This semester I've faced many new challenges as a new teaching assistant. I've worried about preparing engaging lectures, getting student involvement, fair grading and the list goes on. This week touched on a new concern I face as a new teaching assistant, course evaluations.
In the last week I've heard talk of these dreaded course evaluations. Not only can they be heartbreaking to read, but to an extent they determine our continued employment as teaching assistants. I don't think I have much to worry about, but concern always lingers in the back of my mind.
About four weeks ago I did my own course evaluations, as recommended in First Day to Final Grade. I wish I had read the chapter before reading my evaluations. Most of the evaluations were good, but some were cutting. The one I remember most was "Try not to make your lectures so corny". I really was not nor am I still sure what my student meant by this. Further, other students said, "I really like how you incorporate humor into your lecture". I guess that one cutting remark about my lecture held more value than all of the reinforcement. In addition to my lectures students suggested many changes I can not make.
Many students wanted me to change things that I have no control over. Essentially, as McKeachie defines it we are teaching Comm 110 as a multi-section course. I really don't have the power to move the second test from the Wednesday before Thanksgiving and eliminate the review day. If I could, I would because I have other ideas of how I'd rather spend that day too. Basically it comes to a question of authority and power in the classroom.
I can also see elements of McKeachie in how Comm 110 is run from the perspective of a teaching assistant. We follow the suggestions as presented by Mckeachie. We have our weekly meetings, most of us have collected feedback from our students, and have had an observation of our classes. As far as these good recommendations go, there are still issues we face as a group of new teaching assistants. I'd like to re-visit the notion of power and authority in the classroom.
Often times I feel an amount of tension between the amount of control I have over the course content, and the amount of freedom I have as a teaching assistant. I feel that we are often told to make a decision, then are often chastised for the decisions we make. I wish I had a more clearly defined role. I think as the semester rolls on we are all getting an idea of the types of decisions we can make however, I still am uneasy about making an executive decision.
Further, some decisions need to be made somewhat quickly. I don't always have the luxury of getting back to a student. I also don't want to say, "Oh, let me talk with my supervisor to see if I can do that." I think that if I display uncertainty in my job it will undermine my authority in the classroom. I have discovered the phrase "let me think about it and get back to you" can buy me time, but there are some times when I feel a "real teacher" would have an answer and give it immediately. Imposter syndrome anyone?
Basically, I feel like our mentor groups, the 690 course, and the structure of the course can feed into the notion of imposter syndrome that we had in the reading a few weeks ago. I feel that I'm almost the teacher, but not really. I think that having the constants of a watchful eye checking my decision making and limiting my power in the classroom undermines my feeling like a true instructor.
That said, I don't feel that it should all go away. I'm not saying that I know what I'm doing so just let me work. I think there is a large value in having these resources as a new teacher. I just think that it should be more of an atmosphere of collaboration rather than being told what we are to do as McKeachie suggests. I think that if we discussed more issues we would all feel less imposter, and more like we are real teachers who know what they are doing.
I want to move away from the idea that I am purely criticizing our department. During our orientation I got a lot of valuable information. This became very clear at the panel we had to attend for all new teaching assistants. Many of the other departments represented asked questions that we already knew the answers to. Some were so ill prepared they were asking where they could find their syllabus, or if one existed for the course they were teaching. Although this is an extreme example, we went in with knowledge of what was expected, and what to expect.
Our group is generally well prepared, however some things remain ill-defined for us. Smaller issues that we encounter on a day to day basis are bumps in the road, not roadblocks for us. If I, as a better prepared teaching assistant am facing stress, I can only imagine how the student who asked where her syllabus was, is doing about now.
We are real teachers, in the real world. Often we face many tensions, and much stress as new teachers. From course evaluations, to power in the classroom, we have a lot going on. Add that to adjusting to graduate study and it should come as no surprise that many of us are having some trouble adapting. The readings for this week go a long way to ease some of these tensions, along with the resources we have in our mentor groups, Comm 690, and this class.
Helpful links:
Sample Course Evaluation: This link will take you to a course evaluation that another instructor has made. I think it give a good example of questions we should ask our students on a less formal course evaluation. I plan on using this as a guideline for my next round of in-formal course evaluations.
Declassifying student evaluations: This is an interesting article about Cornell University's decision to declassify student evaluations of instructors. I think the article makes some interesting points about the decision, and may be worthy of discussion.
Instructor attractiveness and course evaluations: This article in The Chronicle of Higher Education touches on findings of instructor attractiveness and course evaluations. The article is brief and makes some interesting points.
RateMyProfessors.com: This site is mentioned in the above two links. The site is a way students can evaluate their instructors for other students' use. I checked for myself on this site, luckily I'm not on it...yet.
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Writing, technology, and activities...Oh my!
This week's readings seemed in some ways to be a reiteration of older material. For example, using low-stakes writing to encourage discussion, and as a non-graded assessment. I was glad that the material went more in-depth because it got me to thinking about how I could use high-stakes and low-stakes writing assignments in the course that I am designing.
I believe that for my org. comm. class that I am creating, low-stakes writing will be a large part of the course. First, I really liked the McKeachie book's idea of having students keep a journal. I did this for my Org. Comm. II class, and found it to be a very good way to synthesize course materials. I would let students know that grading will be only based on content and ideas, and have it be a very minimal part of their grade (probably 5%). I would encourage students to write on their own, but also provide a weekly prompt. I would keep this journal on a private level because I want students to feel free to voice questions or confusion they are facing, and not worry so much about grammar and syntax.
Additionally in my class, I think that one-minute papers would be highly beneficial for students. As we have discussed several times, this is a good way to facilitate discussion. Further, many of the theories in Org. Comm. I are dense and hard to synthesize without taking a moment and writing out full thoughts. I also feel that when moving up Bloom's taxonomy to application, it is best to allow students some amount of time to gather their thoughts and really work through their ideas. A one-minute paper I would have students write for example would be to reflect on a time when they were new in an organization, and apply the theoretical constructs of assimilation to that experience.
These smaller scale assignments will be a helpful starting point for my high-stakes writing assignment. My high-stakes writing assignment will entail a paper written in three distinct sections. First, students will provide a brief background of one of the organizational theories in the class. Second, students will find a real life case where this theory could be helpful; students will then describe the case. The third and final section will be having students apply the theory in section one to the case in section two. This section should show how the theory is helpful, and places where the theory isn't as useful.
