Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Teaching and Research

Malcolm Potts, Qatar University, February 2008

4. Evaluation - Assessment

Designing Interdisciplinary Courses

Learning Outcomes Clarity in reading, writing, speaking, thinking Ability to confront assumptions – their’s and

other’s Practice the habit of asking why instead of

memorizing facts

Uses of Faculty Teams

Course development – collaborate on a course that will be taught individually in separate sections

Team Teaching We will also use External Stakeholders! Remember - this is not easy!

Planning

Picking partners – not marriage but involves a lot of sharing and compromising

Selecting a topic – theme, problem etc. Sharing responsibilities for development and

assessment Active assignments

Communication

Regular on-going communication before and during courses; critical

Careful syllabus preparation to make connections explicit

Specify philosophy, goals, objectives Clarify desired student behaviors

Flexibility

Emphasis on discovery Empowering students to find, explore, and

clarify new questions or associations Faculty role shifts from expert to facilitator Focus shifts from discipline to student

learning; metacognition

Illustration

The Freshman Seminar- a P/F course

13 Presentations and 4 Debates!

1. Pre-Course Test – 10 min

Questions assess students’ understanding of interdisciplinary approaches to doing science

Students write 2 to 3 sentences in response to a question

Example

This country has a per capita (per individual) generation of carbon dioxide that is 44 times more than India, and 15 times more than China. Its greenhouse gas emissions per capita were 33.6 metric tons in 2003 – the highest in the world. Which country?

a) Oman b) United States c) Tunisia d) etc. etc. …………….n) UAE√

Example

What are your interests and career goals? Give four different examples of job

opportunities for graduates of the program

Students are asked the same questions in the “final exam”

Teams

At the first meeting of the class, students are asked to organize themselves into groups of 5 to 6 students and to elect a spokesperson (leader)

The teams make presentations during exam week and lead debates throughout the course

2. Writing Assessment

Each week students type one paragraph that summarizes the content of a speaker's presentation

These are circulated to the instructor(s) for evaluation

Students - Course Goals

Achieve an holistic appraisal of Environmental Science Identify interdisciplinary features of Environmental

Science Participate effectively in a team Participate actively in debates Define the major environmental issues facing society Define the major environmental issues facing Qatar and

the Gulf region Exhibit self-confidence

Expectations of Students

Listen to and view content; ask appropriate questions

Evaluate the major points of each presentation through oral and written responses

Work in teams Take the opportunity to lead Be active in-class debate and dialogue with

peers, as well as with the instructor/presenters Appreciate connections, patterns and

relationships within and between seemingly unrelated topics

Review Sessions (After Each Theme)

A student or team leads a discussion Students use relevant material covered in the

module for the summary class review Students debate a topic (pros and cons) Students are encouraged to write on the

blackboard for critique (do not turn back on audience, avoid distracting actions such as playing with marker) etc.

Engage students who are otherwise quiet

Final Evaluation

A post-course test and written examination with the same questions as given in the pre-course assessment

Students write a summary of the focus and important conclusions of a theme (or a debate)

Groups present on a topic that was either covered in the course, or one of current interest (through the media for example)

Assessment Criteria - ExamplesPass

exercises leadership through organization of a group writes lucid prose for homework assignments is vocal and articulate in class debates

Fail copies (cuts/pastes) material directly from the

internet fails to join a group misses more than 25% of presentations through

unexcused absences

Example Theme Review Topics

What are the important principles to be learned from the last module?.........easy

What connections can you identify between the content of Modules 1 and 3?....harder

By 2010 the largest aluminium smelter in the world will be built inمسيعيد What environmental/social issues can you expect this to generate?....................hardest

Example Final Debate

"This house believes that the environment of Qatar, and Doha in particular, is degrading in an exponential fashion"

Group Presentations -Criteria

Evaluation and Feedback

Weekly written assessments are annotated, edited, and returned to the students

Students' participation in class is evaluated at each meeting of the class by the instructor

Students are given examples of true interdisciplinary approaches to a problem

True Interdisciplinarity

Instructors meet together and design the course

All instructors meet with students on 1st day Instructors interact during debates with

students throughout the course Instructors share experiences Instructors share assessment responsibilities

Summary Again

Benefits Role, Traits of Integrative Teachers Focal Points of Integrative Courses Four Types of Course Designs Strategies for Integrating Content Challenges

Small Group Discussion

Brainstorm a list of at least three challenges you anticipate facing when teaching this interdisciplinary course Generate strategies for overcoming those challenges, using ideas from presentation and from your own experience