Insidehighered.com has an article on the University of Phoenix and their two-year degree granting college, Axia. According to them, Axia has more than 100,000 students that have enrolled over the past two years.
I know what most of my colleagues and administrators think of the University of Phoenix. Anyone out there have actual experience with either program? Just curious...
Recently had a nine year old show me how to do lattice multiplication. Here's a video showing how it works.
And I spent all that time in grade school memorizing multiplication tables!
Here's a website that your students could use for organizing their time in their team projects.
Thanks to Tammy Lenski for the link!
Here is a list of 100 English words that many people spell incorrectly. The ones I see most on my students' papers?
it's (this is a contraction meaning "it is." Something that belongs to it is "its")
their/they're/there (while they are all pronounced the same, the spelling and meanings are different. Possessive is "their" and the contraction of "they are" is "they're")
Wish I had a dollar for every time I've corrected one of these words on a student paper...
Check this out. It's a list of words that are often mispronounced. I have to admit I sometimes find myself saying realator for realtor. I can spell it correctly but...
Thanks to Barbara Nixon for the link!
I'm thinking I could use Wordle as a team assignment in class. As noted on this website:
Wordle is a [software program] for generating “word clouds” from text that you provide. The clouds give greater prominence to words that appear more frequently in the source text. You can tweak your clouds with different fonts, layouts, and color schemes. The images you create with Wordle are yours to use however you like. You can print them out, or save them to the Wordle gallery to share...
This assignment could be used at the end of a chapter or module or even to review for an exam. Students could pick out key words and make their own wordle and then share these with the class.
Here's my attempt at a wordle on my classroom management blog. Anyone have other ideas of how to use Wordle?
While my book, Taking Back the Classroom, was written with college professors in mind, I sometimes get email from high school teachers with questions or comments about the book or classroom management in general. I refer these to my friend and colleague, Angela Maiers, who does training for K-12 teachers. She's doing several workshops this summer. I love her approach from her upcoming book on the seven habitudes of 21st Century learners. One of these habitudes is curiousity. As she notes, if we can get our students curious about a topic, they will want to learn more.
This is interesting. Wally Wallington demonstrates how he thinks Stonehenge was built.
Here are some tips for your students who are interviewing for internships or for jobs after graduation. Thanks to Sonja Hayes (University of South Florida-St Petersburg) for developing these slides.
Seth Godin, author of Purple Cow, Permission Marketing, and Small Is The New Big is offering a paid internship opportunity for students majoring in Marketing. Those interested can get more info here. Application deadline is April 2.
I wish I could apply! What a great learning experience for the students chosen.
Ted Demopoulos has updated his ebook, Effective Internet Presence (Now Required For Success In Business And Life) and is offering it for free.
He has some good points for our students in thinking about what personal information is on the web that could affect their job search. Many companies are now googling their applicants' names as part of the recruiting and selection process. We need to remind our students to be careful what they post on the internet.
Here's a website with links to the top education resources as noted by Guy Kawasaki (and he's included me as one of the experts!)
Check out this video by Don McMillan titled, "Life After Death By Powerpoint." It's very funny but does make the key points that bad powerpoint slides are:
Scott Elias has an 18 minute slideshow on how to make your powerpoint slides more effective by addressing issues of content, delivery, and design. He aims his remarks towards teachers but the information would be just as useful for our students who are making presentations in our classes.
Thanks to Mike Sansone for blogging on this great resource.
I tried using a "Wikipedia" approach to reviewing class notes last week. We had been discussing various motivational theories the class before. I put the students into teams, assigned each team a different theory, gave each team a marker, and had them write everything they could remember about the theory on the board (this was a small class of 24 students). After a few minutes, I had them switch to another team's area on the board and with a different color marker, cross out anything that they did not agree with or add anything else they thought belonged there. I did this a couple more times and then we discussed the theories.
In a larger class you could send up a representative from each team to write on the board. Or the teams could use flip chart paper at their desks.