Having a larger writing assignment such as this, broken into three parts will help students not feel overwhelmed. Also, through peer reviews, and my feedback students can get valuable information, and hopefully a better grade. I feel it is far better to correct misguided students in section one, so that section two will actually be applicable. I can also look for issues with the student's choice of case and that should in turn keep section three what I had in mind. If I were to just assign this as one big lump assignment, any error along the way could make the rest of the assignment garbage, and a waste of time.
The bulk of class will be using case studies to better understand organizational communication. I believe that this problem-based approach is best for this type of course. I can lecture all day about ideas like organizational culture but until students get an actual picture of organizational culture the lecture would likely be too abstract to be of any value. I think case studies are a great way to ground abstract ideas to reality. I believe that a great way to effectively use problem based learning is to assign reading of the text (give students a theory or concept to think about) and then assign a case (a way to see this theory or concept at work). Case studies are also a way to engage students in active learning.
I believe that putting students into groups and using more of a syndicate-based approach to learning would be great when working with some of these case studies. Assigning each group a different case study and concept and having them present it to the class would be a great way to incorporate this into my teaching. I think that having discussions in small groups gives students a comfort level they may not ordinarily have, and presenting the material causes greater comprehension as the McKeachie book states. All of this leads me to best practices in activities and problem based learning.
One important aspect of doing an activity is telling students what they should get out of it. Often, as a new instructor I want to wait until the end to explain why it was such a fantastic activity and hope to see the "light bulb" turn on over student's heads. I experimented with telling students what they should get out of the activity, and it seems to be far more effective that way. Additionally, watching the teaching presentations as a learner; I like knowing where the activity is going. At the end of an activity it is a good idea to debrief the activity. Ask the students what they have learned. Often this tells me whether the activity was helpful. I also ask if students liked the activity. I then ask them why they did or (as often is the case) did not like the activity.
Another practice that should be done during an activity is providing clear direction. Not only should the instructions be on the board or a powerpoint slide, explain them. Also, I've found it helpful to show my activities to an "outsider" to see what confusion they have about the activity. Questions like, "So, what exactly do you want your students to do in their groups" has been helpful. Sometimes I get, "what is the point of this?" I'd far rather get this feedback from an outsider than 21 confused students.
Finally, walking around during activities and group work has been very rewarding. This has first, made me feel like an actual teacher. Also, as students have questions and I can guide them. This also allows me to clarify common misconceptions about the assignment. If a group asks a particularly good question I can then provide further explanation to the rest of the class. I also find this is a good way to keep groups on task. If they know I'm coming around they tend to stick more to task than relational conversation.
This week's reading reiterated many points we've already discussed but went into greater detail. I am taking many great things out of this reading including some assignments for my class, and better ways to engage my students in the learning process.
Helpful links:
Powerpoint best practices: This page from about.com provides useful basic information about creating a powerpoint presentation, and provides useful links to other resources on powerpoint.
Case Studies: This page contains several case studies that I think would be great for my Org. Comm. I. class. Also, I think that some of these are generic enough to be applicable in many different aspects of communication.
Low-Stakes writing: This comes from Texas A&M University and talks about low-stakes writing and approaches that we can use. I found this as a helpful and condensed version of low-stakes writing as presented in the McKeachie book.
I believe that for my org. comm. class that I am creating, low-stakes writing will be a large part of the course. First, I really liked the McKeachie book's idea of having students keep a journal. I did this for my Org. Comm. II class, and found it to be a very good way to synthesize course materials. I would let students know that grading will be only based on content and ideas, and have it be a very minimal part of their grade (probably 5%). I would encourage students to write on their own, but also provide a weekly prompt. I would keep this journal on a private level because I want students to feel free to voice questions or confusion they are facing, and not worry so much about grammar and syntax.
Additionally in my class, I think that one-minute papers would be highly beneficial for students. As we have discussed several times, this is a good way to facilitate discussion. Further, many of the theories in Org. Comm. I are dense and hard to synthesize without taking a moment and writing out full thoughts. I also feel that when moving up Bloom's taxonomy to application, it is best to allow students some amount of time to gather their thoughts and really work through their ideas. A one-minute paper I would have students write for example would be to reflect on a time when they were new in an organization, and apply the theoretical constructs of assimilation to that experience.
These smaller scale assignments will be a helpful starting point for my high-stakes writing assignment. My high-stakes writing assignment will entail a paper written in three distinct sections. First, students will provide a brief background of one of the organizational theories in the class. Second, students will find a real life case where this theory could be helpful; students will then describe the case. The third and final section will be having students apply the theory in section one to the case in section two. This section should show how the theory is helpful, and places where the theory isn't as useful.
Having a larger writing assignment such as this, broken into three parts will help students not feel overwhelmed. Also, through peer reviews, and my feedback students can get valuable information, and hopefully a better grade. I feel it is far better to correct misguided students in section one, so that section two will actually be applicable. I can also look for issues with the student's choice of case and that should in turn keep section three what I had in mind. If I were to just assign this as one big lump assignment, any error along the way could make the rest of the assignment garbage, and a waste of time.
The bulk of class will be using case studies to better understand organizational communication. I believe that this problem-based approach is best for this type of course. I can lecture all day about ideas like organizational culture but until students get an actual picture of organizational culture the lecture would likely be too abstract to be of any value. I think case studies are a great way to ground abstract ideas to reality. I believe that a great way to effectively use problem based learning is to assign reading of the text (give students a theory or concept to think about) and then assign a case (a way to see this theory or concept at work). Case studies are also a way to engage students in active learning.
I believe that putting students into groups and using more of a syndicate-based approach to learning would be great when working with some of these case studies. Assigning each group a different case study and concept and having them present it to the class would be a great way to incorporate this into my teaching. I think that having discussions in small groups gives students a comfort level they may not ordinarily have, and presenting the material causes greater comprehension as the McKeachie book states. All of this leads me to best practices in activities and problem based learning.
One important aspect of doing an activity is telling students what they should get out of it. Often, as a new instructor I want to wait until the end to explain why it was such a fantastic activity and hope to see the "light bulb" turn on over student's heads. I experimented with telling students what they should get out of the activity, and it seems to be far more effective that way. Additionally, watching the teaching presentations as a learner; I like knowing where the activity is going. At the end of an activity it is a good idea to debrief the activity. Ask the students what they have learned. Often this tells me whether the activity was helpful. I also ask if students liked the activity. I then ask them why they did or (as often is the case) did not like the activity.
