I also disagree with some of his points. The one that stood out the most was the first one. This idea of flipped classrooms puts a heavy burden on students to learn on their own time. I couldn’t imagine having to learn organic chemistry or physical chemistry on my own. The most you could do with the flipped model would be to review the lecture and re-listen to the same example that didn’t allow you to connect the dots in the first place. At worst, the student uses Wikipedia to mostly inaccurately simplify a potentially complex idea. I feel that students need to have a bulk of their introduction to new information be inside a classroom, or at least with someone who is readily available to re-explain a complex topic in a new way. This “innovative” classroom design puts the bulk of learning on the students, and their collaboration with others who may actually understand or may be completely wrong.
Author: britthip
Comment on People-feelings by britthip
I wish we had approached this idea during the semester. I feel now that as we are approaching finals for undergraduates, educators really treat groups of students as an entity, not as people. The class that I am a TA for has had really conflicting results on tests so far this year, and we have had a host of problems from designing the test, to the specific learning goals, and how each of us are approaching the class. Lately my professor is really attached to final grades and how the outcome is going to look (on graduating seniors) and those who we are suggesting that they repeat the course. At this point we have lost the idea that our students are people and we should be trying to get all of them to pass this class. There are students that no matter what would have passed this class, and there are those that no matter what would not pass this class, including some who are already on their second try at the material. I think that remembering that our students are people and those people have educational needs and feeling themselves at the beginning of the semester would leave us in a better spot than we are at right now.
Comment on Questioning Status Quo, Revisiting Role of Education by britthip
In reading your post, I was reminded of the full quote that I am currently using for my teaching statement that starts “the mind is not a vessel that needs filling, but wood that needs igniting” by Plutarch. We, as educators, need to know when we are engaging, but it is also the students who must reciprocate by challenging us as the educators. It is not enough for only educators or students to evolve, there has to be a happy medium that ignites someone’s passion.
LikeLike
Comment on Critical Pedagogy: Learning to think not memorize by britthip
I know what you mean by cold calling a student and watching them sit there. I’m my classes this semester, we have been constantly fighting with trying to get student to think about the materials on tests. We have had to drastically change how we approach problems so that they can get enough practice to do it on the test without help.
LikeLike
Comment on Diversity….brilliant minds working together…. by britthip
Hey man,
I sometimes wonder where these lines were originally drawn, and I keep coming to the idea that we have lived in a divided world because of our social constructs. Science says that our DNA is the same no matter what race, ethic origin, or background. We however did not start as a scientifically minded civilization. We were originally built on religion and geographic area. Once people began to move around, migrate, travel long distances did we use technology or religion to divide people. We still today use our differences in our ideas of ourselves in order to classify people. We are one species, one human race, and the only way to advance ourselves further away from our animal status is to develop a world community that is no longer out to prove that they are better than a group of people. See ya in class this week.
-Britton
Comment on “Racism is a structure not an event” – Robin DiAngelo by britthip
Hey Luisa,
I agree this is a very timely topic in our current political climate. I sometimes wonder if people still don’t understand that race is a human concept not a biological one. On the DNA level, you and I are no different from each other, other than my Y-chromosome. We have the same DNA, the same genes, and there would be no way a human or computer could tell the difference. Only by understanding racism and how our behavior is guided by the human concept of race, can we “evolve” as a species and civilization.
-Britton
Comment on An evolutionary psychology approach to deconstructing bias by britthip
I found this take refreshing. As a scientist, I often find myself struggling to define humans and human nature. Yes, we are animals of the great ape lineage. Yes, we share 99% of our DNA with chimps. Yes, we can trace back to our common ancestor. But, I find it hard to say that we allow our subconscious drive from our evolution to govern our thoughts and actions. We are a sentient species. We have mastered our environments. We have mastered flight without having wings. We have mastered deep-sea diving, but still breathe air. We have left our planet, a feat no other “animal” has even attempted to accomplish. If we want to be this complex creature that has risen above its animal status, we must also be able to consciously observe our prejudices and bias with our active mind. Maybe some are just so ingrained that they don’t want to not be bias, but I think in order to advance civilization, we must first make the last improvements to our own nature that was walked all the way to the edge by evolution.
Comment on Musing on my Teaching Self by britthip
Thank you for actually taking the test. I don’t match all the characteristics of my colors either. Blue and green are soemtimes thought of as opposites. I find myself leaning towards each color in different situations. I like working in groups (Blue) as I think I am kind of social, but I don’t most of my hardcore thinking and writing independently (Green). Stubbornness is not something that I am proud of, it is just who I am, in the same aspect that I am idealistic. I have a plan that I am confident that I can teach in a given day for example, that means I will get that material taught (stubbornness) and I won’t have time to dally. I agree that students are individuals, but I want to create an atmosphere that recognizes that I am in charge, I have things to teach, and you want to be here for it. Also, being able to recognize your shortcomings (stubbornness and idealism) will allow me to think critically about my behaviors and act accordingly to correct myself if they are not in the student’s best interest.
LikeLike
Comment on Communicating teaching pedagogy with students by britthip
I can see what you are saying. I guess I have to think about how transparent I want to be. I agree that being an approachable professor would be important. Most of my professors in undergrad always seem infallible to me, and that’s not something that I want to project to my students. I definitely had comments on assignments and criticism of the class, but by the time it come to the surveys at the end of the year, my problems seemed minuscule by the passage of time. But, by being more approachable I can create a better and more personalize experience for my students.
Comment on Between a rock and a hard place: are authenticity and control contradicting factors in a class ? by britthip
I guess I should go back and add idealism to my teaching style, but I have this picture where I hope to create an environment that students will want to come to and learn. I want students to understand that I am the teacher and the “one with the answers” but only as far as when I am asking a question. I see a place where I can make my students comfortable enough to begin to ask me questions that I can’t answer. That will be the mark that I am really teaching, is when I inspire a student to actually think and apply what their learning, not just memorize the words I speak.
Also on a side note, I don’t know if the paycheck will be a motivator for me to teach. I would view the paycheck as compensation for a job well done, not as prepayment for my services. If I cared about the money, I would have followed my brother’s footstep and went into accounting. He is getting paid more than me now, and he is just about to graduate his undergrad.
