our class environment
I can promise you that...
Change and growth take courage. Our current ways of thinking, whatever they may be, are in many ways comfortable, in part because they are familiar. We can predict how our friends and relations (and even our classmates and instructors) will respond to us. New ways of thinking are, by definition, unfamiliar and, therefore, scary because we don’t know how others will respond. When any new learning experience begins, I have no way of knowing how any of you might change and grow, but I know that many of you will. This kind of personal growth is not a course requirement and will not ever be formally evaluated, but for those of you who are open to it, I want you to know that no matter where you start or even where you end up at the end of the class, I hold you in high regard and wish you an exciting and fulfilling journey of discovery.
Class Resources
Students review problems in groups and record one video of their solution. They submit their videos to a Google Drive folder that is accessible by the entire class.
Students investigate the concept of enzyme shape and function and report their findings via online discussion board. They interact with other students by following up on an original post with comments and inquiries.
Students take checkpoints in groups instead of individually. According to Wood (2011), innovations in teaching undergraduate biology and medicine must include collaborative testing because it enhances student content retention, and increases engagement.
Students are posed with a complex question on a topic related to but not answered in class. They integrate their thoughts with new perspectives via an article/video. They record a video or audio file with their reflections.