The students really enjoyed the exercise and I think it will benefit them in learning the material.
Freerice.com is a website that tests your knowledge of vocabulary words. It's fun to do and even comes with their warning that, "This game may make you smarter [and] may improve your speaking, writing, thinking, grades, job performance..."
Even better, each time you correctly identify a word's definition, FreeRice donates 20 grains of rice to the United Nations World Food Program. This is made possible by advertisers on the site.
Thanks to James Maher for sharing this site with me. I'm up to level 41 and am sending the challenge out to Kenneth Davis, Patti Digh, Timothy Johnson, Mike Sansone, Terry Starbucker, Liz Strauss, and Mike Wagner. Let's help end world hunger and get smarter too!
I'm in the market for a new laptop. I've been using a PC for the past 15 years ever since Drake University decided to move from Apple computers to PCs for all College of Business faculty. I keep hearing how user-friendly the Apple computers are. Any advice from others who have made this decision lately? What should I get?
Dr. Carriann Richey (Butler University College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences) attended the three day workshop at St Petersburg College that I taught last week and shared her school's policy on incivility in the classroom:
RESPECTFUL INTERACTIONS: Respect is demonstrated by being considerate, courteous and professional, and by maintaining confidentiality of patient information. While participating in any university-related activities (e.g., coursework, rotations, volunteer work, etc.), it is expected that all persons affiliated with COPHS will act in a manner that is guided by a respect for other students, staff, faculty, patients and health care practitioners who may have differences that include (but are not limited to) the following:
- Religious beliefs and practices
- Socioeconomic status
- Ethnicity/Language
- Racial background
- Nontraditional medical beliefs and practices
- Sexual orientation
- Physical/emotional disabilities
- Intellectual capabilities
COPHS will not tolerate incivility by any member of the College community. Examples of incivility include rude, sarcastic, obscene, disruptive or disrespectful behavior, threats, or damage to property. Students exhibiting uncivil behavior will be reported to the Academic and Professional Affairs Committee for possible disciplinary action.
You might tweak this to use in your own syllabi or to share with your colleagues.
A professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison contacted me yesterday wanting to know if I had ever used "jigsaw" assignments. I haven't but did find this great explanation of the technique posted by Barbara Tewksbury (Hamilton College). Does anyone else out there have experience with these at the college level?
Some faculty are allowing their students to set the ground rules for conduct in the classroom as well as the consequences for breaking these rules. The thought behind this approach is that the students are more likely to engage in behaviors that they themselves have established as important in the classroom setting.
Dr. Lisa Rodriguez notes that the faculty member can also insert his/her own additional rules after getting the students' input. Here is her list of typical ground rules that students might agree upon:
Dr. Rodriguez goes on to say that, "For those instructors who might feel anxious about this process living up to the tried (but sometimes not true) statement of conduct dictated by the instructor in the syllabus, we suggest having all students verbally agree upon and/or sign a final list that is duplicated and distributed for future reference...Also, let students know that you are ultimately responsible for maintaining a fair learning environment."
I've considered trying this in class and would love to hear from others that have...
You might consider using a written evaluation form to get feedback from your students in addition to the official form used by your university. I find I can get more useful information by designing my own form. Here's one I use:
I'm currently grading student presentations (I'm sure many of you are doing the same). Timothy Johnson (Drake University) sent me a rubric he developed which made me chuckle. I like his distinction between A, B, and C (or below) level work.
Download timothy_johnson_presentation_rubric.doc
Here's another (perhaps more serious) rubric for grading presentations.
There are still a few seats available for the workshop on classroom management being held in St Petersburg, Florida, on January 3-5, 2008. This would be an excellent workshop for either new faculty or faculty who are struggling with this current generation of college students. Click here for more info or to register.
