Peer Mentor Handbook

Peer Mentor Handbook Sheilagh Grills Brandon University © 2010 Sheilagh Grills Peer Mentor Handbook This handbook was designed to accompany a seminar or Success Course for first-year students in post-se o da edu atio . B usi g the te “u ess Cou se I ea to de ote o e t pe of first-year program designed to help transition students into post-secondary or tertiary education and integrate these new learners into the academic community. This handbook is most applicable when students enrolled in a transition to university class meet weekly outside of class time in small groups or tutorials led a se io stude t as that se i a g oup s pee mentor. Introduction The Center for Educational Policy Research (2003) has concluded that first-year students need to develop habits of mind, or learning and thinking skills. One approach that many institutions have taken to try to encourage these learning skills is to offer Freshman Seminars, Learning Framework Courses or Success Courses. These programs can range from extended orientation or induction workshops offered in the first six weeks (e.g. the University of Ne astle s U i-“ta t to a se ies of full-year for-credit courses (e.g. Portland State U i e sit s F esh a a d “opho o e I ui . First-year programs that e phasize iti al thi ki g su h as the U i e sit of Mi higa s Lea i g to Lea ou ses ha e ee sho to i p o e stude ts attitudes to a ds lea ing, their performance in later classes and retention (McKeachie, Pintrich & Lin, 1985; Pintrich, McKeachie & Lin, 1987 . Lea i g F a e o k ou ses oot theo a d esea h i og iti e and behavioural psychology within the core of the course along with the application of learning strategies. These have shown to result in higher GPAs, first year retention rates and 6-year graduation rates (Brock et al, 2007; Hodges, Sellers & Dochen, 2001; Weinstein, Goetz & Alexander, 1988; Weinstein et al, 1998). Regardless of differences in curricula, delivery or terminology, these programs share a common goal to effectively integrate new students into their learning environment. Many transition programs make use of senior students as peer leaders or mentors to encourage new students to engage in the activities on campus and indeed feel engaged in their new community. Appalachian University found that the most important criteria for recruiting peer leaders were that they be enthusiastic about the university and academically and socially successful (National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience & Students in Transition, 2009). According to a survey by the Policy Center on the First Year of College, the use of peer leaders was linked to higher student perceptions of belonging, campus connections, time management and study strategies. The use of peer leaders was not linked to higher perceptions of critical thinking or academic skills, but it could be argued that this is indicative of the wide variety of functions of peer leaders in first-year programming. Collecting students in small groups to increase interaction is only the first step. James, Bruch & Jehangir (2006:11) distinguish between the functions of a learning community and a learning community: I a learning o u it … e e s help ea h othe lea to joi the academic community by supporting each other through listening, disagreeing, and working together, students build academic skills and explore ideas in ways that value individual k o ledge. E e o e satio s ith othe s a out o o lea i g e pe ie es a se e as vehicles to transgress the limits of dualistic thinking (Aleman, 1994:38). We know from a wide range of research that the more students are involved in shared learning experiences, the more likely they are to be active participants in their own learning (Kuh et al, 2005; Tinto, 1993, 2000). Students in collaborative or shared learning approaches are more likely to engage in elaboration, comprehension monitoring and critical thinking. As Pas a ella & Te e zi i : ite, p ee i te a tio s, pa ti ula l those that e te d a d reinforce what happens in the academic program, appear to influence positively knowledge a uisitio a d a ade i skill de elop e t du i g ollege. Success courses with peer leaders or mentors can be particularly important for the adjustment of under-represented populations (Kuh, Kinzie, Buckley, Bridges & Hayek 2006: 63). O Ga a, Ka p & Hughes epo t o -year community colleges in the United States found those with a Success Course had a higher proportion of students earning a certificate or transferring. This is noteworthy given these institutions tend to enrol a greater proportion of socially, economically and academically challenged students. Programs such as the PeerAssisted Study Sessions at the University of Manchester, or the Supplemental Instruction model from the University of Missouri, Kansas incorporate peer led tutorials into at-risk courses. Underlying Philosophy for the Tutorials The tutorials explained in this handbook share a similar design to those already described, but their focus is not on the content of the at-risk courses traditionally found in the natural sciences. Rather, they are geared to the undecided student who often gravitates to humanities or social science classes. Yet, the course they are intended to serve and the tutorials themselves are fundamentally interdisciplinary. First year students often have little experience with the distinct models of thinking present in different disciplines, especially with the vast array of arts and humanities disciplines. They have little to no experience with cross-discipline discussions unless they have come from an International Baccalaureate program. Interdisciplinary themes serve as organizing principles for the course, and are central to the esea h pape fo the ou se. As Kuh et al : a gue, s et pe fo a e sta da ds fo stude ts at high ut attai a le le els o siste t ith thei a ade i p epa atio . The interdisciplinary subject matter is designed to encourage the transfer of specific learning skills ithi the lass a d tuto ials to the stude ts othe ou ses. In sum, the Success Course that uses these tutorials emphasizes strategic learning to explicitly teach under-prepared or at-risk students to monitor their knowledge acquisition and comprehension. It is an interdisciplinary course designed to emphasize skills that transfer broadly across disciplines and form the foundation for subsequent studies. The tuto ials a e as Bo la s esea h suggests , ased o sou d og iti e theo , use a variety of teaching techniques, and integrate classroom and tutorial instruction. Such elements are central not only to developmental education but also for institutions with more open access policies. The tutorials involve on-campus instruction only to emphasize academic preparation and interaction rather than social integration into the wider community. This decision was made to try and engage student populations similar to those in Australasia commuter students, part-time students, those who work more than 20 hours a week or students opting for three year degrees. The tutorials form the basis of a peer cooperative learning program that provides a combination of interdependence and self-directed learning (in part through scaffolded instruction). Through informal interactions and explicit lesson plans, an environment is formed that encourages the discussion of affective components of learning. The peer mentors do the socialization work of integrating first-year students into an academic community by being an accepting audience, facilitating open discussions, and modeling individual responsibility, selfregulation, and the value of inquiry. They are a personal, nonthreatening contact that can provide information and answer questions about institutional policies and procedures. What Problem are we Trying to Solve? The Summer 2004 journal New Directions for Teaching and Learning devoted the issue to a model for i teg ati g iti al thi ki g a oss dis ipli es alled de odi g the dis ipli es . The journal addressed the question of how to overcome obstacles to learning for specific disciplines. While much of the information is geared to the organizational level - teaching committees, departments, faculty learning communities and the like - the issue does provide insight into what can be wrong with the first-year