Projects and/or Papers? Finding a Good Fit

Abstract

Teaching often presents instructors with dilemmas and decisions related to requiring a project, a paper or both. This interactive session will include discussion and offer hints, the opportunity to develop a plan for a course, and time to give and receive peer feedback.
The session will consider four core ideas:
ââ¬Â¢ Determining key decision criteria for inclusion of a project/paper /or both in a particular course.
ââ¬Â¢ Framing the scope of a project /paper and number of students per project/paper
ââ¬Â¢ Choosing ââ¬Ëdeliverablesââ¬â¢ and time frames
ââ¬Â¢ Selecting evaluation criteria
I believe faculty will be interested as I am sure that others have had the experience of being either overwhelmed by what happens when a great idea for projects balloons a bit out of control or feeling let-down that there is far less apparent learning from the project than expected. In my experience, any gathering of Mason faculty to talk about teaching engenders great exchange of ideas and experiences, and this session offers a framework for that sharing related to project or paper assignments, as well as some practical hints. In fact, my expectation is that this session will yield a group of ideas that can be shared via the CTE web. The structural thread for this session is backward design as the base for decision criteria.-By looking at the desired student learning, and considering Bloomââ¬â¢s categories, or Perryââ¬â¢s developmental scale among other ideas, an instructor can design assignments for projects/papers leading to the desired learning. Framing the scope involves both the ââ¬Ësizeââ¬â¢ of the assignment, and its focus, along with the desired learning. Scope can inform the choices for group or individual work. Deliverables are demonstrations of students learning.. The quality of those deliverables is influenced by an appropriate time frame. For example, several smaller pieces of work may build to a stronger final project or paper. Elements of deliverables can be many things, and when the focus is on the desired student learning, these elements =become clearer to both instructor and students. One valuable attribute of backward design is that evaluation criteria are often self evident. Participants will begin by considering a desired student learning, and using the four core ideas. Faculty discussion, idea exchange, and reflection will contribute to a session experience that can be applied to additional course or syllabi development.