Another practice that should be done during an activity is providing clear direction. Not only should the instructions be on the board or a powerpoint slide, explain them. Also, I've found it helpful to show my activities to an "outsider" to see what confusion they have about the activity. Questions like, "So, what exactly do you want your students to do in their groups" has been helpful. Sometimes I get, "what is the point of this?" I'd far rather get this feedback from an outsider than 21 confused students.
Finally, walking around during activities and group work has been very rewarding. This has first, made me feel like an actual teacher. Also, as students have questions and I can guide them. This also allows me to clarify common misconceptions about the assignment. If a group asks a particularly good question I can then provide further explanation to the rest of the class. I also find this is a good way to keep groups on task. If they know I'm coming around they tend to stick more to task than relational conversation.
This week's reading reiterated many points we've already discussed but went into greater detail. I am taking many great things out of this reading including some assignments for my class, and better ways to engage my students in the learning process.
Helpful links:
Powerpoint best practices: This page from about.com provides useful basic information about creating a powerpoint presentation, and provides useful links to other resources on powerpoint.
Case Studies: This page contains several case studies that I think would be great for my Org. Comm. I. class. Also, I think that some of these are generic enough to be applicable in many different aspects of communication.
Low-Stakes writing: This comes from Texas A&M University and talks about low-stakes writing and approaches that we can use. I found this as a helpful and condensed version of low-stakes writing as presented in the McKeachie book.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Diversity and so much more.
Diversity seemed to be a prevalent theme in this week's reading. Not only did we have a chapter on teaching culturally diverse students, we also had a diverse sampling of readings. Each reading had good points, some with which I agree, others I found challenged some of my basic assumptions about teaching. In this post I will discuss the pros and cons of each of the three readings, and how I think I can incorporate them into my classroom.
Much of what I found in the readings was useful information. I was surprised at the useful information I found in the Learner Centered Teaching excerpt. I liked that idea that giving students this feeling of power and control over the course gives them a sense of ownership. I believe that is largely absent in the classroom today. I believe this also provides a good explanation as to why students sometimes are withdrawn from the classroom. Giving students agency forces them to engage the material. Also, I think the notion of having students choose what we will talk about from a section forces them to read the material. It is very difficult to choose what will be discussed with no prior knowledge of the material.
I also liked the idea of having students choose actual items that will go on the course schedule. This makes students feel as though they are getting relevant material. Additionally, the text recommends making items that don't make the cut for the schedule an assignment for the student to complete individually. I thought this was a fantastic idea as the student will want the information, and thus be more able to see the value in the assignment. As good as this sounds I did find some issues with this reading.
First, continuing with this notion of students choosing the schedule. During the first week of class, do students really know what the course entails, and what is most important? I highly doubt this. For my students in hard sciences, I believe it would be very challenging for them to decide what is most important. Further, my course is structured around readings relevant to and assignment, then that assignment. At times I don't think students would comprehend putting information surrounding for example, structuring a speech, before the informative speech. I think this could potentially lead to a back-heavy course work. Students would most likely want to cover all of the material, then do all of the assignments.
Additionally, I think bringing in a syllabus with "Draft" on the top compromises the credibility of the instructor. Further, the section that dealt with formulating the syllabus consumed about three class periods. Too much time goes into discussion about the course, and challenges the amount of material that can be covered.
Finally, I think that many of the recommendations provided would cause a great deal of stress for myself as an instructor. Sorting through what students want, and making sure my core objectives of the class are met seems extremely difficult. The rewards of this style of teaching seem great, but I believe the costs associated with this style of teaching cause difficulty to the point that total commitment to this approach becomes an issue. That said, there are aspects of this style of teaching I plan on incorporating into my classroom.
I really like the idea of having students address what is most important in the material. I would like to find a way to have my students do this. I believe that if I am honest with them, and tell them I'd like to try a new approach that involves them more, they would be receptive to the idea. My fear is that students will come in with blank stares and still expect me to tell them what is important. I just figured out that these blogs are how you get us to address what is most important in the lecture.
I had this experience when I had my exam review I told them that I had a "Jeopardy" game prepared and encouraged them to bring in their questions on the course material. I informed my students I wanted their input on what they wanted reviewed, and after we addressed their questions we could move on to my game if time remained. Nobody brought in questions. I'm trying this approach again this week. Friday they are to bring in issues they found on their speeches, and we will take time to address them, and I will give them tips to overcome these issues. I told them that I want them to be successful, and want to address concerns they have. Friday will tell if this approach is something I should continue to pursue or not.
Finally, the article talked about teachers wanting control in their classroom. I will admit this is a concern I face every time I ask students to direct me, and let me know what they want to know. I get concerned my authority, and the perception of me as an expert will be challenged when I get questions that I am not prepared for. I like the control I have in the classroom, and am not willing to give that up easily. Further I don't believe my students are motivated enough to take on part of my role as the instructor.
Motivation as presented in McKeachie's book was a fascinating chapter to read. First, I could see aspects of myself as a student in the presentation of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. I could also see former classmates, and current students in these types of motivation.
Sadly, my classroom is largely composed of extrinsically motivated students. Questions such as "how many points is this worth" and "is this graded" tell the tale. Early on in students' academic careers, the stress of doing well causes this motivation. This also goes back to our discussion of assessment. Are we evaluating what students learn (intrinsic) or giving points based on what we as teachers want to see (extrinsic). I believe that much of what the text says about our approach and grading style lends the classroom to one of these fundamental motivating forces. I often frame course material around the "real world" and explain why it is important to grasp the concept. During my test review I told students that the exam would focus on material that is useful beyond the classroom, thus hoping to boost a sense of intrinsic rewards.
I also enjoyed reading about attribution theory. I am familiar with the theory and have seen examples from the classroom (i.e. the example of why a student did poor on a test) but never really thought about applying attributions when giving feedback or discussing grades. I like the idea of framing the conversation in terms of controllable, internal, attributions could be helpful. I think that applying these attributions can be seen in the next section of the McKeachie reading on dealing with culturally diverse students.
Some of what McKeachie recommends in the chapter served as happy reminders of my intercultural communication course. Others, seemed very far-fetched, and involved having discussions with students that I just wouldn't have.