experience. As Middendorf & Pace (2004:3) ite, the e tal ope atio s e ui ed fo u de g aduates … are rarely presented to students explicitly, [and] students generally lack an opportunity to practice and receive feedback on pa ti ula skills i isolatio f o othe s…. If we agree that this is a problem, then we can try to address it by being explicit about what we mean by critical thinking, and what we expect in terms of information processing. We can demonstrate how an expert performs the art and science of thinking by exposing first-year students to lecturers who are open to exploring their own metacognition and how they were able to move from novice to expert. We can have peers explicitly model their own learning skills. We can utilize scaffolded instruction by lecturers and peer mentors. And we can promote the mastery of learning tasks by embedding Success Courses with a series of small but cumulative successes. Therefore, the tutorials in this handbook were organized around a central question: what a e pote tial o k o ottle e ks to lea i g? Whi h spe ifi p o le is this eek s lesso attempting to address? The topics and problems covered in this handbook are as follows: Learning and Intelligence o Thi ki g that lea i g is a eithe /o s it h o o to e e o e o Equating learning with intelligence Time Management o Thinking that most of the work necessary will happen in the classroom o Procrastination o Weak computer skills Reading and Studying o Not being able to identify what is important in text o Thinking that reading texts passively is sufficient for studying Taking Notes and Memory o Thinking that remembering is rote memorization rather than understanding o Not making the connections between reading, taking notes and memory Doing Research: Finding Appropriate Materials o Weak research skills o Relying on description rather than inquiry in term papers o Not knowing how to start a research paper or how to decide what to write on Writing o Weak technical writing skills o Poor formatting and referencing skills o Inaccurate knowledge of plagiarism [resulting in either copying or over-quoting] Oral Presentations o High anxiety about public speaking In sum, this handbook provides objectives and specific activities for a one-semester peer mentor tutorial. The subject matter is interdisciplinary and can be easily adapted to a variety of central themes for a learning community or cohort-based program. Critical thinking and inquiry based learning exercises are integrated throughout the weekly meetings. Each session is designed to address a particular problem or bottleneck to learning. A series of small assignments with multiple opportunities for feedback, and high academic standards for assessment measures promote increased confidence and skill levels. Peer mentors model individual responsibility and self-regulation and emphasize learning as a process not an end product. Getting Started According to an open-ended survey of 330 students at Memorial University, there are nine prominent characteristics or sets of behaviours that are indicators of effective teaching (Delaney, Johnson, Johnson & Treslan, 2010). Think of your own best teachers. What made them great? Why would you recommend them to others? The same qualities that you appreciate from the front of the room, the students in your tutorials will appreciate from you. You g a d othe s ad i e that if ou ant to be respected, show respect rings true for peer leaders too! So what will make you a great tutorial leader? Before every session, look back at this sheet and e i d ou self of the Big a d the adje ti es used the Me o ial espo de ts to des ribe the sets of eha iou s. ‘e ie the e to i g guideli es so that ou e lea o the jo expectations for a tutorial leader. Strive to be: 1. Respectful Fair, understanding, patient, open-minded, consistent, humble 2. Knowledgeable Competent, credible, practical, reflective, current, flexible 3. Approachable Friendly, personable, helpful, accessible, happy, positive 4. Engaging Enthusiastic, interesting, motivating, interactive, energetic 5. Communicative Clear, understandable, thorough, constructive, attentive 6. Organized Efficient, focused, prepared 7. Responsive Helpful, efficient, available, perceptive, accommodating 8. Professional Dedicated, punctual, dependable, confident, hygienic 9. Humorous Happy, positive, kind, approachable, smiling Remember that students are better able to learn in settings that respect their individuality. Mentoring Guidelines  Care about students by showing empathy, understanding, and respect.  Know how and when to make referrals, and be familiar with referral sources.  ‘espe t the stude t s decision-making. Help them to make their own decisions. Facilitate rather than lecture.  Remember that the mentor's role is to provide guidance. Keep behavior consistent with the parameters of such a relationship.  Fo us o stude ts st e gths a d pote tials rather than limitations. Avoid all or none thinking.  Be clear and realistic when setting goals with students.  Show interest, helpful intent and involvement.  Employ good nonverbal listening skills—eye contact, posture, expression.  Maintain confidentiality.  Encourage students to talk by asking open-ended questions.  Catego ize stude ts uestio s to dete information, or understanding. i e if the a e seeki g a tio ,  Unless absolute necessary, keep to your scheduled tutorial time. If you must reschedule, arrange a mutually agreeable alternate slot within the week and inform all students (and myself) in writing.  Consider multiple options for connection, but beware of your own privacy.  Expect to make midcourse corrections. Introductions and Learning Objectives for the first tutorial  Do an icebreaker exercise or introductions  Build a sense of togetherness or cohesion  Explain expectations of tutorials  Lead the first weekly discussion Materials: Handbook, Attendance Sheet, and resources for your introduction – file cards or other equipment for the icebreaker you choose. 1. Introductions You are free to use any icebreaker you would like from student leader training. Take attendance as you lead the introductions. Some other suggestions: Pass out file cards and have students write their name and contact information, a d a spe ifi uestio o o e a out u i e sit to use i e t eek s discussion. Start around the room and have the first person stand up, say their name and one other i te esti g fa t e.g. he e the e f o , the pla e the ould lo e to visit, the thing about university that they are most apprehensive about, other responsibilities in terms of children, pets or work). After they sit down, the next person stands and repeats thei i fo eigh ou s a e as ell as thei o atio , a d so o . You should e last a d eed to e all ea h pe so s a e. This a e pa ti ula l useful if ou ha e a fe talke s – start next to them so that they know they are last and will hopefully quiet down and listen. 2. Build cohesion As a group complete the ho e diffe checklist. The tutorial group with the highest total will get pizza next week. Ask about allergies or topping preferences. 3. Expectations E plai that ou ll e eeting each week to expand and elaborate on material in lectures, and that you are an additional resource person for them. Give your contact i fo atio if ou ha e t al ead do e so a d tell the to feel f ee to ask ou a out policies, procedures or university life generally. Have students refer to the Student Rights & Responsibilities page. For the Rights section, emphasize that marks are rarely given for homework or attendance in classes but that participation counts for tutorials and that parents do not have access to student marks. For the Responsibilities section, explain how each point relates to tutorials: come to tutorials with materials prepared to work, listen respectfully to others, and take part in discussions. 