I love the examples you gave of what has worked well for seminar-style classes. Very helpful. (The conversational manner, “have you ever noticed that…”, “you’ve probably seen how….” I really appreciate when a professor gives background before we launch into a conversation. I think this helps me to move out of my comfort zone and the things I already understand. The best seminar class I have been in had questions about the papers that were assigned to us in advanced. So we were responsible for answering/leading the conversation on the questions we had been given, and we were given time to do research on the topic before class. This helped us get deep into topics that we would have skimmed over otherwise.
The professors in these classes still encouraged student-based discussion but created some structure by providing necessary background on the subject or interjecting with their own questions.

I like what you said about seeing things as a puzzle. I focused in more on the role-play element of video games but the more sit-down-and-puzzle-it-out element is probably at least as important. A good problem/puzzle is intrinsically motivating.

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Cool post — and I like the title reference.

This got me thinking, I wonder if there is a way to distinguish between testing designed to help the student see their own progress, vs testing solely for allowing a teacher to see progress. I agree with your regular testing point — I have found this to be very helpful. But somehow I see this as completely separate from a testing culture that promotes a grade-centered motivation. I’m trying to figure out what the difference is. I think if the testing is so regular that is ceases to be seen as a test, but as a regular pre-class review opportunity you have a very different result than you would if you simply multiplied out the effect of high-stakes tests.

There seams to be a lot of emphasis on moving lectures online, so the interactive work can be done in class, and so students can replay the content. I wonder how a similar study would look doing the same types of tests that the pen vs computer study would did, if you were comparing online vs in person lectures. Do people take notes listening to online lectures? I know I don’t — I assume I already have the information on my computer, it’s already in a format that I can reference latter. But if processing information through note taking increases comprehension, how does that effect MOOCs?

really like what you said about “Would it not be great, if our students today could get excited by hearing this request from their instructor? Perhaps curiously thinking what kind of exciting journey will be taken where we need to clear off desk space and have a blank canvas?”

That sounded almost funny to me at first, hard to picture, but then I realized that is what is so insightful about it. Classes have gone so far in the opposite direction into a “gotcha” attitude, that sometimes we don’t even notice.

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