Discussions I would not have would be talking about students' families when discussing their performance. Although I understand the reasons behind the recommendation, I don't find it appropriate. Further, bringing parents and siblings into the equation would imply I know something about these people. From my interactions with students thus far, I have no clue who is in their family, and certainly wouldn't want to go making assumptions about individuals my students may value as a motivation for achievement.
On a final negative note in this section, the story of the instructor going over to James' home and discussing his academic achievement with his family just seemed to cross a line with me. Yes, it is nice to get a warm fuzzy feeling thinking about how wonderful it turned out, but is this appropriate? As I was reading this story, I didn't think it was appropriate at all. Making the recommendation of "Help James Time" to James, and allowing him to present it to his family, fine. But, crossing the invisible line in the student-teacher relationship seems a bad idea. Further, I couldn't help but wonder if the action taken was in some way a violation of FERPA. Generally, I got an uneasy feeling as I read this section of the chapter. As I like to say, "This isn't 'Boy Meets World' and I am not Mr. Feeny."
Complaints aside, the chapter contained some good general guides for dealing with culturally diverse students. In particular framing of questions in discussion. I thought this was not only applicable to culturally diverse students, but the whole classroom. I think phrasing, "Any questions" as "I've taught this so many times sometimes I may forget to mention key points..." really goes a long way to encourage student participation. At the same time this gives the teacher more credibility, a concern that many of us as new teachers face.
Last, I wanted to touch on the notion of imposter syndrome. I think that this is something that students face, but new teachers also face. Frankly, when I think of myself as "teacher" it makes me giggle. I'm not a teacher, I'm just a graduate student, and this is something I do as a member of the graduate program. I often feel somewhat like a really big crazy undergraduate who is conning all of my students into believing I'm the teacher. Along with that, I'll say something in class and think "wow, that sounded very teacher" thus illustrating my disconnect, and feelings as an imposter. This feeling has subsided as the semester has worn on, but I believe it to be something of importance, and worth a note. Although this feeling is subsiding, I still have the "alright, yeah, you are in charge" or "how teacher of you" moments.
Clearly this week's reading encompassed many different readings. Looking back on them, I can now see a clear connection between them. Each reading had good and bad points, and things I would like to incorporate into my classroom. With every week I ask myself "what else could there be?" and every week I read something new and enlightening.
Helpful Links:
All about imposter syndrome: This link will take you to a website that addresses imposter syndrome, and contains several other valuable links to resources regarding imposter syndrome. The site examines what imposter syndrome is, how to tell if you have it, and tips for coping with imposter syndrome.
Learner Centered Teaching: This website provides more information specific to learner centered teaching. Links take you to different sources and recommendations for incorporating a learner-centered approach.
Tips to Encourage Intrinsic Learning: This website is from Illinois State and talks about specific ways we can encourage students to be more intrinsic learners.
Much of what I found in the readings was useful information. I was surprised at the useful information I found in the Learner Centered Teaching excerpt. I liked that idea that giving students this feeling of power and control over the course gives them a sense of ownership. I believe that is largely absent in the classroom today. I believe this also provides a good explanation as to why students sometimes are withdrawn from the classroom. Giving students agency forces them to engage the material. Also, I think the notion of having students choose what we will talk about from a section forces them to read the material. It is very difficult to choose what will be discussed with no prior knowledge of the material.
I also liked the idea of having students choose actual items that will go on the course schedule. This makes students feel as though they are getting relevant material. Additionally, the text recommends making items that don't make the cut for the schedule an assignment for the student to complete individually. I thought this was a fantastic idea as the student will want the information, and thus be more able to see the value in the assignment. As good as this sounds I did find some issues with this reading.
First, continuing with this notion of students choosing the schedule. During the first week of class, do students really know what the course entails, and what is most important? I highly doubt this. For my students in hard sciences, I believe it would be very challenging for them to decide what is most important. Further, my course is structured around readings relevant to and assignment, then that assignment. At times I don't think students would comprehend putting information surrounding for example, structuring a speech, before the informative speech. I think this could potentially lead to a back-heavy course work. Students would most likely want to cover all of the material, then do all of the assignments.
Additionally, I think bringing in a syllabus with "Draft" on the top compromises the credibility of the instructor. Further, the section that dealt with formulating the syllabus consumed about three class periods. Too much time goes into discussion about the course, and challenges the amount of material that can be covered.
Finally, I think that many of the recommendations provided would cause a great deal of stress for myself as an instructor. Sorting through what students want, and making sure my core objectives of the class are met seems extremely difficult. The rewards of this style of teaching seem great, but I believe the costs associated with this style of teaching cause difficulty to the point that total commitment to this approach becomes an issue. That said, there are aspects of this style of teaching I plan on incorporating into my classroom.
I really like the idea of having students address what is most important in the material. I would like to find a way to have my students do this. I believe that if I am honest with them, and tell them I'd like to try a new approach that involves them more, they would be receptive to the idea. My fear is that students will come in with blank stares and still expect me to tell them what is important. I just figured out that these blogs are how you get us to address what is most important in the lecture.
I had this experience when I had my exam review I told them that I had a "Jeopardy" game prepared and encouraged them to bring in their questions on the course material. I informed my students I wanted their input on what they wanted reviewed, and after we addressed their questions we could move on to my game if time remained. Nobody brought in questions. I'm trying this approach again this week. Friday they are to bring in issues they found on their speeches, and we will take time to address them, and I will give them tips to overcome these issues. I told them that I want them to be successful, and want to address concerns they have. Friday will tell if this approach is something I should continue to pursue or not.
Finally, the article talked about teachers wanting control in their classroom. I will admit this is a concern I face every time I ask students to direct me, and let me know what they want to know. I get concerned my authority, and the perception of me as an expert will be challenged when I get questions that I am not prepared for. I like the control I have in the classroom, and am not willing to give that up easily. Further I don't believe my students are motivated enough to take on part of my role as the instructor.
Motivation as presented in McKeachie's book was a fascinating chapter to read. First, I could see aspects of myself as a student in the presentation of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. I could also see former classmates, and current students in these types of motivation.
Sadly, my classroom is largely composed of extrinsically motivated students. Questions such as "how many points is this worth" and "is this graded" tell the tale. Early on in students' academic careers, the stress of doing well causes this motivation. This also goes back to our discussion of assessment. Are we evaluating what students learn (intrinsic) or giving points based on what we as teachers want to see (extrinsic). I believe that much of what the text says about our approach and grading style lends the classroom to one of these fundamental motivating forces. I often frame course material around the "real world" and explain why it is important to grasp the concept. During my test review I told students that the exam would focus on material that is useful beyond the classroom, thus hoping to boost a sense of intrinsic rewards.