4. Discussion It is important to start the tutorials off this week with your first open discussion. You may have already started your group talking with your explanation of expectations or rights and responsibilities. Regardless, lead a discussion of the three parts to successful intelligence: analytical, creative and practical thinking. Students have been told to complete the three thinking assessment activities (assess yourself as an analytical, creative and practical thinker) and bring them to tutorial. Start with describing your totals on these activities and tally each person s totals on the attendance sheet. Use the University Survival Tips information page to facilitate a discussion at any time during the semester as time permits. HOW WE DIFFER Directions: For each category add up the number of points for your team. The team with the most points wins. (All 1 point, plus Bonus Points): 1. Point for each different type of sport played regularly at the table. 2. For each different birthday month recorded. 5pts. – born on a holiday 3. For each shoe size over 12 and under 4. 4. For appearing on TV, radio or newspaper (you must be mentioned by name). 5. Points for each person who can tap their hand and rub their tummy at the same time. 6. For each continent visited. Requires 24 hour on-ground stay. 10 pts. – for 6, 15 pts. for Antarctica 7. Points for each last name starting with the letters Z, Q, K, U or X. 8. Points for each language (other than native) that each person speaks fluently. 9. Subtract the youngest age in the group (as of today) from the oldest, and allow one point for each calendar year between the two. 10. For each person NOT wearing a watch. 3 pts. – No jewelry (wedding bands excluded) 11. For each person who can roll their tongue. 7pts. – if you can turn your tongue upside down (in your mouth!) 12. Points for each child you have. GET ANALYTICAL! Assess Yourself as an Analytical Thinker1 For each statement, circle the number that feels right to you, from 1 for not at all true for me to 5 for very true for me. 1. I recognize and define problems effectively. 1 2 3 4 5 2. I see myself as a thinker, analytical, studious. 1 2 3 4 5 3. When working on a problem in a group setting, I like to break down the problem into its components and evaluate them. 1 2 3 4 5 4. I need to see convincing evidence before accepting information as fact. 1 2 3 4 5 5. I weigh the pros and cons of plans and ideas before taking action. 1 2 3 4 5 6. I tend to make connections among pieces of information by categorizing them. 1 2 3 4 5 7. Impulsive, spontaneous decision making worries me. 1 2 3 4 5 8. I like to analyze causes and effects when making a decision. 1 2 3 4 5 9. I monitor my progress toward goals. 1 2 3 4 5 10. Once I reach a goal, I evaluate the process to see how effective it was. 1 2 3 4 5 Total your answers here: ________ If your total ranges from 38-50, you consider your analytical thinking skills to be strong. If your total ranges from 24-37, you consider your analytical thinking skills to be average. If your total ranges from 10-23, you consider your analytical thinking skills to be weak. Remember that you can improve your analytical thinking skills with focus and practice. 1 Carter, C., Bishop, J., Lyman Kravits, S. & Maurin, P.J. (2010). Keys to Success: Building successful intelligence and achieving your goals, 5th Canadian edition. Toronto, ON: Pearson Canada Inc., 12. GET CREATIVE! Assess Yourself as a Creative Thinker2 For each statement, circle the number that feels right to you, from 1 for not at all true for me to 5 for very true for me. 1. I tend to question rules and regulations. 1 2 3 4 5 2. I see myself as a unique, full of ideas, innovative. 1 2 3 4 5 3. When working on a problem in a group setting, I generate a lot of ideas. 1 2 3 4 5 4. I am energized when I have a brand-new experience. 1 2 3 4 5 5. If you say something is too risky, I m ready to give it a shot. 1 2 3 4 5 6. I often wonder if there is a different way to do or see something. 1 2 3 4 5 7. Too much routine in my work or schedule drains my energy. 1 2 3 4 5 8. I tend to see connections among ideas that others do not. 1 2 3 4 5 9. I feel comfortable allowing myself to make mistakes as I test out ideas. 1 2 3 4 5 10. I m willing to champion an idea even when others disagree with me. 1 2 3 4 5 Total your answers here: ________ If your total ranges from 38-50, you consider your creative thinking skills to be strong. If your total ranges from 24-37, you consider your creative thinking skills to be average. If your total ranges from 10-23, you consider your creative thinking skills to be weak. Remember that you can improve your creative thinking skills with focus and practice. 2 Carter, C., Bishop, J., Lyman Kravits, S. & Maurin, P.J. (2010). Keys to Success: Building successful intelligence and achieving your goals, 5th Canadian edition. Toronto, ON: Pearson Canada Inc., 21. GET PRACTICAL! Assess Yourself as an Practical Thinker3 For each statement, circle the number that feels right to you, from 1 for not at all true for me to 5 for very true for me. 1. I can find a way around any obstacle. 1 2 3 4 5 2. I see myself as a doer, the go-to person, I make things happen. 1 2 3 4 5 3. When working on a problem in a group setting, I like to figure out who will do what and when it should be done. 1 2 3 4 5 4. Because I learn well from experience, I don t tend to repeat a mistake. 1 2 3 4 5 5. I finish what I start and don t leave loose ends hanging. 1 2 3 4 5 6. I pay attention to my emotions in academic and social situations to see if they help or hurt me as I move toward a goal. 1 2 3 4 5 7. I can sense how people feel, and can use that knowledge to interact with others effectively in order to achieve a goal. 1 2 3 4 5 8. I manage my time effectively. 1 2 3 4 5 9. I find ways to adjust to the teaching styles of my instructors and the communication styles of my peers. 1 2 3 4 5 10. When involved in a problem-solving process, I can shift gears as needed. 1 2 3 4 5 Total your answers here: ________ If your total ranges from 38-50, you consider your practical thinking skills to be strong. If your total ranges from 24-37, you consider your practical thinking skills to be average. If your total ranges from 10-23, you consider your practical thinking skills to be weak. Remember that you can improve your practical thinking skills with focus and practice. 3 Carter, C., Bishop, J., Lyman Kravits, S. & Maurin, P.J. (2010). Keys to Success: Building successful intelligence and achieving your goals, 5th Canadian edition. Toronto, ON: Pearson Canada Inc., 23. Post-Secondary Student Rights course evaluation o Marks shall be based on work covered in the course concerned (including independent readings not covered in class). weighting of grading components o The instructor shall make clear to the class at the beginning of each course how the final grade in the class shall be assigned. written work o Academic papers presented by students to fulfill any course requirement remain the property of the writer and should be returned to the students after marking. confidentiality o “tude ts t a s ipts a e o side ed o fide tial a d ill e issued o l if the student requests one in writing. schedule of tests/exams/assignments o Faculty are expected to schedule mid-term tests so that students know their marks before the last date of voluntary withdrawal from a course due process o A student with a well considered academic type of grievance against a faculty or staff member shall follow the procedures in section 4.2.3 of the General Calendar. o A student wishing to appeal any mark given in any achievement of coursework shall follow the Appeals procedures in sections 4.2.12 or 4.2.13 of the General Calendar. Academic Community Responsibilities to practice personal and academic integrity o a commitment to this ideal is not consistent with academic dishonesty, cheating and plagiarism. Be aware of the penalties for violations (intentional or not) of Academic Regulation 4.2.2 in the General Calendar. to respect the dignity and individuality of all persons, and to respect and strive to learn from differences in people, ideas and opinions o a commitment to this ideal is not consistent with harassment and discrimination. All academic community members are expected to be respectful of others. to take espo si ilit fo o e s o pe so al a d a ade i o it e ts o a commitment to this ideal is not consistent with skipping classes or not completing assignments. Students who are registered but do not attend the first three classes may have their registration cancelled in favour of someone else wishing to register for the course. to respect the rights and property of others, and to respond to and discourage behaviours which threaten the freedom and respect every individual deserves o a commitment to this ideal is not consistent with theft, vandalism or harming other stude ts sta di gs i g oup assig e ts. Ad issio to a le tu e o la a e refused for lateness, misconduct or lack of preparation. University Survival Tips Are you feeling frazzled? Stretched in too many directions at once? Take six steps now to regain control of your life and survive your university experience with a smile. 