Spring 2014

Spring 2014  *Note: If you would like a copy of any of my resources, please e-mail me (raechel.soicher@sfcollege.edu) with your name and institution for a password.

You can see that my blogging endeavor did not go quite as planned last smeester.  However, I am trying to "flip" my classroom this semester and, since I'm shaking things up so much, I decided I need to keep track of it somehow.  ANd maybe do a little planning ahead. ::gasp::  So here goes.

Day 1 Outline:

1. Syllabus Quiz - I have been trying to think of a way to emphasize to my students that they are going to be held accountable for the work I assign them outside of class (it is "flipped" after all, and their participation makes or breaks each class session).  Last week, I e-mailed the syllabus and a hand-out explaining a flipped classroom to all the students.  Well, almost all.  Not all of them have an email address linked to the school.  I am going to give them the syllabus quiz before I introduce anything about the class at all, including myself.  I am not actually going to grade the quiz (shhhh!) but they won't know that.  Then, I'm going to have them switch with the person next to them to have their quiz "graded" and then we will go over the correct answers together.  The review of the quiz will allow me to highlight important aspects of the syllabus but also point out for them that they are required to read things on their own - not expect me to go over every single detail.
1. As part of the syllabus quiz review, we will discuss what a flipped classroom is.
2. Students will also receive the hand-out on how to register for PsychPortal and I'll answer any questions that have about it.
2. Find the Fake - A research activity from Caroline Rigsby
1. I will put students into 6 groups, ask them to introduce themselves, and have them exchange e-mail and/or phone numbers.  Then, in their groups, they will go around to each research example, discuss if they think its real or not, have one note-taker, then go back to work in their groups and decide which research is the fake.
2. This will hopefully lead to a discussion that will illuminate their prior knowledge, preconceptions, etc.
3. Requests for our next class meeting: sign-up for PsychPortal, start your Learning Curve games.  Bring syllabus to next class.

Day 1 Actual: 

1. The syllabus quiz on day 1 did, I think, what I had hoped it would do.  Students were stunned that I had asked them to read up on course info but they didn't seem so stressed that I worried I shouldn't do it again.  The quiz was also a great spring board for (1) introducing myself to the class (2) orienting them to a "flipped" classroom, plus handout, and (3) covering grades/course policies.  This took about 45 minutes.  
2. Find the fake.  I forgot to tell students to exchange phone numbers.  I'm hoping since the course requires so much group work, they will begin to feel comfortable and maybe take this step on their own.  They LOVED this activity.  It got them contemplating how they "know" things versus how we "feel" things and also about how we make decisions/appraise validity of things.  Putting them in groups, allowing them time to read the research (out loud, one handout per group - this helps make sure the timing is more similar across groups), and discuss takes about 15 minutes.  Then, I ask each group to report out, I pick up on important topics and explain them/write them on the board.  This also takes about 15 minutes.  While I wasn't planning it, it turned out I sent them home without telling them the answer.  I am hoping one or more of them will have tried looking up the correct answer and then bring that back to class.  I think that will give us a few minutes of good discussion.