I also enjoyed reading about attribution theory. I am familiar with the theory and have seen examples from the classroom (i.e. the example of why a student did poor on a test) but never really thought about applying attributions when giving feedback or discussing grades. I like the idea of framing the conversation in terms of controllable, internal, attributions could be helpful. I think that applying these attributions can be seen in the next section of the McKeachie reading on dealing with culturally diverse students.
Some of what McKeachie recommends in the chapter served as happy reminders of my intercultural communication course. Others, seemed very far-fetched, and involved having discussions with students that I just wouldn't have.
Discussions I would not have would be talking about students' families when discussing their performance. Although I understand the reasons behind the recommendation, I don't find it appropriate. Further, bringing parents and siblings into the equation would imply I know something about these people. From my interactions with students thus far, I have no clue who is in their family, and certainly wouldn't want to go making assumptions about individuals my students may value as a motivation for achievement.
On a final negative note in this section, the story of the instructor going over to James' home and discussing his academic achievement with his family just seemed to cross a line with me. Yes, it is nice to get a warm fuzzy feeling thinking about how wonderful it turned out, but is this appropriate? As I was reading this story, I didn't think it was appropriate at all. Making the recommendation of "Help James Time" to James, and allowing him to present it to his family, fine. But, crossing the invisible line in the student-teacher relationship seems a bad idea. Further, I couldn't help but wonder if the action taken was in some way a violation of FERPA. Generally, I got an uneasy feeling as I read this section of the chapter. As I like to say, "This isn't 'Boy Meets World' and I am not Mr. Feeny."
Complaints aside, the chapter contained some good general guides for dealing with culturally diverse students. In particular framing of questions in discussion. I thought this was not only applicable to culturally diverse students, but the whole classroom. I think phrasing, "Any questions" as "I've taught this so many times sometimes I may forget to mention key points..." really goes a long way to encourage student participation. At the same time this gives the teacher more credibility, a concern that many of us as new teachers face.
Last, I wanted to touch on the notion of imposter syndrome. I think that this is something that students face, but new teachers also face. Frankly, when I think of myself as "teacher" it makes me giggle. I'm not a teacher, I'm just a graduate student, and this is something I do as a member of the graduate program. I often feel somewhat like a really big crazy undergraduate who is conning all of my students into believing I'm the teacher. Along with that, I'll say something in class and think "wow, that sounded very teacher" thus illustrating my disconnect, and feelings as an imposter. This feeling has subsided as the semester has worn on, but I believe it to be something of importance, and worth a note. Although this feeling is subsiding, I still have the "alright, yeah, you are in charge" or "how teacher of you" moments.
Clearly this week's reading encompassed many different readings. Looking back on them, I can now see a clear connection between them. Each reading had good and bad points, and things I would like to incorporate into my classroom. With every week I ask myself "what else could there be?" and every week I read something new and enlightening.
Helpful Links:
All about imposter syndrome: This link will take you to a website that addresses imposter syndrome, and contains several other valuable links to resources regarding imposter syndrome. The site examines what imposter syndrome is, how to tell if you have it, and tips for coping with imposter syndrome.
Learner Centered Teaching: This website provides more information specific to learner centered teaching. Links take you to different sources and recommendations for incorporating a learner-centered approach.
Tips to Encourage Intrinsic Learning: This website is from Illinois State and talks about specific ways we can encourage students to be more intrinsic learners.
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Problems Problems Problems!
This week's reading was highly relevant to the problems I have with some of my problem students. At the same time, as a former problem student myself, I can relate on several levels to the reading. Moreover, I feel as though the readings have given me some fantastic tools to address the issues I face with some of my students.
It all started about a week before the beginning of the semester. I was sitting in my living room watching the ten o'clock news when the story regarding the ELCA and their acceptance of homosexual pastors came on. I watched the story, and the interviews WDAY did with members of an ELCA church's congregation. One member who embraced it was a faculty member I met at orientation, the member who opposed it had a familiar name. Why was this name familiar? Then it hit me like a cement truck, it was a name I had uttered while practicing student names on the roster for my 8:00 class. As a comfortably "out" gay man, I was concerned of the potential conflict should the topic arise in class. Not that I planned on going into class and saying, "I'm your fabulous gay fundamentals of public speaking teacher" however, I don't plan on denying my identity should the question arise.
Much to my happiness the issue has never come up, but to my chagrin the individual is a problem student in ways I had never imagined. When I read the section in First Day to Final Grade on antagonistic students it seemed to ring true of this one student. He seems to always have something to say that runs counter to what I have to say. During my first meeting with the class he challenged the syllabus. Every class period since, he has had some objection to one aspect or another of the material I present. I try my hardest to explore what he has to say, make it relevant, and move on. I feel I now have tools with which to address him and hopefully not see the look of horror on my students' faces when he raises his hand.
The first time he really challenged me was during my first lecture on actual material from the text. I was honest with him and said I said I wasn't sure about his assertion, but would get back to the class on it. I managed to find a nice article that supported both our points of view and presented my findings to the class, making us both right. I even asked for his input in the matter and approached it as if I wanted his confirmation. After reading McKeachie's section on students who want the truth versus students who believe that everything is relative, I think I now realize part of the problem. I think this student views things in terms of being right or wrong. His belligerent rebuttal during his informative speech on the matter, and why he is ultimately right, tells me that he must think in this dualistic view.
As an instructor, I was appalled at the notion of a student not letting go. The class was equally disturbed as they kept looking back at me during his speech for fear that I may be offended. I didn't write a thing on the grading form (I thought feverish writing wouldn't look very good) and listened. I acted as if nothing unusual happened. I'm glad I took this approach because I think it isn't necessarily this student's fault, it is just how he sees the world. My overall goal for him individually is to get him to adopt the idea that multiple truths can exist. I fear that I may not be able to do this because he seems to fit McKeachie's "angry student".
