Educating Teaching Assistants in New Models for Teaching and Learning

在20世纪90年代，美国国家科学基金会资助了五项化学计划，通过使用新的教学策略来提高学生对自己学习过程的参与度，以此作为改善本科化学教育的主要努力。ModularChem联盟和ChemLinks联盟所做的评估显示，使用新材料的学生在各个机构都获得了学习收益。在小班教学环境中，学生们也报告了更大的课程乐趣，并且感觉课程比传统课程更好地满足了他们的需求，而在大班教学环境中，大多数学生都没有这种态度。然而，越来越清楚的是，为了使化学改革努力取得成功，他们必须在大型“讲座”课上取得成功。即使教师们精通新的教与学模式，并致力于从以教师为中心的环境转变为以学生为中心的环境，这种努力也可能不会成功，因为助教们对科学教与学持有深刻的社会化、保守的观点。在大班授课的机构中，系统改革的努力可能取决于助教理解和看到新教与学模式有用性的程度。由于大型大学也是未来大量化学教师的来源，改革努力的最终成功很可能取决于教学助理的教育。本项目的主要目的是为助教提供所需的经验和工具，帮助他们理解、支持和促进改革工作。这些经验和工具包含在以下三本手册中：1)在课程开始前培训助教的讲师的培训手册。这本手册包含了如何使用探究式方法教关于教学和学习的各种主题的2小时会议的详细描述。2)教师在学期中使用的教育学手册，为助教提供持续的支持，使他们能够获得新的教学模式的技能。本手册包含30分钟的活动，解决学期中出现的教育学问题。3)《化学概念手册》，供助教与学生讨论各种化学概念时使用。本手册包含复习课的讨论工作表，旨在帮助学生面对他们的误解，并提供证据帮助他们修改自己的想法。提供了学生持有的观点以及如何与学生有效地讨论这些观点的例子。所有材料都在不同的机构类型中进行了测试，并进行了改进，以确保它们对不同的助教群体的有效性。目前，这包括新墨西哥大学，它被指定为卡内基研究机构和少数民族/西班牙裔服务机构，新墨西哥州立大学及其联盟伙伴，东新墨西哥大学和北亚利桑那大学。这些材料的影响是通过书面评估、焦点小组和本科生表现比较来评估的。这些材料通过在专业会议上的演讲、在化学联系组织主办的讲习班上的演讲以及在万维网上广泛传播。我们正与一家出版商合作，促进这些教材的分发，以配合教科书和模块。

Chemistry (12) During the 1990s, NSF funded five chemistry initiatives as major efforts to improve undergraduate chemistry education by using new pedagogical strategies for increasing student engagement in their own learning processes. Evaluations done by the ModularChem Consortium and the ChemLinks coalition showed learning gains across institutions for students using the new materials. In small class settings, students also reported significantly greater enjoyment of the course as well as the feeling that the course met their needs better than the traditional counterparts, attitudes not shared by the majority of students in large class settings. However, it is becoming increasingly clear that in order for the chemistry reform efforts to succeed, they must be successful in large "lecture" classes. Even when faculty are well versed in new models for teaching and learning and are committed to the shift from a teacher-centered environment to a student-center environment, the effort may not succeed because of the deeply socialized, conservative views of science teaching and learning held by the Teaching Assistants. Systemic reform efforts in institutions with large lecture classes may depend upon the extent to which Teaching Assistants understand and see the usefulness of new models of teaching and learning. Since large universities are also the source for significant numbers of the future chemistry faculty, the ultimate success of reform efforts may well depend upon the education of Teaching Assistants. Providing Teaching Assistants with the experiences and tools that they need to understand, support, and contribute to reform efforts is the primary purpose of this project. These experiences and tools are included in three Handbooks as follows: 1) Training Handbook for instructors who train Teaching Assistants prior to the beginning of a course. This handbook contains detailed descriptions of how to teach 2-hour sessions on various topics about teaching and learning using inquiry-based methods. 2) Pedagogy Handbook for instructors to use during the term to provide continued support to Teaching Assistants so that they may gain skill in new models for teaching and learning. This Handbook contains 30-minute activities that address issues in pedagogy that arise during the semester. 3) Chemistry Concepts Handbook for Teaching Assistants to use as they discuss various concepts in chemistry with their students. This Handbook contains discussion worksheets for recitation sessions that are aimed at helping students confront their misconceptions and providing evidence to help them modify their ideas. Examples of ideas that students hold and how to discuss these ideas productively with students is being provided. All materials are being tested at a variety of institutional types, and refined to ensure their effectiveness for diverse Teaching Assistant populations. At present this includes the University of New Mexico, which is designated as both a Carnegie I Research Institution and a Minority/ Hispanic-Service Institution, and New Mexico State University with its coalition partners, Eastern New Mexico University and Northern Arizona University. The impact of these materials is being evaluated through written assessments, focus groups, and comparisons of undergraduate student performance. The materials are being broadly disseminated by presentations at professional meetings, by presentations at workshops sponsored by Chemistry Connections, and on the World Wide Web. We are working with a publisher to promote distribution of these materials to accompany textbooks and modules.