My take on a Jeopardy-style review game

By Curtis Line

I have been teaching professionally for 7 years and I’ve tried a lot of things that work and that don’t work.  One activity that I started early on and continue to do to this day is my take on a Jeopardy-style review game.  I know that this is nothing new and that teachers have been doing this for as long as the TV show has been running, but I must say it’s very effective and enjoyable, as well as simple (the way I do it).  Students are divided into three groups and need to assign a “writer” for each question (one writer per group per question).  When the question is asked, the students must decide on an answer, write it down on a piece of paper and then “buzz in” by lifting the paper into the air with vim, vigor and excitement!  And yes, that’s exactly how I say it to them when explaining the rules.

The students are told that the questions are all on the test, in one form or another and that they will be given a print off of all the questions with answers (their reward for actively participating in the game).  The reward for the winning team is 2 points of extra credit added to their exam.  I never promise the students that we will have time to play the Jeopardy Review Game before every test that we have, that way it’s a nice surprise when we actually DO have the time.  It’s a great way to get the students to remember the material; I always fit in a few words of wisdom after each question, it’s just a different way to discuss the material.

My experiences with this review game have been 99% terrific.  Students always say that they love playing it and that it really helps them learn the material for the test and what they need to study and what they already know.  I often put in one or two really hard questions, that way the students know that they need to know it and study it.  They also have fun getting to know their classmates and it helps them be more social and active in class.  I did have a student one time throw a “temper tantrum” when I called one “buzz in” a tie and gave both teams the points for the right answer; the one team was beating everyone by a lot and the “temper tantrum” student’s team was in last place.  So I stopped the game (there were 2-3 questions left) and said, that team wins and we are done.  I explained to the students that it is a privilege to play this game and that we would most likely not play it again.

Except for that one incident, this review has been very successful in the classroom and in helping students succeed.  I have even had students at the beginning of a semester tell me that former students of mine (friends or family of theirs) have told them about the game and that they can’t wait to play it.  I am hoping to update the game and play it totally electronically very soon, as I have always done it on dry erase boards.  I am actually playing the game today with my noon Anatomy&Physiology I course who have an exam next class – the topic: bones!

Using Google Sites for Classes

By Dan Kasper

I created a Google Site for one of my hybrid courses, and I’ve found that the format works pretty well.  I don’t have experience with other wikis, but I find this particularly useful because a) you can embed youtube videos very easily into the web page and b) you can embed Google Docs and Google Calendar in there as well.  You can view the content, but you will not be able to view the Google Calendar on the first page because I would have to authorize you to do this. That is one of the nice features – I can specifically authorize some content, and make other content available without signing in.

It’s definitely not perfect, but I find that it’s very easy for the students to navigate once they get the hang of it.  The link is below (keep in mind it’s a work in progress):

https://sites.google.com/site/nrg103spring2013/

Gaming is not just for families and Friday nights…

By Cheryl Horst

We hear frequently the term “gaming” as a way to make our classrooms interesting. But how do we “game?” Where do we get ideas for games? How do we design them and make the rules? Do we give prizes? Will gaming be well received by everyone in the class?

In “How Gaming is Used as an Innovative Strategy for Nursing Education”, authors Mary Royse and Sarah Newton discuss nursing research on the use of gaming in the classroom.  “The use of gaming in the nursing classroom has been shown to improve nursing student outcomes, because it enhances retention of knowledge, promotes problem-based learning, and motivates nursing students to become more engaged in their learning” (Rosye, Newton, 2007).  Apparently gaming in nursing education has been around since the 1980s. Hmmm…I don’t remember participating in any such fun during the time I sat in the classroom. I’m sorry I missed it!

Gaming sounds to be a wonderful means to evaluate students, but with a few concerns. Although it seems to me that gaming is one of the teaching tools I can use to get students to step up to the plate and become an active learner (and many of them need to do just that), my questions are: 1) is there life after Jeopardy and the Match Game; 2) where do I go to find out what other nursing instructors have found to be successful; 3) do I have the time for gaming; and 4) will everyone like the gaming idea?

I guess you can tell I have used Jeopardy and the Match game in my class. Although I am no Alex Trebek or Gene Rayburn, I do the best I can with what I know. I divide the students according to their clinical groups as teams, and in a very short time their competitive personalities come out. Students seem appreciative for the review and it breaks up the monotony of my voice and the powerpoint slides. I don’t really want to invent the wheel, so a bit of networking with other nursing instructors who are successful at gaming would be great.

My third concern is my perceived lack of time I have to add in gaming. We use gaming as a way to review for upcoming exams, but in nursing, I teach two evenings of one topic and on the third evening they take that exam.  I need to develop gaming strategies that I can incorporate directly into lecture time, and not worry about having enough time at the end of the evening because at the end of the evening, students are tired; they just want to know what they need to know for the exam, and they want to go home. Plopping a game in the middle of lecture can provide some formative evaluation to see if they are understanding key points of the topic. Nursing is all about critical thinking…thinking outside the box, putting pieces of the puzzle together…NCLEX (nursing licensure) tests on skills, knowledge, and abilities of the nursing graduate, so using gaming early to help develop those thinking skills seems to be a plus.

Concern #4 is that not all students enjoy this type of learning. We already know that students learn differently. The students who are quiet and feel they will be embarrassed if they are put on the spot through gaming may dread this method of review. But then again, those students who are quiet may receive encouragement from the stronger students. MAYBE, if the instructor encourages this support.

