I listened to the latest podcast episode from The Learning Scientists yesterday. Episode 53 was with an applied linguist and author Alex Poole. I stared it with my mom and started talking about the many resources on the website: https://www.learningscientists.org. For several years now I have been sharing the videos and links with students as study tips. I try to emphasize retrieval practice, spaced practice, interleaving, elaboration, and dual coding at least once in every course. Before the pandemic, I started reading the book Understanding How We Learn by Weinstein, Sumeracki, and Caviglioli. The illustrations and examples are great! I just forgot the book in the office in March 2020 and got sidetracked… When revisiting the website yesterday to share with my mom, a now retired elementary school teacher, I was reminded of the useful resources on the site and how I was unhappy with how I tried to implement these practices in the courses I teach. By sharing the resources and explaining why I suggested that learners put away notes and try to retrieve knowledge, for example… I’m now realizing how passive this is: it is a suggestion or a set of links on the learning objectives list. I was thinking last night about incorporating questions about the infographics on the site for discussion forums or reflections in the BIT 295 Biotechnology and Sustainability course we are designing. We could address one chapter and include questions with every reading comprehension “quiz” (check is more accurate because I plan on providing unlimited attempts and recording the highest grade to encourage mastery). I also wonder if this is a project form PALM and PALM FRONDS! The resources from The Learning Scientists are fantastic, and would encourage discussions that may be especially useful for 200-level students. I will also bring this up with the instructional designers I have the pleasure to work with. My question is: how can we include and use these resources in courses by directly applying to the course content and learning objectives?
