DUST OF SNOW_BY ROBERT FROST_EDITED BY_ TANMOY MISHRA
Cindy Hinds Building Discussion Quality with "Virtual Gold Stars"
1. Cindy Hinds
Adjunct Psychology Instructor
Ozarks Technical Community College
2. I have a _____ with Standards requiring me to
teach higher level critical thinking skills to
students.
◦ A) Department/Division
◦ B) College/University
◦ C) Professional association
◦ D) More than one of the above
3. I have students who:
◦ A) already know how to think and write critically.
◦ B) are somewhat prepared to engage in critical
thinking work.
◦ C) are not prepared to engage in critical thinking
work, but show some promise.
◦ D) are not prepared and show no foundation to
begin the process of critical thinking.
◦ E) All of the above
5. Knowledge is constructed
through interactions with
adults or more advanced
peers.
Scaffolding
Learners do best when
information is provided
within their „zone of
proximal development‟
through a process called
8. Early in the Semester weekly Later in the Semester weekly Response
Response Posts can be worth up to Posts can be worth up to 10
5 possible points. possible points.
9. I like to receive recognition for hard work.
◦ A) True
◦ B) False
The result of the recognition you receive for
your hard work makes you:
◦ A) work a little less
◦ B) coast along
◦ C) work a little more
◦ D) work much harder
11. What student
reactions have you
had to the
movement away
from traditional
forms of teaching
and learning?
12. Do you think this
methodology goes
far enough in
creating
collaboration?
◦ A) Yes
◦ B) No
13. Creates a better discussion board response
post. Keeps students “on task”
Requires students to critically think about the
material
Creates a nascent community of learners
14. APA, Principles for Quality Undergraduate Education in Psychology.
www.apa.org
Borthick, A.F., Jones, D.R., & Wakai, S. (2003). Designing Learning
Experiences within Learners‟ Zones of Proximal Development (ZPDs):
Enabling Collaborative Learning On-Site and Online. Journal of
Information Systems. 17 (1): 107-134.
Elbaum, B., McIntyre, C., & Smith, A (2002) Essential Elements.
Atwood Publishing: Madison, WI
Reed, S. (2010). A Model for Scaffolding Writing Instruction: IMSCI.
The Reading Teacher. 64 (1) 47-52.
Tsai, A. (2011). A Hybrid E-Learning Model Incorporating Some of
the Principal Learning Theories. Social Behavior and Personality 39
(2) 145-152.
Van de Pol, J., Volman, M., & Beishuizen, J. (2010) Scaffolding in
Teacher-Student Interaction: A Decade of Research. Educational
Psychology Review. 22: 271-296.
American Psychological Association (APA) has a newly revised and adopted set of standards. One of the elements of principle two states: “Faculty understand and apply a variety of learning principles and modes of learning such as spaced practice, generation of responses, active engagement by students, group exercises and explaining as a way of understanding, among others.”
Knowing their ZPD is likely below my expectations for a good response post, I know I must work really hard in the first few weeks. Feedback, Modeling and Praise are the tools I use to expand their knowledge and therefore their ZPD.
“Essential Element 15:Facilitate discussions in a way that keeps students on-task, promotes full participation, and encourages peer collaboration” (p 81). Elbaum, McIntyre & Smith.