No matter which gaming experience you incorporate into your class, remember to save some time to debrief your students after the game is over. Debriefing will help to identify areas where knowledge is weak, provide rationales for correct answers, and provide the connection between the information learned and clinical experience. Remember to provide encouragement to your students too. A “job well done” will go a long way to helping them to enjoy whatever game you choose to compliment your lecture.

Carrots, Motivation and FedEx

By Jennifer Blackwell

Right now you’re in one of two camps – you’ve bought in and are on the bandwagon of changing how education is approached and are actively trying engagement strategies when they fit your lessons or you’re offering carrots. Carrots are one half of the reward-punishment idiom “carrots and sticks” and are seen as incentives, prizes, perhaps even flat out bribes.  We’ve seen carrots work in the past to get responses from our students, but do they still?

In truth, each of us has something that motivates us:  a person, a thing, a goal – that self-interest that gives us inspiration to power through. The science behind motivation can be useful in our classrooms. As author Daniel Pink points out in DRiVE, “human beings have an inherent tendency to seek out novelty and challenges, to extend and exercise their capacities, to explore, and to learn.” His book reminded me that if correctly motivated, even a previously unengaged student can be successful. [If you haven’t had a chance to read it and want to better understand how teams, organizations, systems, and classes can work together – I recommend you add DRiVE to your summer book list.]

Pink drills home that the factors of autonomy, mastery, and purpose scientifically lead to better performance and personal satisfaction. While his text may initially seem only applicable to business models, the techniques he shares are transferable to education.  If we can create an environment in which our students have the freedom to choose an outcome (autonomy), connect with the inherent urge to improve their skills (mastery), and demonstrate how a greater good can be impacted (purpose) – our students will perform at a higher level. They will engage.

We need to address their motivation.
How?
With FedEx.

At some point in our lives we’ve had to ship something. There are multiple options available, but if it has to be “deliver[ed] overnight”, you choose FedEx. Two years ago a colleague first introduced me to “FedEx Projects” – a class assignment which fosters creativity with a few simple guidelines:

• Groups of 4 students arranged in a way that each group member contributes equally to the outcome;
• With a goal of developing a project that demonstrates meaning;
• Completed on the “delivery” schedule (overnight or within one class period); and
• The work must start on the first day the project is discussed.

Companies like Atlassian and Google first embraced this project style with their employees. Reaping solutions to existing problems and ideas for new products that didn’t exist or weren’t shared until employees were presented with this opportunity. No carrot was involved. The employees didn’t get any more pay or recognition. It was intrinsic.

Our students need this opportunity.

Incorporating “FedEx Projects” into coursework takes some planning [and in fact may flop when implemented the first or second time, but that’s okay…fail forward.] For help in FedEx-ing, you can watch and share these videos – create the atmosphere:

• Daniel Pink’s TED talk
• RSA’s Animate video
• Instructor reflections: John Sowash, Mr. Barnes

Let your students brainstorm topics, what goal they want to accomplish. Encourage their motivation to shine. Watch what happens.

Because let’s face it, we’ve still got carrots.

Will you FedEx? If not now, when?

Wiki you! Two simple ways to wiki-up your class

By Preston Becker

You may or may not know, but blackboard has wikis built right in.

What’s a wiki?  It is like an electronic bulletin board where students can post text or pictures or links. I know that some of you are thinking, so what?  Well, think of it this way:  a wiki is powerful collaborative tool, and I am going to show you two simple ways you can use it to improve your class.

The first way you can use it is for group projects.  If students are working collaboratively in small groups, wiki is an excellent tool.  Since each student can post the wiki independently, students can divide tasks up and use the wiki as a place to collect all of their text, images and other resources.  For example, in my English composition class, students are required to work together on a research project.  At the end of the project, each group makes a PowerPoint which they then present to the class.  I set up a wiki for each group and as they find the images and text they need, they post it to their group’s wiki.  When it is time to build the PowerPoint, they have all of their resources at their fingertips.  You can even preload up each group’s wiki with a frame work for the project, such as a rubric, a list of questions or an outline that students can use as a guideline.

Another great use of a wiki is as a class journal.  If you have computer access in the classroom, you can update the wiki continuously during class as important things come up.  If a student raises an interesting question, you can say, “What a great question!  Post it on the class wiki!”  A wiki used in this way can also be used for important vocabulary terms.  For example, if a student says, “I don’t know what postmodern means.”  You could say, “If you don’t know, I bet other people are not sure.  Let me explain it to you, and you can post your own definition on the class wiki so everyone can see it.”  A class wiki used in this way encourages students to be active collaborators in their own learning.

So here are two simple ways to incorporate wikis into your class.  Wikis are also offered for free through other websites besides blackboard, so you could even create a wiki where students who aren’t in the same section of the course who don’t share the same blackboard can talk to each other.  For my group project, maybe students are curious about the topics other students in other classes are taking.  You can create a wiki open to all students in any section of the class where students can post the topic of their presentations.

Convinced?
If you aren’t, I made a short video to show you how simple it is to set up a wiki:  it only takes about ten seconds.  Really!

Conflict Resolution: Thinking It Through

By PBS LearningMedia
In this clip, a group of high school students participates in a conflict resolution workshop led by an experienced facilitator and social worker.

http://www.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/c314e59f-6e25-4b43-9d37-a63fd9ca9c8f/c314e59f-6e25-4b43-9d37-a63fd9ca9c8f/

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Source Link: http://www.pbs.org/inthemix/