Professor Paula Thonney (Brookdale Community College) shared with me the following example of how she dealt with a difficult student:
"I had a student who had a bad attitude in class and was extremely hostile toward me. I finally confronted her (later than I should have) and asked her to talk to me outside. I think she was expecting to get thoroughly scolded. I remained very calm and simply stated: “You seem very frustrated. What is bothering you?” She told me that she felt that the class was too easy for her, and that it was annoying to have to sit through it. I told her that I would be happy if she took the placement test again and tried to test out of the class. But I also told her firmly that the negative and disrespectful attitude was inappropriate and had to stop. I told her that if she continued to be in my class, that she had to participate courteously. I had to talk to her one more time after that, but I feel that talking to her as an adult and acknowledging her feelings were important—it surprised her and in some way earned me some respect."
I find talking one on one with a student who is being disruptive in class works wonders. The student then knows you are aware of the behavior and is more likely to stop as long as you discuss the issue with him/her calmly and with respect. Otherwise, the student is likely to continue to "push the envelope" to see how much he/she can get away with.
I've posted earlier on whether professors should allow the use of Wikipedia as a research source and if so, what guidance should be given students. Professor Martha Groom (University of Washington at Bothell) is using Wikipedia as the outlet for her students' term papers. As she notes, "Term papers are intended for an extremely limited audience" [the teacher]...while online websites such as Wikipedia have a much larger audience. She goes on to note that the possibility that many others are reading their work motivates students to write better and to make sure that they don't plagiarize copyrighted material as this would be caught by the readers.
Check out this video that looks at how we find and share information today compared to the past. As noted by Professor Michael Wesch (Kansas State University), "This video was created as a conversation starter, and works especially well when brainstorming with people about the near future and the skills needed in order to harness, evaluate, and create information effectively."
I'm going to use it in my Management class while discussing the chapter on communication.
Dear Dr. Kirk:
I teach a Masters level class at X University with 23 students. I cannot get them to speak, answer questions, or participate in any way. What can I do to engage them?
Dear Professor of Quiet Students:
As a former manager and someone who teaches management, I can tell you that you get what you reward. Are you rewarding for participation? You could build in points for this in the course or even give extra credit points. First of all, be sure to tell them your expectations that they will speak up in class. Perhaps explain WHY you want them to talk (because will have to in their careers? So that you can see if they understand the material? So they can learn from each other?) Also make it easy for them to begin. Put the students into small groups (3-4) and assign them a task where they have to write down answers. Then tell them to pick a spokesperson to report back to the class. You will need to build a “new culture” for your classroom where students talk. (another hint: don’t ask IF they have questions, ask WHAT questions they have). Good luck. Let me know how it works out.
In my last blogpost I talked about the use of creative methods in teaching concepts and theories in various courses. Professor Rebecca Whitehead teaches a class called, "Introduction to Applied Leadership," that uses an online role-playing game to train the students to be leaders. They learn goal setting, motivation, problem solving, and working in teams. The class is designed for senior technology-management majors at the University of Advancing Technology, described on their home page as:
"a unique, technology-infused private college that was founded by a techno-geek for techno-geeks. Our Mission is to educate students in the fields of advancing technology to become innovators of the future. UAT's campus culture is devoted to continually nurturing a thriving geek community where everyone's personal lives and professional aspirations revolve around technology."
| Sounds like a fun place to learn... |
As faculty, we should try to make our courses interesting for our students. One way to do this is to use assignments that relate what the students are learning to their everyday activities. A recent Chronicle of Higher Education article lists how The Simpsons television show can be used in science, literature, religion, psychology, and philosophy classes.
We know our students watch this show and others. I've assigned various television shows or movies and asked students to write papers discussing the concepts, theories, and terminology illustrated that relates to the class topics.
I would love to hear from other professors that use creative assignments in their classes...
I have been using a weblog in my classes for the past two years but am still struggling with how to set up my expectations for the students on participating on the blog. Timothy Johnson (Drake University) shares the rubric he developed to grade a class blog which he gives to the students so that they know what he expects. You can download a copy here:
Check out this story about George Hotz, a 17-year-old who figured out a way to "unlock" AT&T away from the iPhone so that it can be used with another phone service.
