Group/Teams

What's Happening? On Campus at EMCC

Submitted by Jennifer Elliott on

Observation is the heart and soul of cultural anthropolgy. For ASB 214, an Intro to Comparative Religion, I assigned the class to view a video explaining the basics of ethnrographic research. For the next class, I paired them up and assigned each pair to observe a specific "culture area" on campus, i.e. the studuent union, the bookstore, etc. They had to develop a research question (Which do students use more often for purchases? Cash or debit?), observe their area for 20 mins and take observation notes, then analyze their findings. Were they able to answer their research question?

Prelab for classes

Submitted by Levi Torrison on

Most chemistry labs are of the "cookbook" style, the labs are a series of steps to perform in the alloted time and not much thought goes into the performance.  The other option is to give students a problem to solve and then give them free reign to design a lab.  Many of the students have no idea where to begin the design phase of a lab and end up just looking up a cookbook lab and trying to make it work.  The other problem with the free reign option is safety and logistics with the laboratory prep.  Is it a safe lab?

Are they really warming up?

Submitted by Luvia Rivera on

At the beginning of each class I post 3-4 questions on the board to review the previous day's information.  This also allows time for me to take attendance and set up the classroom for the days activity. I would allow about 10 min. for this activity and then have students present their solution.  I did not collect the papers.  There was not much accountability and some student's would purposefully come in late to avoid the work.  

What Did You Say? The "I Am Human" Campaign

Submitted by Olga Tsoudis on

The "I Am Human" Campaign focuses on choosing language that creates an inclusive culture demonstrating social awareness. Students watched the "I Am Human" video in addition to reading about the campaign on the EMCC website. Students participated in a pre/post survey and discussion board directly connected to the campaign. Their weekly video reflection and final journal entry are typical assignments in the Sociology courses. The students mentioned the campaign in both assignments as examples of what impacted them in the course. Please see the attached document on the results.

Create!: Journaling the Creative Process

Submitted by Rodney Freeman on

A key to fully appreciate art is understanding the creative journey and the underlying creative critical thinking which leads to the “message and meaning” of the piece.

Honors students are given the option of completing an individual or small group creative project to fulfill their honors enrichment plan.

What's your favorite field in anthropology?

Submitted by Kristy Miller on

Every anthropology class starts with an explanation of anthropology and the fact that there are four main sub-fields in anthropology (i.e. Archaeology, Cultural, Linguistics, Physical.)  Each anthropologist specializes in one of these fields.  At the beginning of the semester each field is discussed, explained, and students are encouraged to think of examples of each.  After understanding the fields, they are asked which of the fields they think they would like best.

Bringing Labs into Differential Equations

Submitted by Becky Baranowski on

The goal of these assessments was to engage students in hands on experiments similiar to a science lab.   Students always ask why differential equations is so important in STEM fields.  So, two labs were done in my differential equations class.  One was using thermometers and checking their accuracy (how long does it take for the thermometer to get back to body temperature after drinking cold water, doing jumping jacks, and chewing gum (placebo)).  The 2nd one was to verify that a mass spring system follows a 2nd order differential equation.

Team Collaboration in Discussion Boards

Submitted by Frederick Lee on

This is an online course with an emphasis on learning the principles of supervisory management in an organizational setting. The method of instruction and level of learning will be measured by the quality of the student’s responses on the Discussion Boards and their application of the principles of management. 

Democratic Decision Making in an Online/Hybrid Environment

Submitted by Michael Boring on

This assessment modifies the Democratic Decision Making assessment I developed a few years ago. It makes use of discussion boards and surveys to allow students in online and hybrid classes to participate in a democratic process to decide what topics they will study and present.

I use the dicussion feature on Canvas to guide class discussion of which topic (among choices decided upon by the instructor) they would like to study in more depth and present to the class.

Learning Students' Names

Submitted by Jennifer Brown on

Although students do a lot of small group work (and participate in class discussions), they often don’t know each other’s names – sometimes not even those of their own groups. At the end of the semester, students still ask me who “so and so” is so they can return peer reviewed papers.

Thermometer Accuracy

Submitted by Becky Baranowski on

In my differential equations class, students ran an experiment on the accuracy of a nondigital thermometer.  Most directions for use of nondigital thermometers say to leave under the tongue for 2 minutes, so students tested the accuracy of this.   Three groups performed different activities for two minutes (cheweing gum (placebo group), jumping jacks, and drinking a cold refreshing beverage).  Students collected temperature readings every 30 seconds for 4 minutes.  Data was run through Logger Pro, and students analyzed data using best fit lines.

Presentations

Submitted by Jennifer Elliott on

To cover textbook material, I assign the students sections to present. In Cultural Anthropology classes, this is assigned by Cultural Area. I allow students to choose a partner to present with and provide them a list of possible topics. They are to sign up on a first-come, first-serve basis. The requirements are that the presentations cover the textbook material, as well as include at least one outside source. The presentations should be about 10 minutes, for about 2 minutes for questions, etc. They include slides, pictures, and video.

Student-Created Assessments

Submitted by Rachel Holmes on

Students should be working, thinking, analyzing, creating, etc. throughout the day and guiding a large part of their own learning. Having students create their own assessments ensures that they are held accountable to actively listen during class and that they are thinking at a higher level about what they've learned.