student learning

learning language of discipline

Learning the Language of a Discipline

In many courses, students struggle to master the technical language of the discipline. The meaning of new terms is usually not obvious or intuitive. Moreover, the words describe concepts and processes that are also unfamiliar to students. Not surprisingly, the jargon of the discipline can

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study strategy research

Study Strategies: What the Research Tells Us

We know a lot about study strategies—how they can be used to improve exam performance and promote a deeper understanding of the material. We also know that many students are attempting to learn course content without particularly strong study skills. They procrastinate and have short

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active learning

What to Do When They Don’t Understand

You’ve explained something. You can’t tell from their bland expressions if they understand or not. “Do you have any questions?” The silence is long; finally a hand goes up and one of your better students admits, “I’m totally confused.” “How about the rest of you?”

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student multitasking when studying

Four Student Misconceptions about Learning

“Efficient and effective learning starts with a proper mindset,” Stephen Chew writes in his short, readable, and very useful chapter, “Helping Students to Get the Most Out of Studying.” Chew continues, pointing out what most of us know firsthand, students harbor some fairly serious

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grading papers

The Failure of Feedback

“Good job”

“Vague”

“Grammar”

Do they look familiar? Students are used to getting the bulk of their feedback as these sorts of “margin comments” running down the side of their papers. Unfortunately, such comments are of almost no value to the student, because he or she does

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tug of war

Why Students Resist Active Learning

The recent decades have seen growing faculty interest in learning. Increasingly, teaching is being understood in terms of how well it promotes and facilitates learning. Faculty are more familiar than ever with the evidence that favors active learning over lecture. And although many still lecture,

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Professor with students

Why We Teach

We’re at that time of the academic year when the daily details begin to pile up. Teach a class, grade assignments, schedule advisees, and prep for tomorrow. It may not feel like a grind just yet, but it does require lots of focused energy, which

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student with pile of books

It’s Not About Hard or Easy Courses

Now here’s an argument I haven’t heard before: Improving your instruction makes it easier for students to learn. If it’s easier for them to learn, they won’t work as hard in the course, and that means they could learn less. It’s called offsetting behavior and

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