, Chairs…)
• Mounted/fixed, peer/individual/group task
• Surveillance

Psycho-social management & Learning management:

The individual are different. The most difficult is to know people inside, and more difficult is its management. Learning is an inside and more truly a physiological process. As a teacher, he/she would have faced new class, open defiance, noisy classroom, unable to gain control, feelings of shame, anger and frustration. Fear leads students up to violence through discontented, frustration and anger. Few tips:

• Don’t sow the seed of fear, but need. 
• Make them realize the need. 
• What tool; gradual but counseling with teenagers and guidance to early

 This session also dealt with the ' Cause of Disruptive behavior of students in the classroom':  

• Past traumatic life episode(s)
• Acquired or genetic disabilities
• Emotional, physical, mental or sexual abuse
• The prolonged influence of critical, domineering or laissez-faire parenting
• The temporary or permanent absence of parents
• Prolonged exposure to poverty or adverse environmental conditions
• Boredom or lack of appropriate stimulus
• Poor teaching or poor relationships with teachers in school 

Tips: Work early, analyze, plan resolve; don’t attempt for a cure. Preventive intervention will help not the individual to climb the disruptive behavior ladder. Following interventions may require:

Statistical evidence:

• Individualized intervention would address rest 1-5%
• Targeted Group intervention will address 5 to 10%
• Universal Intervention will address 80 to 90%

In the final round of this session, We learned about the learners' types and classroom strategy. There are varieties of learners. Audial learners are good listener whereas visual learners are good at observation. 

Sharing some classroom strategies:

• Real life experiences/situations/problems
• Time management
• Meaningful engagement
• Tied to the knowledge
• Soft skills integrated
• Retains interest
• Reinforce learning, learning to do
• Also, let them engaged, explore, explain, elaborate, evaluate; See how?

This is why a teacher needs to have the different strategy for effective learning:

Table: Classroom Strategies and their effectiveness in General ( ofsted, 2015)

Few other tips:

• Continous lecturing may bore students. Determine the best learning methods suitable for them like a case study, lab task, project and so on.
• Focus on integrity(value)than compliance (बाध्यता )
• Provide Mentoring, Counseling, Guidance if necessary
• Don't just allow them to hear (सुन्नु ), make them listen(मनन गर्नु), Q & A is the best strategy for this. Don't go for the surfacial question, go for deep level/ brainstorming questions.

Session II: Teachers' Professional Development

Resource Person: Dr. Laxman Gnawali

Task 1: Book you read and date; I wrote: reading चार बेद को सार 

Task 2: Add a prefix to your name start from the same letter start of your name

I added: Sound Saban

Dr. Gnawali presented that teacher professional development is possible by both individual and institution initiatives (50-50). In other words, it is a two-way process. 

Here are few exclusive ways for Teachers' Professional Development:

Source: Dr. Gnawali's presentation

Reading books, journals etc:

Reading is important to update with the current scenario of development/ trends in technology, politics and so on. Time is changing, to adapt change we should read the new books, journals, articles ans so on.

Being attached to professional associations:

संघमा शक्ति हुन्छ। There are different professional associations associated with different professions. Like in Engineering profession, there is a body like Nepal Engineers' Association which do several activities regarding the different engineering stream.

Give a session:

Beside regular classes , we can give sessions within our faculty members or in another institutions that enhances and sharpens our capabilities.

Attending professional conferences/seminars:

For presenting our research papers and to know from other researchers, experts we should attend professional conferences/seminars time to time.

Attending in-service training:

Institutions should also offer workshop, training to there faculties and staffs whereas teachers shouldn't miss the opportunity to participate in the different workshop and training that enhance the knowledge, skills and provide good attitude for own profession. 

Mentoring a colleague:

There is saying that when you help others you will learn more. Its a win-win situation. Helping to those who need help  and enhancing knowledge and experience.

Publishing an article:

Writing is very powerful tool. Publishing articles in different platforms helps other to explore on that field hence enhance the capabilities of own. 