1. Be Realistic You had a busy life before you enrolled at BU. Adding a schedule of courses and the study time they require creates a whole new layer of responsibilities. In fact, attending university as a full-time student is like taking a full-time job in itself. Remember, your professors expect you to spend a minimum of two hours out of class for every hour you attend lectures. Twelve (or 15) hours of classes plus 24 (or 30) study hours equals 36 (or 45!) more hours a week – a d that does t i lude any labs. Yet the inescapable fact is that each week contains only 168 hours. Add up your commitments. Are you already working 40 hours a week? Do you have family, community, or other responsibilities? How long do you spend driving yourself to class or on other chauffeur duties? Have you set aside some time to unwind? Unless you're a superhuman, you're going to have to trim activities in order to maintain your health and your sanity. Don't start skimping on sleep if you're running on a time deficit each week; do consider cutting down on the number of classes or work hours. 2. Get Organized Manage your time wisely. Build yourself a daily schedule that takes into account all the parts of the balanced life you want: work, study, family time, personal time. Modify the schedule as necessary from week to week, but do your best to stick to it. Get a planner to keep track of assignments, tests, and appointments. Buy a small note pad for daily to-do lists; you'll be amazed at the pleasure you get from scratching off completed tasks. Use small bits of time to your advantage. Fifteen minutes is plenty of time to review a set of notes or to skim a chapter prior to intensive study. 3. Study Efficiently Now that you have some time designated for study, use it well. Your brain retains information most easily if you rehearse the new material in short sessions over several days. Use a textbook study technique that emphasizes study questions and directed reading. Improve your note-taking skills by practicing a technique like the Cornell method, or paying attention to cues from your professors. As you prepare for a test, try to predict test questions; space your study periods and use them to rehearse the material actively rather than just passively rereading your notes. To learn more about how to study effectively, see the bulletin board outside the Academic Skills Centre for details and times of the various Learning Skills workshops offered. 4. Learn to Deal with Distractions Eliminate as many potential distractions as possible by finding a quiet study place both on and off campus. At home, turn off the television and radio, avoid the telephone, and retreat from your family. You'll discover that you can train yourself to concentrate better in your designated space. Internal distractions such as anxiety, anger, or simply a sense of pressure to get it all done can be harder to deal with than external distractions. Try to identify these distractions and set them aside temporarily. Make a list of your concerns and promise yourself that you'll deal with the top item on the list as soon as you've completed your study session. Then set that list aside both physically and mentally. For more information on relaxation techniques or to talk about any personal issues set up a appoi t e t ith BU s a ade i a d pe so al ou selo s at -9769. 5. Develop Support Systems You don't have to do this alone - look around for helping hands. Experience a powerful learning tool that combines academics and a social life by forming study groups with other students in your classes. Take advantage of your instructors' office hours. Drop by the Academic Skills Centre to set up individual assistance or to find out about upcoming group workshops. You can also visit the BUSU office in the Knowles Douglas Student Union building to request a peer tutor to help with difficult content issues. Family and friends can also provide support, but this support must be cultivated. Although the people who love you want you to succeed, they may also be resentful that your studies are taking time away from them. Some may even be afraid that this new part of your life will alienate you from them. Talk about the long-range benefits your education will provide for the whole family. Ask for the help you need to keep the household going. Make family members part of your university experience by having them help you study; even small children can hold flash cards to help Mom or Dad p epa e fo a test. A d do t fo get to use BU s ou selo s a d ad iso s. 6. Do Something Nice for Yourself You'll be better able to cope with the extra stresses of being a student if you reward yourself periodically for taking on this new role. Don't wait until you graduate – or even until the semester is over – to celebrate small successes. Surviving a test, completing a project, giving a speech without falling apart, just making it through another week all give you bragging rights. Pat yourself on the back for your accomplishments. Make a list of personal rewards (a walk in the park, a movie, game night with the kids, a long bike ride) and dip into it regularly. Following these six survival tips will help you over the rough spots that every university student encounters. Try them out and picture yourself striding across the platform on graduation night, diploma in hand as proof that you have what it takes for academic success. Time Management Objectives:  Discuss time management  Start the monthly schedule assignment  Demonstrate how to use the computer labs on campus Materials: Handbook, Attendance Sheet, computer lab access for last half of tutorial. 1. Attendance and check in In taking your weekly attendance, check in with students as to how their first few weeks have gone to set an informal tone. 2. Discuss time management Students have been told to complete the journal entry assignment from chapter 3 and bring this to tutorial this week. Lead a discussion about the general tendency toward under-estimating the time spent on more leisurely activities and where students have found that they waste the most time. Share an example of a time when you were surprised by the differences between actual time spent on activities compared with estimated time. Collect the journal entry assignments for your group. 3. Monthly Schedule Assignment This assignment is to be started during your tutorial time this week. It will hopefully allow students to assess their commitments and workload for the coming semester. Pass out the monthly calendars, regardless of whether the student has started scheduling in their own day timers or handbooks. Remind them that this version gets passed in for marks in class, and encourage them to transfer the contents of the completed assignment to their own time tables. o Ask students to take out their course outline for their most difficult or time consuming class. Start with deadlines:    Insert time and place for final exam All tests, their worth (%) and what they cover (e.g. ch. 1-6) All assignments and their worth (%)  A self-imposed deadline for the rough draft of each essay or written assignment one week prior to the final version deadline. This will give you an opportunity to emphasize the importance of editing, and allo i g iggle oo fo the u e pe ted.  