Collaborative note-taking is a pedagogical technique that asks students to rotate note-taking responsibilities during class meetings in a shared document. Implementing this technique helped me, as an instructor, better leverage my students' strengths and weaknesses in an introductory American government class--though the benefits should extend to…

One concern about teaching online or in large, lecturestyle classes is the inability to see students' reactions to course material. These visual cues give instructors feedback on student comprehension, material clarity, and effective delivery modes. Instructors have to see the results of student assignments and exams or end-of-semester evaluations…

When students miss classes for university activities such as athletic and academic events, they inevitably miss important class material. Students can get notes from their peers or visit professors to find out what they missed, but when students miss new and challenging material these steps are sometimes not enough. Screen capture and recording…

Twenty years of research shows that using interactive techniques more often can make a class more effective. For example, a study of six thousand physics students compared classes using passive lecture to classes using interactive techniques that allowed for discussion among students and between the professor and students. The study showed that…

Slide shows presented with software such as PowerPoint or WordPerfect Presentations can trap instructors into bad teaching practices. Research on memory suggests that slide-show instruction can actually be less effective than traditional lecturing when the teacher uses a blackboard or overhead projector. The author proposes a model of classroom…

In a classroom research project, one college teacher experimented with a variation on conventional lecture method to improve student understanding of content. At logical points in the lecture, approximately 15-20 minutes apart, the lecturer pauses and directs students to review the material and paraphrase it in writing. Analysis of student notes…

A discussion of misunderstandings occurring in the college classroom looks at the common sources of misconceptions and offers three ways to diagnose and address them: (1) asking students to think aloud as they solve problems; (2) having students teach course topics; and (3) reviewing students' notes with them. (MSE)