Peer observation and feedback

Disclosure and feedback are powerful ways of professional development. The information and knowledge will enhance more when we are in no. 1 open mode as depicted above.

Finally, for the institution Dr. Gnyawali suggested these six institutional arrangements.

Also he showed his career path and let us make it for ourselves. Here is mine career path.

He also talked about professional development plan that we should make and move on accordingly. 

This session ended with a motivational song for a teaching profession " i am a teacher an educator's anthem" Lets enjoy our teacher hood. and a motivational video "2013 world public speaking champion presiyan vasilev" giving the message that reach out whenever you need monitoring and help to the senior, expert. Our knowledge may limited, our skill may rusty but we can change it when we reach out. 

Day 3: 

Session I: Students' Assessment & Feedback

Resource Person: Dr. Dhanapati Subedi, Asst. Professor, KU

The session was started with a task:

Share, reflect and theorize about assessment and its types:
Sharing is done based on two perspectives one mind opinion another expert opinion. First sharing with students then ask students and briefing about the topic is the efficient process of learning. 

According to Brown, et al. (1997) the term assessment comes from the Latin 'as sedere' which means to sit down beside. 

Norm- referenced Assessment: 

Peer comparison ,it is prepared by concerned teacher.

Criterion- referenced Assessment: 

It is prepared by an external.

Formative Assessment : 

Summative Assessment:

Ipsative-referenced Assessment: 

Comparing previous exam and recent exam.

A Paradigm Shift: From Traditional to Alternative Assessment Practices:

• Performance Assessment Approach 

• Observation Approach 

• Task- based Assessment Approach

• Portfolio Approach: Within finite peroid 

• Rubrics Approach : Template based

• Conference Assessment Approach : E.g. 15 min. presentaion of students in the classroom everyday

• Self-assessment Approach: Via applications

• Peer-assessment Approach: Involving students themselves for each others' assessment

Stages of Assessment Design:

• Construction of Specification chart:
• Weight to the objectives
• Weight to the content areas
• Weight to the nature of the question 
• Weight to the objectives has three criteria:
  • Cognitive Domain: knowledge
  • Psychomotor Domain: skill
  • Affective Domain: value, attitude

Note: In engineering, Psychomotor domain has greater weight than the cognitive and affective domain. 

Weightage to the content areas:

Note: It is provided in the curriculum

• Blue Print: Providing weight for the questions unit wise
• Construction of Test Items
• Editing the Test Items
• Analysis of Test Items
• Scoring Design

Question preparation:

Assumption: 27%- weak, 27% -Brilliant, 47%- Medium

E.g. of a long question: 

Creative type question

Feedback:

It is information that is given to learners about their performance of a learning task, usually with the objective of improving their performance. Usually, teachers comment on students’ work saying good, satisfactory, poor and excellent. 

According to research evidence, it is a mistake to give false praise in an effort to motivate students and boost self-esteem. 

Session II: Action Research

According to Dr. Subedi, Action research is a technique used to examine the educational practice systematically. 

Assumption:

• Problem identification
• Examine and assess student's work
• Need time & space away from the daily routine
• Collaborative work

Action research helps a teacher to be updated with time coz it's changing.

View of the teachers of our institution:

Few problems in our students:

• Teaching-Learning climate disturbance
• Lack of culture of greeting the teachers
• Lack of interest in learning
• Negligence
• Discipline and attitude
• Lack of self-motivation
• Lack of self-study
• Lack of active participation
• Marks oriented rather than learning

Among these identified problems, our workshop group dealt with mark oriented issue. here it is:

Finally, the workshop was completed with a formal session. In a formal session, the chief guest Prof. Dr. Mahesh Nath Parajuli, Dean ,KUSOED said that students learning is for better life quality. Similarly, patron Toran sir suggested for eye contact, the to&fro movement to students. Additionally, Dr. Bal Chandra sir suggested for doing one thing at a time, commitment and to follow evidence-based approach ( correcting present from past evidence).

Workshop resources:

Contents by facilitators
Photos