"Teaching without learning is just talking."

This statement, found on p.3 of Classroom Assessment Techniques by Angelo and Cross, adequately describes my fear when I end up speaking for an extended amount of time in class.  My fear was realized last week when my mini-lecture breached the 15 minute mark, taking up close to a third of the class period.

It is worth pointing out that I am not a lecturer by nature.  Speaking in front of people used to be a dealbreaker for me, and while it is no longer at the top of the list of things that make me uncomfortable, I simply lose interest in hearing myself speak.  I am interested in hearing what other people have to add, what questions are lingering in the room, and whether or not people have a sense of how to move forward with the information.   The mini-lecture, which is an abbreviated, focused lecture (I tend to aim for 7-10 minutes), is definitely my preferred approach when there is information to share.

My rambling "mini"-lecture left me feeling guilty - sheepish might be a better descriptor - after class that day, primarily because we ran out of time to finish one of our activities.  I spent two days (over)analyzing the situation and decided a discussion with the students was warranted.  (Did that extended lecture work for them?  Why or why not?)  The students were greeted with the graphic found on p.139 of Barkley's Student Engagement Techniques (below) on the large projector screens as they walked into class, and the first few minutes of class were spent discussing whether or not they agreed with the summary presented in the pie chart.  

Average Retention Rates from Different Teaching Methods;
Pie chart from Barkley, 2010, p.139; data from Sousa, 2006, p.95

The discussion started with small groups, and then the students were invited to share what they heard from others at their table.  Comments about several "slices" of the pie were offered; the conversation started with the 4% average retention rate associated with reading and then it moved on to details coordinating with the audiovisual category.  When I prompted for some thoughts on the 2% average retention rate reported for lecture, a student courageously raised his hand, and I nervously awaited the response.  

"We decided that it depends on what happens after the lecture."

The relief washed over me when I heard this statement.  He continued:

"The lecture on Monday worked for us because we did something after it.  You know, something that used the information, so we could try it right away.  That helped us figure out whether we understood it or not."

It is one thing to read through the literature and to understand, as an instructor, the importance of this approach to teaching and learning, but it is even more powerful to hear this outlook directly from the students.

In hindsight, I often feel guilty for having lectures, even mini-lectures, prepared for anything since we meet in an Active Learning Classroom which, by its very design, presents challenges to the traditional lecture.  However, if those mini-lectures paired with activities are working for the students, then there is no need to avoid them.

References

Angelo, T. A., and Cross, K. P. (1993). Classroom assessment techniques: A handbook for college teachers (2nd ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Barkley, E. F. (2010). Student engagement techniques: A handbook for college faculty. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Sousa, D. A. (2006). How the brain learns. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.

Staying on the perimeter to stand with the class

A number of our active learning classrooms have the teacher station located in the middle of the classroom.  The sketch below, for example, shows the basic layout of the classroom I am teaching in this semester:

Five out of the nine Active Learning Classrooms have the teacher station situated in the middle of the room.

I now make a conscious effort to stay on the perimeter of the room when students are sharing, reporting out, etc.  Ideally, I even try to locate myself on the opposite side of the room from the student who is sharing.  Staying on the perimeter has made a noticeable difference.  For one, no student is located behind me; everyone is included in what is happening in the room.  Plus, the students seem to project so that at least the instructor can hear what they are saying, so when I remember (or am able) to locate myself on the other side of the room from the student, it is easier for everyone to hear the information being shared.

This particular classroom is spacious, and at first, I reveled in the fact that I was in the middle and could move about the room so easily.  A very different experience from the classrooms I am used to.  The more traditional classrooms always left me feeling stuck in one part of the room, like the rows of desks created a barrier between me and the students.  Even if we rearranged the room for small groups or an activity, the fact that so many desks were packed into the rooms left very little space for accessing different parts of the classroom.  So, being centrally located in the active learning classroom and having the ability to move around freely is awesome.

So it wasn't until a few weeks ago when a colleague shared his approach of standing with the class on the perimeter of the room that I even thought to pay any attention to where I locate myself when students are speaking.  At the beginning of the semester, I was simply following my instinct to move closer to the student.  Reflecting back, I suppose I did this as a way to acknowledge the student's contributions and, sometimes, to hear someone more clearly.  I admit that I am taken aback by both the simplicity of the suggestion to stay on the perimeter and the fact that I hadn't considered how my actions or location might be impacting the classroom environment, especially as students are speaking up as part of Q&A sessions or whole-class discussions.

I am grateful that a fellow instructor shared this insight with me while there is still time left to try it out this semester, so I am now sharing the tip with all of you.  The freedom to stand with the class when someone is speaking is now one of my favorite things about the active learning classroom.