This Q&A was adapted with permission from the book Chalk Talk: E-advice from Jonas Chalk, Legendary College Teacher, edited by Donna M. Qualters and Miriam Rosalyn Diamond –
Question
Dear Jonas,
I am teaching a freshman class, and have found myself befuddled. There is such a variety of background preparation levels in my class, that if I go slowly enough for the students who have never seen this material before, 1/3 of the students are sleeping, if I go fast enough for the advanced students, 1/3 of the students are lost and complaining, and if I’m lucky, 1/3 think the class is just at the right pace. What do I do?
Signed: Goldilocks
Answer
Dear Goldilocks,
This is a fact of life as well as an exciting challenge of teaching first-year students. There is not another time where there is going to be such a disparity in their backgrounds. It will take some time for them to all get to approximately the same level. One consolation is that they are accustomed to this, and may have experienced it in other classes, so that they may not be as disgruntled as they appear. But there are various strategies that may help in handling the situation.
The first step you can take is to determine the different levels of preparation in the class. You can have the students fill out a brief questionnaire describing their backgrounds and experiences in the subject area. You might also ask them about their confidence in their preparation. In some cases a short quiz, not for credit, can help. After reviewing these, talk with some of the students who have an extensive background to see if they took the AP exam in the subject; ask them if they would be willing to help some of their classmates with the material, or explore other options for having the advanced students participate in a different way in the class. I also like to let the more knowledgeable students know that I recognize that they are at a more advanced level, and that I may call on them, or ask them to help others.
Another strategy is to discuss the situation openly with the class. Describe the situation and how it affects the pace of the class for each of them. If the students understand that there are classmates at different levels, they will often be more patient if they are ahead and work harder if they are struggling. I like to say to them, if one of you knows 8 things, and another knows 6 things and someone different knows 5, each of you may pick up a limited number of new things, but my goal is to have you all learn and know about the same 10 things. You can look for suggestions from the class at this point for handling the challenge, but be careful of creating individualized courses for each student. Remind the class also that they can achieve a deeper understanding of the material by seeing it again in this class, presented in a different way.
If you have a small number of students who are at an advanced level, you may be able to give them special projects to work on outside of class to show their skill, and attend a limited amount of classes. You may want to require them to take tests or quizzes, and attend particular classes on specific sections of material. Generally, they would need to take the final exam. This requires some time for you outside of class, but can be very rewarding. An excellent suggestion that I received was to have students help write problems to use in the class or for homework, where they also must develop the solutions.
You can also use the more advanced students to assist the struggling students. You can require them to assist in class, or in labs, or help a particular student. If you are doing any group-work in class, you can place a skilled student with a group of less-skilled students, and ask him or her to be proactive in helping the rest of the group to learn.
I have been addressing the problem of having blocks of students who have had various levels of preparation. Another common problem is that of having just one or two students who seem to be significantly less prepared than the others – students who ask many, many very basic questions. These students can significantly slow down an entire class. My strategy for dealing with these students is very different from what I described above. If the less prepared students ask a question about a topic which I am certain that everyone else understands thoroughly, I will try to answer the question quickly, and end my answer with “Think about it, and then, if you still have the question, ask me again after class or stop by my office during conference hours.” There is a fine line that one has to walk here: One does not want to make the less prepared student feel badly, but, on the other hand, one must maintain an appropriate pace for the rest of the class. You might also speak to the less prepared students outside of class, and suggest that they come to your office hours more often.
These are some strategies for meeting the challenge. Getting it just right is difficult, but some combination of these suggestions may help with the struggle.
Jonas
Quick Tip
Have students who know the material come to the board or to the computer (in a computer classroom) and demonstrate a technique or solve a problem; it keeps them involved. Often they understand the common trouble areas, because they have just experienced them. Ask them to discuss their initial errors as others will have made them as well
______
This content was adapted with permission from the book Chalk Talk: E-advice from Jonas Chalk, Legendary College Teacher, edited by Donna M. Qualters and Miriam Rosalyn Diamond.
Browse the complete Index of Teaching Challenges – Chalk Talk