Specific reading targets. Work backwards from the first test to set weekly targets (e.g. pages 35-52 in sociology or chapter 5 in biology by Saturday). This will give you an opportunity to discuss strategies to avoid or limit procrastination. o Make sure each student has finished each type of deadline for at least one course before you move on. 4. Demonstrate computer labs This is the first opportunity to explore stude ts fa ilia it ith o pute s, o d processing, and the computer labs on campus. Ask your group for a show of hands for those who have: o claimed their identification information and password, o been to a computer lab on campus, o used the student information portal, o logged on to Moodle, WebCT or any other media used by their instructors o accessed the student server, and o checked their university email o redirected their university email to their preferred email. Take your group to the Learning Lab in the library (and describe the other computer labs on campus) and demonstrate all of the above. Refer any student who has not claimed their IDs or who needs additional assistance to the Help Desk. Reading and Studying Objectives:  Discuss making marginal notes and underlining readings  Practice underlining text  Practice summarizing for content Materials: Handbook, Attendance Sheet, any of your own work that you have highlighted or marked (text or journal article), recent article from the student newspaper that you have read. 1. Attendance and check-in 2. Discuss making marginal notes and underlining readings Show your own example of highlighting or marking and discuss what works (and does t fo ou a d ho that a ha ge ou se. ‘e i d the NOT to a k library materials! Students have been told to bring their exercise from class on making marginal notes and underlining text to tutorials this week. Ask your group what they found difficult or uncomfortable about this task. Does anyone think they have too much or too little marked? Ask for a volunteer (or two) to read only their marked words to check if it makes sense. Share your annotated text with the group and discuss strategies that you have found helpful in making notes from readings. Complete the Studying a text page exercise. Remind your tutorial to: Wat h that the do t u de li e o a k too u h o too little Identify terms or definitions Write a short answer question in the margin Ensure that the question can be answered using only marked material 3. Practice summarizing for content Choose an article from a local newspaper, preferably an editorial or opinion piece, to summarize and discuss. This could be done together, in small groups or individually depending upon the length and difficulty of the article you choose. 4. If time allows, complete the organization exercise or discuss the mind mapping information sheet. Studying a Text Page4 The follo i g page is f o the hapte U de sta di g E t ep e eu ship, “ all Busi ess a d New Venture Creatio , i the “i th Ca adia Editio of Business by Griffin, Ebert and Starke. Apply SQ3R as you read the excerpt. Using what you learned in this chapter about study techniques, complete the questions that follow. Step 1. Think it through: Gather information and analyze it. First gather: Skim the excerpt. Identify the headings on the page and the relationships among them. Mark primary (first-level) headings with #1, secondary (second-level) headings with #2, and tertiary (third-level) headings with #3. Then analyze: Which heading serves as the umbrella for the rest? ___________________________________________________________________________ What do the headings tell you about the content of the page? ___________________________________________________________________________ What are three concepts that seem important to remember? 1. __________________________________________________________________________ 2. __________________________________________________________________________ 3. __________________________________________________________________________ Step 2. Think out of the box: Create useful study questions. Based on the three concepts you pulled out, write three study questions that you can review with an instructor, a teaching assistant, or a fellow student. 1. __________________________________________________________________________ 2. __________________________________________________________________________ 3. __________________________________________________________________________ 4 Carter, C., Bishop, J., Lyman Kravits, S. & Maurin, P.J. (2010). Keys to Success: Building successful intelligence and achieving your goals, 5th Canadian edition. Toronto, ON: Pearson Canada Inc., 162-163. THE LINKS AMONG SMALL BUSINESS, NEW VENTURE CREATION, AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP Every day, approximately 380 businesses are started in Canada.1 New firms create the most jobs,2 are noted for their entrepreneurship, and are typically small. But does this mean that most small businesses are entrepreneurial? Not necessarily. The terms small business, new venture, and entrepreneurship are closely linked terms, but each idea is distinct. In the following paragraphs we will explain these terms to help you understand these topics and how they are interrelated. 1 Explain the meaning of and Small Business Defining a “small” business can be a bit tricky. Various measures might be used, including the number of people the business employs, the company’s sales revenue, the size of the investment required, or the type of ownership structure the business has. Some of the difficulties in defining a small business can be understood by considering the way the Canadian government collects and reports information on small businesses. Industry Canada is the main federal government agency responsible for small business. In reporting Canadian small business statistics, the government relies on two distinct sources of information, both provided by Statistics Canada: the Business Register (which tracks businesses), and the Labour Force Survey (which tracks individuals). To be included in the register, a business must have at least one paid employee, annual sales revenues of $30 000 or more, or be incorporated (we describe incorporation later in the chapter). A goods-producing business in the register is considered small if it has fewer than 100 employees, while a service-producing business is considered small if it has fewer than 50 employees. The Labour Force Survey uses information from individuals to make estimates of employment and unemployment levels. Individuals are classified as self-employed if they are working owners of a business that is either incorporated or unincorporated, if they work for themselves but do not have a business (some musicians, for example, would fall into this category), or if they work without pay in a family business.3 In its publication Key Small Business Statistics (www.strategis.gc.ca/epic/ internet/insbrp-rppe.nsf/en/rd00760e.html), Industry Canada reports that there are 2.2 million “business establishments” in Canada and about 2.5 million people who are “self-employed.”4 There is no way of identifying how much overlap there is in these two categories, but we do know that an unincorporated business operated by a self-employed person (with no employees) would not be counted among the 2.2 million businesses in the register. This is an important point because the majority of businesses in Canada have no employees (just the owner), nor are they incorporated. These facts need to be kept in mind when considering nascent entrepreneurs People who are statistics or research that excludes these firms. When trying to start a business from scratch. either of these indicators is used to find businesses to study, the number of new firms will be underestimated. A study by the Panel Study of Entrepreneurial Dynamics (PSED), conducted by members of the Entrepreneurship Research Consortium (ERC), tracked a sample of Canadian nascent entrepreneurs – people who were trying to start a business – over four years. Only 15 percent of those who reported establishing an operating business had incorporated their firm.5 interrelationship among the terms small business, new venture creation, and entrepreneurship. Instructions: The following list is capable of organization, but is in disorder. Group the elements of the list into a mind map or think link. Tiger Harmless Squirrel Deer Pets Wild Pig Dog Black Panther Domestic Cattle Animals Cat Dingo Horse Livestock Possum Dangerous Lion Woodchuck Making notes with maps or diagrams – Mind mapping Using a map or diagram to make notes is often helpful if you are a visual learner or if the ate ial ou e stud i g is o pli ated. Mappi g the i fo atio gi es it a st u tu e o shape that is often easier to remember during high-anxiety moments. This process actively engages you in the process of assimilating and connecting facts and is useful for summarizing and consolidating information. If you find out more information after you have drawn the main map, then you can easily integrate it with little disruption. A complete map may have main topic lines radiating in all directions from the center. Details and facts will branch off these, like branches and twigs from the trunk of a tree. To make notes on a subject using a map (or schema), you can try the following steps: 1. PRINT the title of the subject in the center of the page. You may wish to draw a box or circle around it. 2. For the major subject subheadings, draw lines out from this circle. Label these lines with the subheadings. 