Each week, the Faculty Collaborative for Teaching will bring you an easy-to-implement tool that you can use immediately in your classroom teaching. The goals of these tips will be to add to your teaching toolbox, share resources on teaching, and alert you to upcoming teaching and learning opportunities from the Faculty Collaborative.

TUESDAY TEACHING TIP: Writing to Learn

Students can use low-stakes writing to process their learning and reflect on their evolving understanding of key course concepts and terms. This use of writing is called writing to learn. When students use writing to learn, they should not be worried about what they’re writing looks like or how it sounds, but instead are using writing to process their thinking. They are also providing instructors with an invaluable formative assessment opportunity–a chance to get insight into what students are learning and where they might benefit from more support and practice. You do not need to grade these assignments–in fact, it’s probably best if you don’t! But you can use them to provide feedback, individually or as a class, and to customize future lessons based on what you observe.

This week, we challenge you to use one brief writing-to-learn activity in your course, and to use the results as a formative assessment of how your students’ learning is progressing as the quarter draws to a close.

Here’s one way to do it 

1. Choose a class session in which you can spare 3 minutes at the end of class for some brief writing. You might identify one key term of idea from a course lecture or activity this week that you want to be sure your students comprehend and remember. 
2. Decide on a goal for this writing opportunity, and choose a prompt accordingly:
1. Definition: Ask students to paraphrase a key term or idea from class in their own words. You might even have them do a SEE-I: State, Elaborate, Exemplify, and Illustrate (yes, draw!) a concept.
2. Reflection: Ask students to reflect on how their understanding of a key term or concept has changed after the day’s lesson, or over the course of the term as a whole
3. Summary: Ask students to identify three key take-aways from the day that they don’t want to forget.
4. Connection: Ask students to identify a main point or message from this class session, and something that it reminds them of. Ask them to explain the connections between the two topics. They might also predict the things that, in future texts and assignments, will indicate associations or connections with today’s class.
5. Surfacing misunderstandings: Ask students to share their “muddiest point” from the day’s discussion–the thing they remain least clear or confident about.
3. Decide on a modality for collecting student writing: handwriting on a slip of paper or a response to a Google form works well. You might also collect responses via a platform like Poll Everywhere. Consider bringing some extra paper if you are asking students to hand-write their responses. It only takes a moment to set up a one-question Google form for responses.
4. Have students submit their responses to the prompt as an “exit ticket” at the end of class.
5. Briefly review the responses to see what they capture–consider not responding or grading individual responses, and don’t correct mechanical errors!
6. Share your findings and assessment, either on an individual basis or with the whole class.

Additional Information 

Come to today’s CAFE on GIFTS (Great Ideas For Teaching Students) where your colleagues across campus will share a handful of strategies you can use right away to enhance your teaching and engagement in your classroom (just in time!). Today at 12:15 - 1:15 in Varsi 222 (between Adobe Lodge and the Observatory): https://events.scu.edu/teaching-and-learning/event/329207-cafe-gifts-great-ideas-for-teaching-students 

DID YOU DO IT?

Let us know how it went. We would love to hear your feedback about how you implemented today’s Tuesday Teaching Tip in your classroom. Click here to fill out our 3-question survey.

WANT TO READ A LITTLE MORE?

• Faculty Collaborative DRT page on Writing to Learn 

This week’s Tuesday Teaching Tip was prepared by Amy Lueck on behalf of the Faculty Collaborative.

Missed a teaching tip? Read them all here.

And check out our full calendar of CAFEs and other Faculty Development and Faculty Collaborative events.