Regarding Technology in Undergraduate Teaching

I had no opportunity to attend last class; therefore, I have no idea which were the specific points covered regarding the use of technology in undergraduate teaching. However, there is one question that comes to my mind when I think about the topic. Can the use of technology in teaching be excessive? The question arises because of previous experiences. I have had the luck to attend courses in which the teacher simply does not like using technology and, at the most, uses projections of his hand-written material. Opposite scenario has been when the teacher loves using technology and brings iPad, iPod, videos, animations, different format presentations, applications for iPhones, and more; on top of that, the teacher wants to take notes on the tablet which simply destroys hand-writting and it is impossible to read. How much technology is enough? When is it too much? Is there an inflection point on improving teaching and the amount, and quality, of the technology being used?

Reflection on Formative Assessment Activity

On last week's exercise we were asked to apply the Backward Design framework to create a unit on formative assessment. Later, we were asked to post in our blogs how, if at all, did this activity change and/or deepen our understanding of formative assessment, and how would we describe to one of your science colleagues what the most salient features of formative assessment are.

The exercise simply showed me how it is always easier to speak, than to act. We only had fifty minutes to design the learning unit; as much as we tried to use the Backward Design, always thinking first on what the students, our clients, needed to learn and how the would learn it, it was complicated. From my point of view, it is complicated because you have a definite, specific objective given to you by your superiors. Sometimes we forget the most important objective, which is for the student to truly understand the concept.

The activity did not change my understanding on formative assessment; for me, it is crucial to keep verifying if your students are getting the concept; you need to build on a solid base, and for that you have to make sure constantly. It is also important to notice the difference with an evaluation. I would let my colleagues know that the formative assessment need to be continous during the teaching and learning process; it also needs to serve as a practice. Even though you can evaluate during your assessment activity, this is not the main goal. It is also important to notice that, the amount and quality of assessments will depend in the teacher. I believe that the most concerned teachers, those who actually care about their students, will assess better and more often.

Practice Interview Reflection

My practice interview from last week went simply as the comments published on this blog regarding the pertinent questions anticipated. As expected, the questions were too narrow and focused on single facts of carbohydrate chemistry. I believe the single thing that went well was the interest my interviewee showed to the functionality of different carbohydrates in the food industry.

The outcome of this practice interview is a complete change of my interview questions and protocol. I believe I have to introduce my interview with a scenario. Given that the interview is on carbohydrate chemistry, this scenario can be that the interviewee is the Manager of R&D for a multi-national food company; the interviewee will be presented with a real-life problem on carbohydrate functionality and presented with possibilities to solve the problem. It is really important to guide your interviewee through this process. The example that would most likely end in my interview is the uses of brown algae cell wall polysaccharides in th food industry (for example, in pimento-stuffed olives).

The trick I learned and that I liked the most was on what to do when your interviewee responds to the question with a: "I don't know". This could represent the end of the interview. By giving the person a package of hints you can trigger the response (correct or incorrect) to your questions. Also, giving different scenarios or examples help in the process.

In the end, it is how the interviewee applies the concept what matters the most, and not only if she or he can write down the fact as it is given in the textbook.

Interview Tentative Questions

Questions on Carbohydrate Chemistry:

1.- Mention common sources of starch
2.- What is the difference between amylose and amylopectin
3.- What is the difference between starch and cellulose
4.- Mention two applications of corn starch
5.- Which are the most important hydrolytic enzymes in cereal chemistry?
6.- Are all starch granules the same?
7.- What is a reducing sugar?
8.- What is the difference between an aldose and a ketose?
9.- Draw the basic structure of an arabinoxylan.
10.- Other than food, explain other applications of carbohydrates

About Learning (Revisited)

After the class discussion, I would add to my definition/description the fact of practicing. Practice, being before or after the "click" or "ahh" in your brain, is needed. If it is before, practice helps you get to the "ahh" is a shorter time; if it is after the "ahh", it helps you to perfect the skill or knowledge, and keeps you thinking that perhaps the "ahh" you had was not an actual "ahh" and that you still need to comprehend the topic.

Reflections on Others' Teaching Philosophies

In short, the next bullet points summarize the new insights I gained:

- To emulate those professors that made us feel great in the classroom; think about the positive experiences. I believe this point is great. Typically, we think about our bad experiences and then state what we would change.

- To be always updated; provide them the newest information.

- To be aware of the time that a student pays attention to you; typically is about 15-20 minutes. Your activities should not be longer than this time.

- Critical thinking; teach them to evaluate new information. This complements the "provide them with the newest information". Not only provide, but teach them to evaluate, or discern, good from bad information.

-  Teach persistence. Try, then try again. There is no better way.

Great things to add to my own Teaching Philosophy; I thinkg they complement it very well.

(as a side note, I would like to add that for teaching, a difference in race or ethnicity should not make a difference; it is what we can learn from different cultures what makes a difference, not their capability or style of learning. Teach everyone as if they were your own kids. There is no need to accomodate.)

About Learning

learn (verb): to gain knowledge or understanding of or skill in by study, instruction, or experience.
This is the dictionary definition.

We learn by instinct first, and later we add the choice of what to learn. A baby will learn, incredibly fast, that if s/he cries Mom or Dad will come and see what is going on. On the other hand, this Mom or Dad will learn, sometimes incredibly slow, that their baby cries because s/he is uncomfortable (name it hungry, sleepy, dirty diaper, sick).

Later in life we learn what we want or need to learn. We learn to walk, to hold the spoon, to tie our shoes, to read. We learn things in different ways: by observing, listerning, reading, and finally doing those things. But the learning process does not finish at the doing stage. The complete learning experience is when you actually comprehend the big "why". No matter what it is. You can learn how to fly a kite, and you may learn this when you are four years old. But in future years you should keep thinking about that kite and why it flies. It is only then that you will be able to understand the concept completely, and later teach others. I believe this is, in part, why people keep attending school to study a specific topic for many, many years.

External factors have a tremendous impact on our learning process. Typically, it is harder to learn something when we have to and easier when we want to. It is easier to learn when you do not have a clue about the topic or you click delete and unlearn to start the process fresh. Our mood and self esteem also play an important role in the learning process. Thinking that you will never understand something makes it harder.

The question might seem to have a concise answer, but I guess it does not. We'll see how discussion goes at class tomorrow.