3. Use single strong words or meaningful phrases: keep it short and sweet! 4. If you have another level of information belonging to the subheadings above, draw these and link them to the subheading lines. Draw any linkages between sections. 5. Finally, for individual facts or ideas, draw lines out from the appropriate heading line and label them. Use different font sizes, colour or images to help you organize & remember. good vocabulary & memory does not finish work in time allowed disorganized written work poor learning transfer academic functioning few friends may be prone to depression inappropriate comments NON-VERBAL LEARNING DISABILITIES spatial-organizational functioning poor fine motor skills gets lost easily difficulty following multi-step instructions social-emotional functioning adaptive behavior difficulty with change flat speech easily overwhelmed Taking Notes and Memory Objectives:  Complete Shallow vs. Deep Processing exercise  Lead a discussion about information processing and memory  Practice taking notes  Test recall of notes and discuss Materials: Tutorial Binder, Attendance Sheet, Watch with second hand, Shallow vs. Deep Processing sheets cut into thirds. 1. Attendance and check in 2. Information Processing exercise and Discussion Complete the following shallow vs. deep processing exercise. Make sure you read this through before your tutorial to refresh yourself on the instructions. Lead a discussion on the role of organization in remembering information. Keep this step to no more than 25 minutes. Ask everyone to take out a sheet of paper and pen/pencil. Tell everyone ou e going to be testing their ability to process information today. Pass out (face down) the cut sheets with two columns of words – a d ake su e the do t peek! O the count of three ask everyone to flip their paper. Tell them they have 30 seconds to count all the vowels (including y) in the words. After 30 seconds, tell them to flip the paper over. [If anyone sees a pattern and starts to say something, shush them!] Ask them how many they got (I counted 58). Tell them now to write down as many of the ph ases o o ds as the a e e e . Do t s o e o he k a u a ut ha e them write down the number they think they remembered (there are 16 phrases), a d flip that page o fold it i half so the a t see it ut ha e oo to ite do another test. Read the following description of shallow processing: Have you ever been unable to answer a question on a test yet have known on which side of the page the information was printed, or what colour ink it was in? Such surface details are often perceived or processed automatically, without us really i te di g to e o ize those fa toids . “ki i g the su fa e of i fo atio , o only perceiving the superficial details of what you see or read is called shallow processing. For most high school students, shallow or surface processing works just fine. How many of you have had courses or even years when they never really had to work in school? If you found the demands or the material easy, you could glide through and probably get a good enough grade. But did you learn anything? How much of that material do you remember now? At university you are bombarded with more content at a faster pace, and you will be tested on material that was in lectures last week three months from now. So any strategies you can use to increase the chances that you will remember that lecture material will increase your grades and save you time and stress. Test recall with deeper processing of material o Ask everyone to flip their paper over again and read the words. Ask them if they see a pattern. Wait until someone does and ask them to explain [the ph ases ep ese t the ea i g of the u e s -16]. Immediately tell them to flip their paper over again (try not to let them read through the phrases after the pattern identification) and write down as many of the phrases as they can remember. Score recall. Lead a discussion about information processing How did people do in terms of remembering the first time vs. the second time? Are they any smarter than they were a minute ago? How could you process reading or lecture material at a deeper level? o Look for organizing information, themes, patterns, or theories  What is the current unit in this course?  Does anyone have a professor that uses questions to organize each week or unit or prepare for tests? 3. Practice taking notes You have two versions of a passage describing a house. Tell students their task is to QUIETLY and INDEPENDENTLY take down notes from the passage as if it were a reading in a text. Ask the group to fill in their name, read the introduction and the passage, and to take note of what is important in the passage for later reference. Pass out version A face-down to half of the room and version B face-down to the other half. They should pass in the assignment to you when they are finished. This should take no more than 57 minutes – if anyone is lingering, remind them this would be just one page of a chapter to process in a night. Do not allow discussion of notes or passage yet. 4. Test recall Ask your group to take out a blank piece of paper. When all are ready, ask them to write down what they remember of their notes (not the passage). You may need to shush the room to keep them from giving each other hints! When all are done, ask the half of the room who read version A to write down their remembered notes on one side of the whiteboard, and the other half with version B to show what they remembered from notes on the other side of the whiteboard. 5. Lead a discussion about the differences between the two groups of recollected notes Was one group more likely to remember items of value that were in the house but would not normally be sold with a house? Have one member from each group read the short introductory instructions that preceded the passage aloud. Talk about the role that prior information can play in recall. o If ou k o hat ou e supposed to e looki g fo , a e ou o e likely to find it? o How can you improve your chances of remembering readings? o What are some clues that can help you determine what ou e supposed to be looking for in your readings? Solo Dice Tricycle Lucky Clover Hand Six-Pack Deadly Sins Octopus Cat Lives Bowling Pins Football Team Dozen Eggs Superstitious Friday Vale ti e s Da Quarter Hour Sweet Solo Dice Tricycle Lucky Clover Hand Six-Pack Deadly Sins Octopus Cat Lives Bowling Pins Football Team Dozen Eggs Superstitious Friday Vale ti e s Da Quarter Hour Sweet Solo Dice Tricycle Lucky Clover Hand Six-Pack Deadly Sins Octopus Cat Lives Bowling Pins Football Team Dozen Eggs Superstitious Friday Vale ti e s Da Quarter Hour Sweet Solo Dice Tricycle Lucky Clover Hand Six-Pack Deadly Sins Octopus Cat Lives Bowling Pins Football Team Dozen Eggs Superstitious Friday Valentine s Da Quarter Hour Sweet Practice Taking Notes: Passage A You are a burglar casing out a large house in a wealthy neighbourhood during an open house. Read through the following passage and take notes on what is important to remember. You enter the 10-room house through a huge entrance door with a loose handle. The foyer is a bright yellow, large and open, and decorated with three gold-plated vases. This room leads into the living room that has a stone fireplace in the center. Beautiful couches allow for seating groups of guests around the fire, but there is some smoke damage on the ceiling and the chimney flue seems clogged. Rare and expensive books line the walls. Off the living room is a den with ceramic floors and large windows. A 62-inch plasma TV hangs on the wall and a surround sound system enhances the