Limitations of “Try”
Could not do a “try” because of the current place we are in the semester - last week of the term and student focus is on exam preparations. However, after working on updating the prototype, I still wanted to follow up with students and now a colleague to get their reactions. Note that I reviewed the insights learned from the last interview. After reviewing examples that had been posted by other participants of the course, I sensed that perhaps I had “bitten off more than I could chew”. As a result, I also reached out to one of the course facilitator’s Mitchel Resnick, MIT (twitter - @mres ) for feedback. It was confirmed. I really needed to scale back the scope of my earlier prototype activity (link on blog) to realize something more manageable. What I have now (link to blog, link to doc) certainly achieves this but I still even wonder if I’ve gone far enough.
The alternative?
Another Interview
Observations
Students were surprised but very receptive to being invited back to discuss my work .. and were equally interested in contributing to the design of a lesson plan on vocabulary. We met informally outside of class time.
They noted how they were not accustomed to being invited and solicited for such feedback, that it has never happened to them before. What also slipped out from them is how they perceive instructors underestimate their ability to learn and want to learn - that they are often being treated in a condescending manner. If they know that they are respected by their instructor, they will actually produce more and with greater commitment. If they are not, there is a tendency to only deliver the bare minimum.
They noted how they wanted more “hands on” practical application of ideas - vocabulary
They cited how I demonstrated in class the concepts of tension and compression using the classroom door as a useful example of how to be more engaging, helping them to understand concepts - not just from leaving it to them to read about and then understand them.
They also noted how they were already eager to try it and wondered when and where this could be done. Through no urging or suggesting by me, they even approached me with the idea of doing it as part of summer classes they plan on taking. This may be a characteristic of the engineering student population - one worth investigating further.
How to improve the prototype?
Identified from the second interview (with some caution because the feedback only comes from three students).
Students WANT (crave) engagement thus there is a need to look for where and when opportunities exist for inviting students to engage with and experience new concepts
Student WANT models so that they see and understand the concept / process they are being asked to apply. Models are important but there is a need to stress that these should really not be used as templates. Instead, students need to be encouraged to be critical of why the models are designed the way they are .. and how they are open to being adapted, changed or even replaced
Students need to see a model of the “discovery” process in an effort to invite them to do the same (example? Evolution of the bicycle? Design of shoes (Tinker Hatfield - Air Jordans)? Challenge to find a simple short video to help illustrate this; to find a simple problem for students to work on (paper tower? paper airplane?) to see process
My reflections
Leads me to see both the rationale for and viability of differentiated instruction; inviting student feedback on addressing needs and challenges.. And inviting them to use the “design thinking” process to help address these needs and challenges. Yet it is difficult to get students to reflect on something that is abstract without having tried it thus underscoring the importance of completing this “try” phase.
Getting feedback is so critical to ensuring the “design thinking” process works. That feedback informs the design process, by inviting one to challenge assumptions about the way things are done. So to get that feedback, really means that the instructor needs to invite it frequently and continuously especially when there is a history or culture that discourages. I’m referring to the uneven power relationship between instructor and students. . I’m thinking of how this is often seen by students as placing the instructor in the position of being a superior - someone vastly superior to the student, and holder / discloser of the answer.
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