I have written about this student before. When I handed back the first speech, he was the one who wouldn't even look at me. Clearly, he is both verbal, and non-verbal in his expression of anger during my course. I anticipate using the advice McKeachie gives in the text during the next speech which is in small groups. I plan on meeting with each group and asking them how things are going in their speech, then in the class overall. I hope this strategy alleviates some of the tension I have with this student. Although this student clearly is a problem I feel a sense of obligation to try to make the course enjoyable for him
Part of why I feel this obligation is the fact that I was a problem student myself, just of a different sort. I was what McKeachie would call a discouraged student. I felt much stress during my first semester as an undergraduate student, and didn't think college was the right choice for me. As I read the section I kept nodding my head and thinking about myself as the freshman that walked onto NDSU's campus nine years ago. I started with enthusiasm for the new environment and the opportunities it presented. As the semester wore on, about week three, I was feeling overwhelmed and disillusioned by the whole experience.
This disillusionment, and lack of enthusiasm for school caused me to be the "unprepared for class" problem student. Sadly, since my primary problem was being discouraged the issue of preparedness never was properly addressed. Since I was seldom prepared for class, it was rarely I would attend class. Then I became a student with excuses.
As I read the chapter and identified with multiple aspects of problem students, I think that they are interrelated. The student with excuses may be that way because they are discouraged students. I would often complement my instructors so that hopefully they would accept my recurrent excuses. I believe that the text has good insights for dealing with problem students, but should consider the potential interconnectedness of types of problem students. Clearly, they can stand on their own, but I think that by adopting a strategy of looking at a bigger picture of student motives and activity we can be better equipped to deal with these issues.
The tools provided in both texts seem to be useful. First, I like how First Day to Final Grade addressed excessive absences. I liked the two reasons why students miss class. I think that is highly relevant as I have been in both situations. As a student who formerly didn't really care about academic achievement because I felt discouraged, I fit the category of the student who didn't care. As a student who got fired from his job, evicted from his apartment, and found out his significant other of 2 years was cheating all in the same week, I have been the student who has had things go seriously wrong in his personal life. This section also rang true with the student in me. I wish the chapter had given more recommendations than just offering to let the student withdraw. My instructors at the university did far more than that for me.
Clearly, when I just didn't care, withdrawing from the class was my best option. It was an option I pursued often. I think that when students have serious personal issues, every attempt should be made to accommodate that student. I was completely disheartened when on top of my string of other misfortunes, I had to withdraw from all but one class. My class that I stayed in, the instructor let me dig my own grave by asking me what I thought would be appropriate to make up for the lost time. I think it is often easy to loose compassion when we deal with the number of illegitimate student excuses we get.
I really liked some of McKeachie's recommendations for dealing with students with excuses. I liked the idea of building in checkpoints for bigger assignments. Next semester I will be more stringent with my workdays and seeing student progress. This semester when instructors talked about obsessively checking student progress I thought it was a waste of time. After reading this chapter, and the volume of excuses I got for the first speech, I can see the value. One portion of excuses that I had a strong objection to was the part about offering extra credit for turning in an assignment early. Going back to my discussion in my last post on arbitrary extra credit and grade inflation, I think this is potentially very problematic.
In sum, this week was all about problems. As both readings pointed out we will all face problem students in our careers. I am glad that I have my perspective as a former problem student because I feel it is helpful for me when addressing some of the issues I confront as a teacher. Further, I feel that after completing this week's reading I now have some fantastic tools to address issues I face with my students.
Helpful Links:
Excuses excuses: This is a humorous look at the world of excuse making in academia. Although this piece is written in a satirical tone, I found it relevant to this week's reading, especially given the use of technology for communicating excuses.
Tough Problems:Difficult Students This web page contains a group project that is very well written and deals with problem students. The page cites an older edition of the McKeachie book, goes deeper in depth, and brings in other sources. I also found the appendices at the end very helpful in solidifying materials from the reading.
Teaching Non-Traditional Students This article does a good job at addressing changes in education and making good practical recommendations. Much of the material in the article is relevant to previous classes, but I found the bulk of the material relevant to our readings on student issues.
It all started about a week before the beginning of the semester. I was sitting in my living room watching the ten o'clock news when the story regarding the ELCA and their acceptance of homosexual pastors came on. I watched the story, and the interviews WDAY did with members of an ELCA church's congregation. One member who embraced it was a faculty member I met at orientation, the member who opposed it had a familiar name. Why was this name familiar? Then it hit me like a cement truck, it was a name I had uttered while practicing student names on the roster for my 8:00 class. As a comfortably "out" gay man, I was concerned of the potential conflict should the topic arise in class. Not that I planned on going into class and saying, "I'm your fabulous gay fundamentals of public speaking teacher" however, I don't plan on denying my identity should the question arise.
Much to my happiness the issue has never come up, but to my chagrin the individual is a problem student in ways I had never imagined. When I read the section in First Day to Final Grade on antagonistic students it seemed to ring true of this one student. He seems to always have something to say that runs counter to what I have to say. During my first meeting with the class he challenged the syllabus. Every class period since, he has had some objection to one aspect or another of the material I present. I try my hardest to explore what he has to say, make it relevant, and move on. I feel I now have tools with which to address him and hopefully not see the look of horror on my students' faces when he raises his hand.
The first time he really challenged me was during my first lecture on actual material from the text. I was honest with him and said I said I wasn't sure about his assertion, but would get back to the class on it. I managed to find a nice article that supported both our points of view and presented my findings to the class, making us both right. I even asked for his input in the matter and approached it as if I wanted his confirmation. After reading McKeachie's section on students who want the truth versus students who believe that everything is relative, I think I now realize part of the problem. I think this student views things in terms of being right or wrong. His belligerent rebuttal during his informative speech on the matter, and why he is ultimately right, tells me that he must think in this dualistic view.
As an instructor, I was appalled at the notion of a student not letting go. The class was equally disturbed as they kept looking back at me during his speech for fear that I may be offended. I didn't write a thing on the grading form (I thought feverish writing wouldn't look very good) and listened. I acted as if nothing unusual happened. I'm glad I took this approach because I think it isn't necessarily this student's fault, it is just how he sees the world. My overall goal for him individually is to get him to adopt the idea that multiple truths can exist. I fear that I may not be able to do this because he seems to fit McKeachie's "angry student".