experience of watching a movie. On the opposite side of the living room is the dining room. The table can seat 12 people and the hutch holds china and silver. As you open the velvet-lined drawer, shiny sterling silver gleams in neat compartments. A large oil painting hangs on the wall. There is however, a large spot on the rug that cannot be removed. The kitchen is lined with solid oak cabinets but the refrigerator is old. One cabinet even holds a small safe for valuables. Finally, you walk upstairs to view the six bedrooms. Three of the bedrooms have their own attached bath suites. The main bathroom has a Jacuzzi and a marble floor. The master bedroom is huge and includes an exercise suite full of state of the art equipment, and another plasma TV with theatre sound system, DVD, CD, VCR and multiple speakers. The room has tall, wide windows but the windowsills need to be painted. There is a lot of room throughout the suite for furniture, including the tendrawer standing jewelry case. Notes: Practice Taking Notes: Passage B You are a well-off potential homebuyer looking through a property. Read through the following passage and take notes on what is important to remember. You enter the 10-room house through a huge entrance door with a loose handle. The foyer is a bright yellow, large and open, and decorated with three gold-plated vases. This room leads into the living room that has a stone fireplace in the center. Beautiful couches allow for seating groups of guests around the fire, but there is some smoke damage on the ceiling and the chimney flue seems clogged. Rare and expensive books line the walls. Off the living room is a den with ceramic floors and large windows. A 62-inch plasma TV hangs on the wall and a surround sound system enhances the experience of watching a movie. On the opposite side of the living room is the dining room. The table can seat 12 people and the hutch holds china and silver. As you open the velvet-lined drawer, shiny sterling silver gleams in neat compartments. A large oil painting hangs on the wall. There is however, a large spot on the rug that cannot be removed. The kitchen is lined with solid oak cabinets but the refrigerator is old. One cabinet even holds a small safe for valuables. Finally, you walk upstairs to view the six bedrooms. Three of the bedrooms have their own attached bath suites. The main bathroom has a Jacuzzi and a marble floor. The master bedroom is huge and includes an exercise suite full of state of the art equipment, and another plasma TV with theatre sound system, DVD, CD, VCR and multiple speakers. The room has tall, wide windows but the windowsills need to be painted. There is a lot of room throughout the suite for furniture, including the tendrawer standing jewelry case. Notes: Doing Research: Finding Appropriate Materials Objectives:  Give your tutorial group a tour of the library  Demonstrate how to find a book  Demonstrate how to use the ERIC database  Demonstrate how to use the EBSCO Host database and Journals List  Demonstrate how to print from the library Materials: Handbook, multiple copies of scavenger hunt assignment, computer lab access. 1. The students have been instructed to meet you in the library foyer, but leave a message reminding any stragglers in the tutorial room. 2. Library tour Give a tour of the library, making sure you note the filing system for books and the call numbers on the spine, the study desks, the recent journal acquisition stacks, the Music library and the Reference section. Walk through the stacks of journal article bookshelves and describe the differences between journal articles and books. 3. Take your group to the computer lab within the library. Demonstrate how to log into the system and use the library catalog to find a book by author or subject. Demonstrate how to use the ERIC database. o Instruct on limiting a database search by date, full text, peer reviewed and electronic accessibility. Demonstrate how to use the EBSCOHost database. o De o st ate ho to also a ess this a ti le th ough the Jou als List f o the home page of the Library. Show how to print in the library, and refer any student who has not activated their account to the Help Desk after the tutorial. 4. Complete the Library Scavenger Hunt assignment Divide your group into smaller groups of 3. Have the students sign in on the sheet itself – this will serve as attendance today. Explain that each group is to complete the three tasks on their assignment page. The members of the group to complete their scavenger hunt correctly in the shortest period of time will receive bonus marks towards their final grade. Make note of the time and have a member from each group write it down on the sheet before letting the groups start the search. When groups return check the following before writing down completion times: o For question 1, ensure that they have only copied the call numbers and not removed the book. I have checked to make sure that particular book is in the stacks today. o For question 2, check and remind as necessary of the relevant information needed for sourcing or referencing generally. o For question 3, do not correct any groups that have printed off the entire paper (reading instructions is important for the winning group), but do all a group with no printing account activated to use your account. Keep track of any costs for reimbursement. Library Scavenger Hunt Assignment As a group, you are to find 3 sources. Your tutorial leader will turn this page in to me. Have each participant print their name on the lines below: _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ Time started: ____________ Time successfully completed: ___________ 1. Find a book in the library on critical thinking by Ruggiero. Physically go and find the book on the shelves, and write the call number below. ENSURE YOU DO NOT REMOVE THE BOOK FROM THE SHELVES – just copy the numbers from the spine! 2. Find a recent peer-reviewed journal article in the ERIC database by Howard Gardner. The article should have been written since 2000, and be electronically accessible through the library. Write the information needed for a complete source below. 3. Find and PRINT out the first page of a recent journal article on student motivation in the Journal of Experimental Education using the EBSCOHost database. Demonstrate how to also a ess this a ti le th ough the Jou als List f o the li a ho e page. Asking Questions Objectives:  Complete the Asking Questions exercise Materials: Handbook, Attendance Sheet, guidelines for determining a central question written on the board for the Asking Questions exercise. 1. Attendance and check in. 2. Complete the Asking Questions exercise on Sustainable Development and Resource Management As your worksheet describes, you are to pretend that the tutorial group today is part of a consulting firm. Your task is to lead the group through a brainstorming exercise to list possible questions to ask about resource management. Describe the task and inform students that this exercise will assist them in the first step of their research essay. Read the definition of sustainable development. Lead the brainstorming exercise. Have students keep track of the possible questions on their sheets. Help the group narrow down this list to one central question. Review the criteria on your instruction sheet and make sure that you or your volunteer writes down the central question. Refer to the suggestions for deciding on a central question to help with this stage. Finally, make a list of where you would look to get information and evidence about your question. The end result should be a list of brainstormed potential questions, one central question, and some suggestions of where to go to start researching the question. Asking Questions Exercise Sustainable Development & Resource Management "Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. It contains within it two key concepts: the concept of needs, in particular the essential needs of the world's poor, to which overriding priority should be given; and the idea of limitations imposed by the state of technology and social organization on the environment's ability to meet present and future needs."5 Today you are part of a resource management consulting firm. You have a contract to aid in feasibility studies