Read on Twitter
Next up at #lillycon: @LangOnCourse discussing Teaching Distracted Minds. So excited for this!
I've been reading his new book, Distracted, and taking ALL the notes. You should check it out! https://www.amazon.com/Distracted-Students-Cant-Focus-About/dp/1541699807/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=distracted&qid=1606848603&sr=8-2
I'm also a VERY big fan of Small Teaching, where I got many practical tips that I've implemented in my classroom. Highly recommend. https://www.amazon.com/Small-Teaching-Everyday-Lessons-Learning/dp/1118944496/ref=sxts_sxwds-bia-wc-nc-drs2_0?cv_ct_cx=small+teaching&dchild=1&keywords=small+teaching&pd_rd_i=1118944496&pd_rd_r=84ed0a40-2a41-44e9-a251-8c6ec54e62bf&pd_rd_w=my9hy&pd_rd_wg=mH5yE&pf_rd_p=84ce0865-d9ca-42e3-87ed-168be8f93162&pf_rd_r=JYR435FD89AFSVG08HMG&psc=1&qid=1606848656&sr=1-2-88388c6d-14b8-4f70-90f6-05ac39e80cc0
Lang says attention is so fundamental to what we do as teaching that we can think of teaching as the art of directing attention. He cites Yves Citton's The Ecology of Attention.
Learning can't happen without attention, because we don't take things into our memory that we don't notice. But attention is a LIMITED resource, so how do we manage?
Two ways to pay attention: in class, looking at professor and taking notes, but also being generally aware of our environment, a type of attention that was critical for survival in earlier ages and that's built into the human brain.
We have lots of distractions: our phones that are always on us, that buzz to tell us there's something new. Our brains have always been capable of distraction (it's hard-wired that way for survival), but tech has gotten really good at distracting us.
So should you prohibit devices in the classroom? Long story short: it depends on what you're trying to achieve in the classroom. As you plan your policy, inform your students so they understand what the research shows about how it affects their learning and their classmates'.
Studies show that students not using a device, but within view of one performed 17% worse on an exam based on that lecture material than students NOT in view of someone else's device.
Lang recommends using warm language in your syllabus, saying we all use devices & are affected by how devices distract us. Explain how the policy is meant to help avoid this. Get student feedback or input on the policy. They've been in different classes and may have great ideas.
I think that's a great idea. I get so many wonderful ideas from other instructors; just think about all the classes across other disciplines students have encountered. They can help you decide what the policy should look like.
Lang recommends not asking students to draft policy from scratch (too much stress), but draft a policy and have them give feedback on the policy. They can give really helpful comments without being overwhelmed by developing one entirely.
Lang recommends Dr. Ashley Waggoner Denton's Powerpoint on students making informed decisions, which you can find here: https://teachreflectrepeat.com/teaching-resources/
Plan your class like a playwright. There needs to be a structure to your class and it needs to include some shifts throughout class. Attention is susceptible to fatigue (over a single class, but also over the course of a day).
Study on student engagement with streaming videos. Students watched all the course videos up to 9 minutes long, but then it drops off dramatically.
High structure is important. Your learning experience should have clear modules and it should be visible to the learner, so they know what they're doing, why they're doing it, and what's coming up next.
Change is important for attention. Make shifts between active and passive engagement, individual v. group work, movement and transitions; cameras on and off.
Lang recommends getting out some index cards and taking a modular approach. What are the pieces and how could you move them around? What's the sequencing that will be engaging and renew student attention?
Lang sums up by quoting my favorite poet, #MaryOliver's instructions for living a life: "Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it."
Example of attention-cultivating activity: Everyday Object Analysis: 1) What is it? Describe it in extreme detail. 2) So What? Ask why is it important and dig deep, down into the layers. 3) Now what? What questions does that raise? What questions should we research?
Think about what pedagogical activities would awake students to the excitement of your subject? How could you make this part of your weekly or monthly course planning? What would invigorate their attention and then plan to use it at points of the semester where attention lags.
Lang recommends look at the classroom as an attention retreat--that place where we remove ourselves from the distraction and savor the joys of attention and learning. He recommends "Now You See It" by Cathy Davidson and "The Distracted Mind" by Gazzalet and Rosen.
Let's be clear: students have a responsibility in their learning to pay attention. But we as instructors have a responsibility to do our best to create a classroom environment that cultivates their attention. Straight lecture or Socratic method day in and day out don't do this.
We need to switch things up, to introduce changes, into our classes so not every classes feels the same. This applies to skills classes as well. If every class is a lecture/demo on the skills, then individual or group practice at the skill, that has the same impact.
This is something I've been thinking abt in my own teaching. If each class structure feels the same, even if it's new databases/sources we're covering, student attention can begin to wane. We need to be creative & think abt re-ordering our classes to help keep student attention.
Lang ends with a great thought experiment: If you're thinking about keeping attention in an online class, think about yourself in a departmental meeting. What loses your attention and what draws you back? How can you apply those lessons to your own teaching?
Thanks to @LangOnCourse for a phenomenal session. I can't recommend his book Distracted enough--so much more to learn than the few nuggets I shared above from his talk!
