Month: December 2020

Students ask questions

Samantha Ahern / / Developing Confidence, Developing Learning Skills, Monitoring Progress, Quick Ideas, Reflection Revision

Create opportunities for students to ask questions – of their peers or lecturer or to start discussion.

Why use it (students and staff)

Enables students to reflect on their learning and helps indentify any misconceptions or gaps in knowledge.

Allowing  time for students to ask questions about pieces of work helps open up assessment and eliminate abiguity.

When to use it

Questions can be sourced before, during, after class 

Digital tools that might be used

  • Mentimeter  
  • Forum 
  • Chat 
  • Hot Questions 

Speed of set up time 

5 minutes to15 minutes, depending on tool used and number of question opportunities

Workload

Creation of Moodle activity or Mentimeter presentation.

Students write questions

Samantha Ahern / / Assessment Literacy, Collaboration, Developing Learning Skills, Engagement, Monitoring Progress, Quick Ideas, Reflection Revision

Students create and submit questions to the class about what they would like to know more about a topic.

For example:

  • about what they would like to know on a topic,
  • to ask the lecturer or other students in order to assess their learning,
  • or to demonstrate their learning, misconceptions, or areas they would like to further explore.

The class can work on these together in a session or use them to prepare for the next session. 

Why use it (students and staff)

Encourages reflection on learners’ gaps in their knowledge or understanding. 

 If students write questions for their peers to answer it can deepen their own understanding and that of peers. 

When to use it

  • At start of class as  revision 
  • At mid or end point to check on understanding 
  • Independent study task 

Digital tools that might be used

  • Hot Questions  
  • Discussion forums 
  • Chat 
  • Mentimeter 

Speed of set up time 

Variable

Workload

Creation of Moodle activity or Mentimeter presentation 

Good question stems

Samantha Ahern / / Developing Learning Skills, Monitoring Progress, Peer Feedback, Quick Ideas, Reflection Revision

Students answer questions to encourage deeper thinking and reflection.

Typical questions might be:

Why does …?

What if …?

How would you …?

Could you explain …?

What might …?

Why use it (students and staff)

  • Can be used to encourage peer activity 
  • Develops student self-regulation – what do students know about a subject and its relationship with other subjects 
  • Could form the basis for one minute paper activity 

When to use it

  • At start of class as revision 
  • At mid or end point to check on understanding 
  • As peer activity 
  • As an independent study task 

Digital tools that might be used

Synchronous : 

  • break-out rooms 
  • chat 
  • Teams meeting 
  • Mentimeter 
  • Shared whiteboard 

Asynchronous

  • share document (for the entire group) 
  • whiteboard 
  • Menti

Speed of set up time 

5 minutes 

Workload

Depending on resources involved and planning the structure:

  • To define the activity 
  • To prepare questions 
  • To establish an etiquette with the students

This activity may become easier and more spontaneous if repeated throughout the modules/the sessions 

Other resources

  • Screen clock  or count down timer 
  • Note taking facilities for students 

Talk partners

Samantha Ahern / / Collaboration, Developing Confidence, Engagement, Next Steps, Quick Ideas

As a plenary or a starter to a session, students share with a partner:

  • 3 new things they have learnt,
  • what they found easy,
  • what they found difficult,
  • someting they would like to learn in the future.

Example instructions for students:

In pairs, discuss 3 new things you have learnt or what you found easy or difficult or something you would like to learn in the future. 

Why use it (students and staff)

  • To build confidence 
  • To encourage reflection 
  • To foster a sense of community 
  • To share different perspectives on the same topic 
  • To recall knowledge  
  • To ‘test the water’ 
  • (Possibly more feasible in smaller groups/ with a seminar type setting) 

When to use it

Depending on purpose:  

  • at the beginning as a way to recall existing knowledge 
  • in the middle to clarify points or formulate questions 
  • at the end of the question to check understanding and outstanding points 
  • as a reflective tool 

Digital tools that might be used

Synchronous: 

  • break-up rooms (with some preparation) 
  • chat 
  • Teams meeting 
  • Proximity apps 

Please build in preparation time if you split students in pairs/small groups as they will need to get to know each other.

Asynchronous: 

  • Chat 
  • Teams 
  • Forums 
  • Moodle workshop 

Speed of set up time 

1 minute to 30 minutes depending on resources involved and planning the structure.

Workload

Depending on resources involved and planning the structure:

  • To define the activity 
  • To prepare questions 
  • To establish an etiquette with the students 

 This activity may become easier and more spontaneous if repeated throughout the modules/the sessions 

Other resources

  • Proximity apps 
  • annotation software  
  • whiteboard 

Graphic organiser

Samantha Ahern / / Collaboration, Engagement, Monitoring Progress, Quick Ideas, Reflection Revision

There a range of graphical organisation techniques that can be used in reflective and organisational ways. These can include:

  • webs,
  • triangles,
  • Venn diagrams,
  • ladders,
  • and PMI diagrams

Example instructions for students:

Use a graphic organiser to help you structure and represent information 

Why use it (students and staff)

Enables reflection on what students have learnt or understood; Helps organise content during a session or from reading 

When to use it

  • At start of class as revision; 
  • At mid or end point to check on understanding;  
  • Independent study task 

Digital tools that might be used

  • Handwritten paper photographed and uploaded (E.g. via MS Office Lens); 
  • Use of whiteboard in online synch session (group activity) 

Speed of set up time 

1 minute

Workload

Staff might provide examples of graphic organisers 

Other resources

  • Mind map software
  • Templates

Student Review

Samantha Ahern / / Collaboration, Developing Learning Skills, Extended Ideas, Monitoring Progress, Next Steps, Peer Feedback, Reflection Revision

Students review their own learning either in groups or individually. This could be done as a plenary, mini-plenary or as an activity to help planning for future revision or the remainder of the course.

Example instructions for students:

Review your own learning either in a group or individually.  

Why use it (students and staff)

Develop feedback skills; Reflect on learning during a session 

When to use it

During synchronous session (plenary) or as an asynchronous activity to help planning for future revision or the remainder of the course. 

Digital tools that might be used

Individually and asynchronous:

  • Discussion forum post;
  • journal entry (OneNote class notebook, Reflect blog, or MyPortfolio) 

 In groups and synchronous:

  • Breakout room discussion
  • Chat 

Speed of set up time 

Varies based on tool used 

Workload

  • Setting up blog or shared notebook; 
  • Develop guidance or prompt questions 

Other resources

Shared documents

Examples of staff use 

 

Minute paper (or one sentence summary)

Samantha Ahern / / Developing Confidence, Developing Learning Skills, Monitoring Progress, Next Steps, Quick Ideas

Students identify the most signifiant (useful, meaningful, unlikely) thing they have learnt during the session or course.

Example instructions for students:

Write for 1 minute on a given topic and receive feedback 

Why use it (students and staff)

Enables reflection on what students have learnt or understood; Provides a snapshot of whole class; Offers potential for rapid feedback.

When to use it

At start of class as revision; At mid or end point to check on understanding 

Digital tools that might be used

  • Mentimeter  
  • Forum 
  • Chat 
  • Handwritten paper photographed and uploaded 
  • Break out room discussion 

Speed of set up time 

1 minute

Workload

Time to devise question; Looking over and feeding back; Monitoring peer feedback, if peer feedback is used; Staff might provide an example that students could look at to compare with their answer. This would avoid the need to supply feedback 

Other resources

Screen clock or count down timer  

Examples of staff use