The primary objective of this project was to leverage technology to transform large lecture course delivery in order to provide increased student-centered learning. The technologies and pedagogies chosen were based upon models that have already proven successful around the country. However, innovations and improvements to those practices will be implemented by the project team in collaboration with the faculty partner.

This project provided the necessary support structure to faculty who wished to explore new pedagogies and instructional technologies that fundamentally changed the way that traditional large lecture courses had been delivered. Three large courses participated in the project.

Media History and Culture (019:091), College of Liberal Arts & Sciences: The main goal of this course was to improve students’ writing skills and critical concepts for evaluating the various roles played by journalism in the history of American journalism and enhance students’ scholarly fluency by using historical database. The fully transformed course was delivered in the spring 2014.

Introduction to Environmental Science (012:008), College of Liberal Arts & Sciences: The main goal of this course was to improve students’ understanding of the relationship between their day-to-day life and Environmental Science, and develop students’ critical thinking to evaluate popular media articles to Environmental Science. The fully transformed course was delivered in the spring 2014.

Electrical Circuits (055:041), College of Engineering: The main objective of this course was to enhance students’ problem solving skills. The fully transformed course was delivered in the fall 2014.

Interventions

• Adopted a flipped classroom model. Students watch lectures outside of classrooms at their own pace and engage in problem solving activities in class time.
• Adopted an innovative instructional technology that can effectively facilitate interactive student-centered problem solving activities in a traditional lecture hall.
• Adopted a power tool (a fully functional electronic design automation program) that allows the students to create visual representations of electronic circuits and analyze them.
• Designed multiple difficulty levels of problem sets that accommodate different student learning levels (e.g., problems for all students, challenge problems for advanced students).
• Provide a prescriptive seating arrangement to facilitate collaborative learning effectively.

Presentations and Publications

Russell, J. E., Andersland, M., Van Horne, S., Gikonyo, J., & Sloan, L. (2018). Practice makes perfect. Prism.

Russell, J. E., Andersland, M. S., Van Horne, S., Gikonyo, J., & Sloan, L. (2017). ADVANCES FROM AEE INNOVATIONS IN EDUCATION PRACTICE. ASEE Prism, 27 (4), 39-39.

Russell, J. E., Andersland, M., Van Horne, S., Gikonyo, J., & Sloan, L. (2017). Large lecture transformation: Improving problem-solving through in-class practice in an electrical circuits course. Advances in Engineering Education.

Russell, J. E., Van Horne, S., Ward, A., Bettis III, E., & Gikonyo, J. (2017). Variability in students’ evaluating processes in peer assessment with calibrated peer review. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning. DOI: 10.1111/jcal.12176

Russell, J. E., Van Horne, S., Ward, A., Bettis, A. E., Sipola, M., Colombo, M., & Rocheford, M. K. (2016). Large lecture transformation: Adopting evidence-based practices to increase student engagement and performance in an introductory science course. Journal of Geoscience Education, 64(1), 37-51. DOI:10.5408/15-084.1

Russell, J., Van Horne, S., Ward, A., Bettis, A., Sipola, M., Colombo, M., & Gikonyo, J. (2014, October) Nurturing writing and critical thinking skills with calibrated peer review (CPR) in a large lecture environmental science course. A presentation at the International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Quebec, Canada.

Andersland, M., & Russell, J. E. (2019, June). Impact of Active Learning Classrooms on Feedback-Supported Student Learning. A presentation at ASEE Annual Conference in Tampa, Florida.

Russell, J., Florman, J., & Van Horne, S. (2015, November). Impact of STEM large lecture transformation: Fostering critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Presentation at Crossing Boundaries: Transforming STEM Education in Seattle, WA

Russell, J. E., Andersland, M. (2016, November). Student-centered active learning effect on student motivation and achievement. A poster presentation at American Association Colleges & Universities in Boston, MA.

Russell, J. E., & Andersland, M. (2017, October). Implementation of a web-based feedback system in two different learning spaces. A presentation at the International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Calgary, Canada.

Durham, F., Russell, J. E., & Van Horne, S. (2017). Assessing student engagement: A collaborative curriculum for large lecture discussion sections, Journalism and Mass Communication Educator.

Russell, J. E., Silva, S., & Van Horne, S. (2016, May). Large Lecture Transformation. A presentation at the University of Iowa Tech Forum, Iowa City, IA.

Bettis, E. A., Ward, A., Russell, J. E., Van Horne, S., Rocheford, M. K., Sipola, M. Colombo, M. R., & Gikonyo, J. (2014, December) Implementing calibrated peer review (CPR) in a large-lecture science course. A poster at the American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting in San Francisco, CA

Ward, A., Bettis, E. A., Russell, J. E., Van Horne, S., Rocheford, M. K., Sipola, M., Colombo, M. R. (2014, December) Improving student engagement, satisfaction, and learning outcomes in a “flipped” large lecture setting. A poster at the American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting in San Francisco, CA

Russell, J. E., Durham, F., & Van Horne, S. (2016, October). Fostering student learning through the activity-based digital curriculum in a large lecture introductory journalism course. A paper presentation at International Society for Scholarship of Teaching & Learning in Los Angeles, CA.

https://engineering.uiowa.edu/sites/engineering.uiowa.edu/files/2021-08/no_16-2.pdf