You can click here to go to his weblog where he describes the process he used. This morning he traded the iPhone to the founder of Certicell for a Nissan 350Z.
I talk about making the first day of class interesting. I think this would be a great story to discuss in a variety of classes dealing with technology, ethics, legal issues, marketing, business implications, etc. Anyone have other suggestions in how to use?
George starts college classes next week at Rochester Institute of Technology. His professors are going to have fun...
John shares a great site of icebreakers that could be used that first day of class. They are organized by size of class (small, medium, or large) and by category (active exercises, team building, or get-to-know-you exercises).
I'm looking for a great exercise to use my first day in a graduate Leadership class...Anyone have a suggestion?
Dr. Leslie Madsen-Brooks commented on my recent blogpost on "How to develop a syllabus for a class you haven't taught before" with three comprehensive questions:
Great questions to ask yourself as you prepare for the new semester.
I'm putting together a class syllabus for a graduate course that I have not taught before. I'm excited about the possibilities but also feeling a little overwhelmed at the same time.
Some of the questions I'm asking myself during this process include:
Two more weeks before classes begin! I'm curious how others approach putting together a syllabus for a new course...
I recently picked up the book, University Teaching: A Reference Guide For Graduate Students And Faculty (Syracuse University Press, 2005). I would definitely recommend the book to new teachers but also believe it has some good advice for those of us who have been teaching for a while. The book contains 25 chapters authored by experienced faculty on topics such as lecturing, active learning, assessment of student work, and classroom discussion. It also offers useful advice on working with students with disabilities, teaching nontraditional students, and balancing multiple responsibilities as a professor. A chapter aimed at doctoral students discusses what to think about when choosing an institution so that you have a good job fit.
Syracuse University does a great job of training their new teaching assistants and this book is a result.
Professor Karl E. Weick (University of Michigan) recently published an article in the Journal of Management Education that discusses how management professors should rethink how and what we teach. However, his implications for teaching excellence applies to all of us who want our students to learn critical thinking. We teach our students the tools, skills, concepts, and theories of our subject matter. The trick, according to Dr. Weick, is to teach them when to "drop" what they have learned in order to adapt to changes in organizations, the environment, technology, or society.
I plan to make the article required reading for my management students this fall.
You can access Dr. Weick's article here: Download drop_your_tools.pdf
Recently I wrote about using popular business books in my class and how much one of my students said he was influenced by Steve Farber's book, Radical Leap. Steve emailed me and invited the student to contact him. The student has given me permission to share the letter.
Dear Mr. Farber,
Thank you for the opportunity to share some of your time. The first thing I would like to convey, although I’m know Professor Kirk has already let you know, is how much I enjoyed Radical Leap. The characters possessed vibrant life and energy, the story was intriguing, and mixing a bit of comedy with business was a brilliant way to hold one’s attention. I was thrilled to see an entire book written about leading by example and loving your employees. I believe these qualities are lacking big time in today’s corporate world. I will be purchasing the Radical Edge next, and was excited to see your outline for book number three.
Within a year’s time I will be graduating with a B.S. in Business Management and, until now, I have been wandering aimlessly through college, trying to decide what really interests me. After completing Professor Kirk’s class, reading your book, and doing some prayer about it, I’ve come to the conclusion that leadership is something more than fascinating to me. I still have much to learn about the subject, and was wondering what directions would be best to take to pursue a career similar to yours? Helping leaders resolve conflicts, and teaching better practices for managing and leading would be quite fulfilling! I also believe it would be a career I could really pour my heart into. Any guidance you could suggest would be greatly appreciated! Thank you again for your time, and I am looking forward to reading books two and three!
Sincerely,
Anthony Tonnesen
The great thing about the internet is the opportunity for students to "meet" their heros. Thanks Steve for providing this "aha" moment for Anthony.
