Incorporating Technologies into Your Teaching to Increase Whole Class Participation

Primary Presenter: Jacie Moriyama

Co-Presenter: Doris Cheung and Viktoriya Oliynyk

Organization: University of Colorado Boulder

Role: Academic Technology Consultant

Track: General Presentation

Topic: Student Assessment, Engagement, Success

Level: For Mere Mortals

Abstract:Learning occurs when students actively participate in the experience. However, typically only a few students participate in in-class discussions, and online discussions often lack depth and quality. We’ll share a variety of teaching strategies and technologies such as VoiceThread, mindmapping, and screen capture for facilitating productive discussions for face-to-face and online learning. Throughout the presentation the audience will be encouraged to ask questions and share their ideas and experiences incorporating active participation to enhance learning.

Bio: Doris Cheung, Jacie Moriyama, and Viktoriya Oliynyk are Academic Technology Consultants at the University of Colorado Boulder working with faculty in the Law School, the Leeds School of Business, and the College of Arts and Sciences respectively. Doris, Jacie, and Viktoriya enjoy working alongside instructors to find innovative ways to use technology to achieve their teaching and research goals. The three are particularly interested in technology tools that can help instructors facilitate collaborative learning, provide feedback on student learning, and implement comprehensive assessment activities with the goal of improving student success and satisfaction.

Description: Our goal in this session is to give the audience practical ideas on how to facilitate productive student participation both in face-to-face and online learning environments. We’ll use Bloom’s Taxonomy of Cognitive Levels as a theoretical framework and provide examples of both traditional and technology-enhanced learning activities for each cognitive level.

We’ll talk about common issues with student participation and a range of solutions that can address them. Strategies that we will discuss include setting clear expectations, providing structure, and posing good questions.

After covering ground rules of successful student participation, we’ll jump into exploring technology tools that can help facilitate traditional discussions, as well as innovative ways of weaving student participation into the coursework. We’ll share how leveraging technologies such as online discussions, Google Apps, VoiceThread, and mind mapping can facilitate active learning. Throughout the presentation, the audience will be encouraged to ask questions and share their ideas and experiences with learning activities that promote active student participation.