I have written about this student before. When I handed back the first speech, he was the one who wouldn't even look at me. Clearly, he is both verbal, and non-verbal in his expression of anger during my course. I anticipate using the advice McKeachie gives in the text during the next speech which is in small groups. I plan on meeting with each group and asking them how things are going in their speech, then in the class overall. I hope this strategy alleviates some of the tension I have with this student. Although this student clearly is a problem I feel a sense of obligation to try to make the course enjoyable for him
Part of why I feel this obligation is the fact that I was a problem student myself, just of a different sort. I was what McKeachie would call a discouraged student. I felt much stress during my first semester as an undergraduate student, and didn't think college was the right choice for me. As I read the section I kept nodding my head and thinking about myself as the freshman that walked onto NDSU's campus nine years ago. I started with enthusiasm for the new environment and the opportunities it presented. As the semester wore on, about week three, I was feeling overwhelmed and disillusioned by the whole experience.
This disillusionment, and lack of enthusiasm for school caused me to be the "unprepared for class" problem student. Sadly, since my primary problem was being discouraged the issue of preparedness never was properly addressed. Since I was seldom prepared for class, it was rarely I would attend class. Then I became a student with excuses.
As I read the chapter and identified with multiple aspects of problem students, I think that they are interrelated. The student with excuses may be that way because they are discouraged students. I would often complement my instructors so that hopefully they would accept my recurrent excuses. I believe that the text has good insights for dealing with problem students, but should consider the potential interconnectedness of types of problem students. Clearly, they can stand on their own, but I think that by adopting a strategy of looking at a bigger picture of student motives and activity we can be better equipped to deal with these issues.
The tools provided in both texts seem to be useful. First, I like how First Day to Final Grade addressed excessive absences. I liked the two reasons why students miss class. I think that is highly relevant as I have been in both situations. As a student who formerly didn't really care about academic achievement because I felt discouraged, I fit the category of the student who didn't care. As a student who got fired from his job, evicted from his apartment, and found out his significant other of 2 years was cheating all in the same week, I have been the student who has had things go seriously wrong in his personal life. This section also rang true with the student in me. I wish the chapter had given more recommendations than just offering to let the student withdraw. My instructors at the university did far more than that for me.
Clearly, when I just didn't care, withdrawing from the class was my best option. It was an option I pursued often. I think that when students have serious personal issues, every attempt should be made to accommodate that student. I was completely disheartened when on top of my string of other misfortunes, I had to withdraw from all but one class. My class that I stayed in, the instructor let me dig my own grave by asking me what I thought would be appropriate to make up for the lost time. I think it is often easy to loose compassion when we deal with the number of illegitimate student excuses we get.
I really liked some of McKeachie's recommendations for dealing with students with excuses. I liked the idea of building in checkpoints for bigger assignments. Next semester I will be more stringent with my workdays and seeing student progress. This semester when instructors talked about obsessively checking student progress I thought it was a waste of time. After reading this chapter, and the volume of excuses I got for the first speech, I can see the value. One portion of excuses that I had a strong objection to was the part about offering extra credit for turning in an assignment early. Going back to my discussion in my last post on arbitrary extra credit and grade inflation, I think this is potentially very problematic.
In sum, this week was all about problems. As both readings pointed out we will all face problem students in our careers. I am glad that I have my perspective as a former problem student because I feel it is helpful for me when addressing some of the issues I confront as a teacher. Further, I feel that after completing this week's reading I now have some fantastic tools to address issues I face with my students.
Helpful Links:
Excuses excuses: This is a humorous look at the world of excuse making in academia. Although this piece is written in a satirical tone, I found it relevant to this week's reading, especially given the use of technology for communicating excuses.
Tough Problems:Difficult Students This web page contains a group project that is very well written and deals with problem students. The page cites an older edition of the McKeachie book, goes deeper in depth, and brings in other sources. I also found the appendices at the end very helpful in solidifying materials from the reading.
Teaching Non-Traditional Students This article does a good job at addressing changes in education and making good practical recommendations. Much of the material in the article is relevant to previous classes, but I found the bulk of the material relevant to our readings on student issues.
Monday, October 5, 2009
Post 5, Testing is such fun
This week in the reading, I found myself disheartened at what I read. I know testing isn't fun for students. Last week, and this week I'm learning of the agony of testing from the other side of the classroom.
First and foremost I found the notion of choosing the type of question problematic in my class I'm teaching. The test I formulated is all multiple choice. Judging by what McKeachie says about multiple choice testing, this does not conform to my idealized concept of how my classroom would run. I did find some solace in reading the section titled "Grading Essay Questions"
This section was helpful for several reasons. First, it gave me comfort knowing that although I'm using a multiple choice format for my test, I am getting at some of the benefits of an essay style question through the speaking assignments. I came to accept that my students are (hopefully anyhow) applying class concepts through their speeches.
Additionally, the section was helpful to me as an instructor going through the pains of grading speeches. I found that suggestions presented for grading essay tests can easily be applied to grading speeches. I found that the suggestions presented were helpful in terms of making a rubric, writing specific comments on papers (or grading forms in this case), coding comments, and doing a short analysis of student performance. Sadly however many of the recommendations do not carry over to speeches. Examples of these are: grading without knowing who the student is and taking a random sample. Somewhere in between applicable and not is the notion of grading in teams. We have fun grading in the office together which, makes the experience more enjoyable. Also, to a degree we can get our colleagues input on grading, but on the whole it isn't something that we can really do with a speech.
Admittedly, I thought about skipping the section on grading essay questions due to time constraints but, I'm glad I decided to read it. I found it useful information that confronted many of the tensions and struggles I'm facing in grading this second round of speeches. For the next speech I plan on expanding upon the rubric provided for the speech. For example, determining exactly what good eye contact is, and assigning a certain amount of points to that aspect of delivery. I believe that this will add to the overall validity of my grading. In a similar fashion assigning a grade calls upon issues I've been facing.
The notion of grading on a curve versus criterion based grading I found to be of interest. I believe that much of the grading and exam related principles suggested imply grading on a curve. We can see this through the implications of looking at work relative to other students. For example going back to "Grading Essay Questions" procedure 3 says "Read all or several of the examinations in a preliminary fashion to establish some notion of the general level of performance" (McKeachie, 2006, p. 96). Clearly, this implies grading on a curve and looking at student performance relative to each other. If for example, every essay violates the core rubric an instructor has for what an A paper is, does that make it okay to lower the bar? In a way this could cause grade inflation.
Grade inflation is our favorite topic ever, therefore I must dedicate some time to it. The excerpt for the week "What the Best College Teachers Do" very briefly touches on the notion of "arbitrary extra credit". Given the discussion we had on grade inflation last week, and reading over that term, I feel that this could likely be a good reason for grade inflation (if it does indeed exist). The notion of arbitrary extra credit is that we are grading on items not related to learning.