I gave my students at the University of South Florida-St Petersburg the option of videotaping part of their team presentation in my Human Resource Management class this semester. Thus, they could put together a training video to use as a visual aid in class. Click here to see one of the most entertaining and professional student videos I've seen. The topic was sexual harassment in the workplace and the five minute video covers the type of behaviors that could be considered as sexual harassment. Is there a student version of the Academy Awards??
There are still seats available for two summer workshops on Classroom Management: How to Teach Like a Pro. The National Science Foundation offers grants that provide free tuition for college professors who are beginning their teaching careers, new faculty in the first few years out of their educational programs, or experienced faculty with questions as to how to manage this “new” generation of college students. In general, if you want lots of teaching tips to help improve your teaching and classroom evaluations, this workshop is for you.
Dates for workshops:
The workshop will address issues such as:
In addition, participants of this interactive workshop are encouraged to bring their own questions about classroom management.
The workshops are limited to 20 participants each. Contact the regional director, Dr. Tony Irving, for more information or to register today at chautauq@u.washington.edu
Back before the beginning of this semester I asked for suggestions of business books to use in my Organizational Behavior class at the University of South Florida-St Petersburg. I decided on the following list and last week the students began their team presentations on these books. The students have been very excited about reading the books and talking about them. Here's our list:
Ken Blanchard, The One Minute Manager
Marcus Buckingham and Donald Clifton, Now, Discover Your Strengths
Daniel Dana, Conflict Resolution
Steve Farber, Radical Leap
Malcolm Gladwell, The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make A Big Difference
Daniel Goleman, Working With Emotional Intelligence
Patrick Lencioni, Five Dysfunctions of a Team
David Lorenzo, Career Intensity: Business Strategy for Workplace Warriors and Entrepreneurs
Bob Nelson, 1001 Ways to Energize Employees
One student told the class that he hated to read but he loved Steve Farber's book as he felt it made a real difference in his life. His face just lit up as he discussed the book. Another student called Dr. Daniel Dana and interviewed him about conflict management so she could share his insights with the class.
Thank you to Liz Strauss, Mike Sansone, Tim Johnson, Carolyn Manning, Kent Blumberg, Ann Michael, Kenneth Davis, Phil Gerbyshak, Michael DeWitt, Mike Wagner, and Francie Stirling for your book suggestions. (BTW, Francie, I used your suggestion of the Stephen Covey book in another class).
Here's an article on how to use humor in the classroom, especially in those classes that students all have to take but don't necessarily see as relevant to their major.
As the authors note:
"Humor is a valuable teaching tool for establishing a classroom climate conducive to learning. This article identifies opportunities for incorporating humor in the college classroom, reviews the impact of humor on learning outcomes, and suggests guidelines for the appropriate use of humor...Appropriate and timely humor in the college classroom can foster mutual openness and respect and contribute to overall teaching effectiveness."
They go on to say:
"Humor is a catalyst for classroom "magic," when all the educational elements converge and teacher and student are both positive and excited about learning. Instructors can foster classroom "magic" through improved communication with students by possessing a playful attitude and a willingness to use appropriate humor."
Humor in the classroom helps to reduce the anxiety students feel and makes for a positive learning environment. Last night I gave a 90 minute exam. At the beginning of class which started at 6pm, I looked at the clock on the wall and said they had until 6:34pm to finish. I then started laughing, realizing that I meant to say 7:34pm. The students also laughed which helped them to relax a little before starting the exam.
In another class this week, there were a number of students who came in tardy which is actually very unusual in my classroom. It turned out that there was an event on campus that had filled up the parking lots. However, I was lecturing and every 2-3 minutes another student would come into class. The first one I ignored, the second one I stopped and looked at, the third one I made a comment. By the fourth person I paused and started laughing. Obviously something was going on out of the ordinary. I then accused the students of all standing outside the classroom text messaging each other and deliberately sending in one late student at a time. The class thought it was hilarious. It made the point that I was paying attention and yet didn't place any blame. I find humor a good way to control the classroom.
