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THE CIRTL NETWORK NEWS
 
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CIRTL Pillars In Practice: Learning-through-Diversity

Identifying students' scientific misconceptions can help instructors to teach more effectively. The following are some types of misconceptions one may encounter:

• Preconceived Notions- popular conceptions rooted in everyday experiences.

• Nonscientific Beliefs - views learned by students from sources other than scientific education, such as religious or mythical teachings.

• Conceptual Misunderstandings - views which arise when students are taught scientific information in a way that does not provoke them to confront paradoxes and conflicts resulting from their preexisting beliefs.

• Vernacular Misconceptions - conceptual errors due to the use of words that mean one thing in everyday life and another in a scientific context (i.e., "work").

• Factual Misconceptions -

falsities often learned at an early age and retained unchallenged into adulthood, such as "lightning never strikes twice in the same place."

 

(Adapted from the resource book Reaching All Students- 2nd Edition)

Did You Know?

Delta associate director Christine Pfund and CIRTL network coordinator Kitch Barnicle traveled to a conference in Ireland last month. The event was sponsored by the new National Academy for Integration of Research & Teaching & Learning (NAIRTL).

Past Presentations:

 

Campa, Brockman:

Setting Expectations & Resolving Conflict (PDF)

 

Herbert:

The Nature and Design of Inquiry-based Learning Environments for an Undergraduate Environmental Geoscience Program

 

Manske, Wright:

Diversity resources workshops at the University of Wisconsin - Madison

 

Pifer, Colbeck:

Integrating Teaching and Research: Motivation, Enactment, and Impact

 

Tong:

Reflective Course Development: Creating a CIRTL Instructional Materials Development Course for STEM Disciplines

 

Other recent presentations

Publications:

 

Sellers, Roberts, Giovanetto, Friedrich, Hammargren:
Reaching All Students: A Resource for Teaching in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. 2nd Edition. (PDF book)

 

Other recent publications

 

Leaders' Update

(CIRTLNet login required)

 

Spring 2008 Announcement: Discovering and Addressing Student Preconceptions
Are science students learning what their instructors think they are learning? Studies show that the answer is "Not consistently."

But graduate students can develop strategies to identify and address students' conceptual errors in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

In spring 2008, CIRTL will offer a Web-based course in which future faculty can explore student preconceptions and misconceptions together with colleagues from the six CIRTL Network campuses.

For more information, contact Kitch Barnicle (kabarnicle at wisc.edu).

 

Network Connections:
Bridging the Worlds of Math and Education
Natasha Speer is fascinated by the subtle educational shifts that make the difference between mathematics courses where students are learning and courses where students can slip through with a passing grade, memorizing information they don’t truly understand. She will bring these insights from her research into mathematics education to a new K-12 teacher preparation initiative within the CIRTL Network. Click here to read the article...


Ask a CIRTL Graduate Student!

Q: Please describe the importance of teaching to your future career as a scientist.
Kouassi Ayikoe, a Chemistry graduate student at Howard University: Teaching in my future career as a scientist will be like an "engine oil to a motor vehicle," something I must do whether officially, in academia, or in conjunction with industry work. As it has helped me in the past, teaching will certainly bring me a constant effort to [achieve] a broader view of my scientific knowledge and activity, including research... In short, I will live to teach; teach to help; help to understand and improve; [and] improve myself and others in a local and global learning community.

 

News from the Field

PUBLICATIONS

Spotlight on CIRTL: Preparing future faculty for teaching careers -

CLTNet, a NSF-funded organization that brings together centers for learning and teaching around the United States, recently published a spotlight article on CIRTL.

The article explains CIRTL's strategy for supporting the development of new faculty who are both forefront researchers and excellent teachers. CIRTL has recently received a grant from the NSF extending through 2010. This grant will expand the scope of CIRTL's ability to provide educational resources and opportunities for future faculty.

 

Audience-Specific Online Community Design -

People over 35 may resist participating in online communities because of concerns about privacy and trust. However, if an online community is designed with a clear and practical purpose, connected with a reputable organization, and associated with meetings or courses, participants will be more willing to join. Enforcing privacy and security, providing personal profiles, facilitating productive discussions, and recognizing participant contributions can ensure that the community will be successful.

Andrews, D. C. (2002, April). Communications of the ACM, 45(4), 64-68.

 

Teaching and Learning Insights, a new monthly newsletter produced by the University of Wisconsin-Madison College of Engineering, is designed to build community and share knowledge about teaching and learning. Recent articles have highlighted a career-oriented design course and presented everyday applications of fluid mechanics.

Many of the articles and book reviews in the publication are relevant to a variety of fields.


CALL FOR PROPOSALS

Learning By Design Conference 2008 -

The International Alliance of Teacher Scholars is seeking presenters for "Learning By Design," the 20th annual Lilly Conference on College & University Teaching - West. This conference will take place in Pomona, California, on March 21-22, 2008.

The gathering will provide opportunities for both structured and informal conversations about the scholarship of teaching and learning. Topics of interest include gender differences in learning, incorporating technology into teaching, encouraging critical thinking, using teaching and student portfolios, implementing group learning, and evaluating teaching.

Click here for information on submitting a proposal. Proposals are due on January 26, 2008.

 

To ask questions or to make contributions, contact Katherine Friedrich (newsletter at cirtl.net).

Next newsletter: January, 2008
Deadline for announcements and contributions: December 20th, 2007

 

To view previous newsletters, visit the archive.

This newsletter is published by the Center for the Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning, 1025 W. Johnson Street, Madison WI 53706, newsletter@cirtl.net, http://www.cirtl.net/. To subscribe or unsubscribe, please visit cirtl-newsletter.

This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 0227592.
Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.