Arbitrary extra credit can be found everywhere in the fundamentals of public speaking course that many of us are teaching. For example, why do we give credit for attending class? I don't believe that this is an effective measure of what students are learning. Also, although I understand the value of the research requirement, this too is a form of arbitrary extra credit. I felt underhanded for adding pop quizzes as a way to help my students, and give them an easy opportunity to enhance their grade. After reading about arbitrary extra credit I think this is actually a far more honorable means of giving credit for coming to class. If nothing else, I'm measuring learning and understanding of course concepts which is far more than giving 40 points for attendance is doing. Clearly, if we want to battle grade inflation within the communication department, we should cut much of the arbitrary extra credit that we give.
On a final note I wanted to talk about assessment. We spoke of the value of non-graded assignments, and concerns of students completing them. (This is probably why we give arbitrary extra credit for participating in research). In any event, I've thought a lot about ungraded assessment. I believe it has it's place, and can bridge our dissonance with the notion of arbitrary extra credit. For example, we could have an "ungraded" assignment and use a check, check plus/minus system and use that as attendance points. As long as a student turns something in they get the equivalent of a "D" for argument sake. I feel there is no harm in rewarding students for effort on something that isn't graded, and it could work towards making attendance something less given, and more earned. Perhaps this runs counter to the notion of ungraded assessment (or completely does) but I think it may be useful.
Helpful Links:
ECE Article in Ebsco I found this article in the ebsco database on extra credit exercises (ECE). this article speaks to the value of giving one point extra credit pop quizzes. The article also talks about giving percentages of a point but I don't necessarily agree with that. However, the article speaks to several benefits of this exercise, and I think it would be something I would incorporate into my classroom.
General Tips for Writing Multiple Choice Questions I found this source to be very useful when considering how to write multiple choice questions. Additionally, the book referred to terms that this article expands upon.
First and foremost I found the notion of choosing the type of question problematic in my class I'm teaching. The test I formulated is all multiple choice. Judging by what McKeachie says about multiple choice testing, this does not conform to my idealized concept of how my classroom would run. I did find some solace in reading the section titled "Grading Essay Questions"
This section was helpful for several reasons. First, it gave me comfort knowing that although I'm using a multiple choice format for my test, I am getting at some of the benefits of an essay style question through the speaking assignments. I came to accept that my students are (hopefully anyhow) applying class concepts through their speeches.
Additionally, the section was helpful to me as an instructor going through the pains of grading speeches. I found that suggestions presented for grading essay tests can easily be applied to grading speeches. I found that the suggestions presented were helpful in terms of making a rubric, writing specific comments on papers (or grading forms in this case), coding comments, and doing a short analysis of student performance. Sadly however many of the recommendations do not carry over to speeches. Examples of these are: grading without knowing who the student is and taking a random sample. Somewhere in between applicable and not is the notion of grading in teams. We have fun grading in the office together which, makes the experience more enjoyable. Also, to a degree we can get our colleagues input on grading, but on the whole it isn't something that we can really do with a speech.
Admittedly, I thought about skipping the section on grading essay questions due to time constraints but, I'm glad I decided to read it. I found it useful information that confronted many of the tensions and struggles I'm facing in grading this second round of speeches. For the next speech I plan on expanding upon the rubric provided for the speech. For example, determining exactly what good eye contact is, and assigning a certain amount of points to that aspect of delivery. I believe that this will add to the overall validity of my grading. In a similar fashion assigning a grade calls upon issues I've been facing.
The notion of grading on a curve versus criterion based grading I found to be of interest. I believe that much of the grading and exam related principles suggested imply grading on a curve. We can see this through the implications of looking at work relative to other students. For example going back to "Grading Essay Questions" procedure 3 says "Read all or several of the examinations in a preliminary fashion to establish some notion of the general level of performance" (McKeachie, 2006, p. 96). Clearly, this implies grading on a curve and looking at student performance relative to each other. If for example, every essay violates the core rubric an instructor has for what an A paper is, does that make it okay to lower the bar? In a way this could cause grade inflation.
Grade inflation is our favorite topic ever, therefore I must dedicate some time to it. The excerpt for the week "What the Best College Teachers Do" very briefly touches on the notion of "arbitrary extra credit". Given the discussion we had on grade inflation last week, and reading over that term, I feel that this could likely be a good reason for grade inflation (if it does indeed exist). The notion of arbitrary extra credit is that we are grading on items not related to learning.
Arbitrary extra credit can be found everywhere in the fundamentals of public speaking course that many of us are teaching. For example, why do we give credit for attending class? I don't believe that this is an effective measure of what students are learning. Also, although I understand the value of the research requirement, this too is a form of arbitrary extra credit. I felt underhanded for adding pop quizzes as a way to help my students, and give them an easy opportunity to enhance their grade. After reading about arbitrary extra credit I think this is actually a far more honorable means of giving credit for coming to class. If nothing else, I'm measuring learning and understanding of course concepts which is far more than giving 40 points for attendance is doing. Clearly, if we want to battle grade inflation within the communication department, we should cut much of the arbitrary extra credit that we give.
On a final note I wanted to talk about assessment. We spoke of the value of non-graded assignments, and concerns of students completing them. (This is probably why we give arbitrary extra credit for participating in research). In any event, I've thought a lot about ungraded assessment. I believe it has it's place, and can bridge our dissonance with the notion of arbitrary extra credit. For example, we could have an "ungraded" assignment and use a check, check plus/minus system and use that as attendance points. As long as a student turns something in they get the equivalent of a "D" for argument sake. I feel there is no harm in rewarding students for effort on something that isn't graded, and it could work towards making attendance something less given, and more earned. Perhaps this runs counter to the notion of ungraded assessment (or completely does) but I think it may be useful.
Helpful Links:
ECE Article in Ebsco I found this article in the ebsco database on extra credit exercises (ECE). this article speaks to the value of giving one point extra credit pop quizzes. The article also talks about giving percentages of a point but I don't necessarily agree with that. However, the article speaks to several benefits of this exercise, and I think it would be something I would incorporate into my classroom.
General Tips for Writing Multiple Choice Questions I found this source to be very useful when considering how to write multiple choice questions. Additionally, the book referred to terms that this article expands upon.
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