Tim Johnson is teaching a class on creativity for business students at Drake University using Roger von Oech's book, A Kick in the Seat of the Pants. Check out this photo of his class. Tim's the fuzzy pink bunny. As you can see, Tim's students love his classes! He definitely "walks the walk" and is able to make a connection to his students that encourages them to engage fully in the subject matter.
Did I mention that I was Tim's professor in his MBA program 17 years ago? And no, I didn't teach him how to dress!
Principal David Sherman shares this resource on his blog. It's a site similar to YouTube that is designed for educators to post videos for teachers and students to use. For example, TeacherTube has videos of teachers showing math lessons or explaining a historical event. The videos seem to be geared toward public school teachers so far. Right now the site lists videos by most recent, most viewed, and top favorites. I would like to see them list these by subject matter and appropriate age group.
I have my students do team presentations each semester. Many times I have thought it would have been good to have videotaped the best ones to show to other faculty or students. TeacherTube might be a great place to do this.
Ted Demopoulos was recently interviewed about the use of blogs in higher education. In addition to using these in the classroom, colleges and universities are realizing that blogs can help prospective students decide whether the school would be a good match. Also, alumni blogs help to foster a community after students graduate. Faculty can use blogs to find others researching similar topics.
I'm using blogs in all of my classes this semester in order to share links, handouts, and articles. My students can use the comment feature to ask a question about an assignment and I can respond so that all the students with that question can see my answer. I also post an agenda for each class so the students can see what we will be covering as well as guidelines to team presentations. I find having a class blog helps keep the class organized.
An issue that many of us struggle with is, what are the rules for using copyrighted materials in your classes? For example, can I make a copy of an article in today's newspaper and pass it out to my students? Marcia W. Keyser (Instruction and Reference Librarian at Drake University) shares basic guidelines for professors on using copyright materials in your courses. Feel free to email her with your questions.
Check out Roy Peter Clark's podcast, "Writing Tools: The Musical." It's seven minutes of tips to writing more effectively. I think our students in all those "intensive writing" courses would enjoy this.
Thanks to Dr. Kenneth W. Davis for pointing me to this site.
Jeff Utecht writes about the use of blogs in the classroom. As he notes, blogs are not an online replacement for a journal.
"...the power of blogs is not in the writing, it is in the thoughts, the comments, and the conversation that they can start, sustain, and take into a million different directions. Blogs are about extending a conversation outside the walls of the classroom into a social-network where thoughts are shared with other classmates, other students, or yes even complete strangers. When blogs are viewed as a conversation vehicle...they become thoughtful discussions that extend well after a lesson ends."
This semester I am teaching a class on Managing Diversity for 40 management majors at the University of South Florida-St Petersburg. Recently we covered a module on people with disabilities. During class the students asked what they could do as managers to help employees who are blind or in a wheelchair. I had the students write all their questions on the class blog and then I went on the internet to find someone who could respond to their questions from a personal perspective. Dr. Scott Rains in California and Frank Strong in Iowa agreed to join our class discussion and gave the students insights that will make them much better managers after graduation.
Thanks to Liz Strauss and Darren Hillock (both successful bloggers I've "met" through the internet) for helping me find our virtual guest speakers.
Marguerite Moloney (Pensacola Junior College) sent me the following tip that she used in class to get students to participate and learn.
"I used a Jeopardy template and made a game based on a journal article. I handed out the article during our first class meeting of the semester. I divided the class in half (2 teams), gave them 20 minutes to read the article, and then we played jeopardy. They loved it and they learned the material!!!! When the class period was over, they didn't want to quit playing!!!! They are begging me to make another game from one of the chapters, then instead of lecturing we'll play jeopardy. I'm anxious to see if the test grades show improvement with this alternative to lecture."
I think Professor Moloney will find the students' grades have improved as they are able to use a more active learning method than just listening to lecture and taking notes. Here's a link to a easy to use template for designing your own Jeopardy game. I plan to use this myself to help students review for my comprehensive final.