on sustainable development. Your first task is to decide which contract your group wishes to bid on: platform drilling off the coast of Newfoundland or forestry husbandry in the British Columbia interior. Vote on which location and resource you wish to learn more about. a) Generate possible questions that will further your understanding of sustainable development and resource management. Some of these questions will only be starting points, but the goal is to brainstorm as many different areas that you could possibly study on this issue as possible. Think of all the different ways of asking questions, and all the different areas of study or disciplines that would be interested in sustainable development in the location you have chosen. Keep track of these questions, as they will help you in writing the first step of your research essay. b) Follow these guidelines to narrow down your list. A good central question: Has no quick or obvious answer o A question that can be answered without analyzing and weighing evidence as well as evaluating arguments is not a suitable question for an in-depth inquiry o Should have more than one reasonable answer Is researchable o The terms and assumptions involved must be capable of being made clear or defined for these purposes – they may not be clear now, but they should be able to be clarified with research. o Should be definable in scope so that it is neither too broad nor too narrow for what the firm has been hired to do  Should not require a depth of knowledge that the researchers could not hope to acquire within the 2 month time limit  “hould ot e so asi that the epo t ould ead like a “o hat? paper and the firm is never hired again! 5 World Commission on Environment and Development. Our common future. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987 p. 43. Asking Questions Exercise - Instructions Sustainable Development6 Your group is part of a sustainable development consulting firm. You have a contract to aid in feasi ilit studies o esou e a age e t. You fi eeds to ite a epo t o a e t al question related to either forestry or offshore drilling and you have a fictional deadline of two months to get the job done.  To help get you started, read the follo i g defi itio sheets as well. hi h is o the stude ts e e ise "Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. It contains within it two key concepts: the concept of needs, in particular the essential needs of the world's poor, to which overriding priority should be given; and the idea of limitations imposed by the state of technology and social organization on the environment's ability to meet present and future needs."7 Your first task is to determine which contract your group wishes to bid on: platform drilling off the coast of Newfoundland or forestry husbandry in the British Columbia interior.  Ask for a show of hands to make your determination Ne t t to ge e ate uestio s a out the g oup s u de sta di g of sustai a le de elop e t and resource management as it relates to our theme of relationships. How can we imagine or describe a relationship with the land? The goal at this stage is to allow discussion and come up with as many different questions as possible without censorship. You can take 15-20 minutes on this exercise.  Lead a brainstorming session Some possible questions if you need something to get the discussions started are: What are some ways to think about a relationship with the Earth? What is resource management? Is sustainable development possible? Is it necessary? Are there data on the impact of platform drilling (or logging) on the environment? If so, where would you look for this data? When people think about logging (or oilrigs) what are the perceived costs & benefits? 6 Adapted from Hudspith, B., & Jenkins, H. (2001). Teaching the Art of Inquiry. Halifax, NS: Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education. 7 World Commission on Environment and Development. Our common future. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987 p. 43. What are the characteristics of companies where environmental safety and responsibility are rated high compared with those with a poor track record? What kinds of environmental disaster do people fear the most? Does it matter where you live? How does the idea and execution of resource management differ globally? What policies or regulations are needed to be good stewards of our resources? (e.g., global environmental governance, fossil fuel subsidies) Ne t ge e ate a e t al uestio that ould e feasi le fo ou o sulti g fi . That is, narrow down your list by eliminating anything that the group deems is not appropriate to the task. Make sure your central question: Has no quick or obvious answer o A question that can be answered without analyzing and weighing evidence as well as evaluating arguments is not a suitable question for an in-depth inquiry o Should have more than one reasonable answer Is researchable o The terms and assumptions involved must be capable of being made clear or defined for these purposes – they may not be clear now, but they should be able to be clarified with research. o Should be definable in scope so that it is neither too broad nor too narrow for what the firm has been hired to do  Should not require a depth of knowledge that the researchers could not hope to acquire within the 2 month time limit  Should not be so asi that the epo t ould ead like a “o hat? paper and the firm is never hired again!  Have the group decide on one central question, and reassure them that there could be many good responses here. This stage may take up to 10 minutes. Remind everyone that they should be writing down the brainstormed list of questions. Finally, make a list of where you would look to get information and evidence about your uestio . You should poi t out, if the g oup has t al ead aised this, that ou a eed to look for general background knowledge as well as for answers to a more specific situation. The e a e also p a ti al li itatio s gi e that the epo t of the o sulti g fi is due i t o months, so steer the group to a discussion of the limitations here for primary research [you a t a tuall go to the lo atio s o i te ie people, just hat ou ould fi d i the li a , using electronic databases or interlibrary loans]. You can collect the responses, or you can get a volunteer to do so, but I will need a page with: the brainstormed list of possible questions, the central question that the group decides on, and a list of possible sources of information or evidence to begin research. Communication: Writing I Objectives:  Practice grammar  Review the Research Paper assignment Materials: Handbook, multiple copies of grammar exercise 1. Attendance 2. Practice grammar Distribute the Grammar Exercise and keep your answer key hidden for now Instruct everyone to circle the choice they feel most appropriate for the first page of questions. o When everyone (yes, you too!) is done the first four sets of questions, review with the answer key. o Try to engage in a discussion about how most people think they know more than they do about grammar, but how grammar [and spelling] errors can impact your grades. Remind everyone to take advantage of Writing Skills assistance on campus. 3. Discuss the Research Paper assignment Check in with your group o ask each person what stage they are at in the assignment o ask what part has been the most difficult or confusing Keep notes to let me know about concerns [without names] GRAMMAR PRACTICE P epa ed Ma io Te fo B a do U i e sit s “u ess Cou se Fundamentals of Inquiry Pronoun Cases (choose the correct alternative) 1. Are you going to invite her and [I, me] to your party? 2. My friend earned a higher score than [I, me]. 3. How can someone [who, whom] makes minimum wage afford a fancy car? 4. [Whoever, whoever] wishes to come to my party is welcome. 5. Someone should talk to [he, him] about his test results. 6. George is not willing to give his ticket, and neither are Alice and [I, me]. 7. John felt that Sharon was better suited for the job than [he, him]. 8. My professor is someone [who, whom] I have come to admire. 9. No one could have written a better proposal than [she, her]. 10. David read the manuscript to Carla and [I, me]. 11. Joyce studied for the same amount of time as [we, us]. 12. [Who, whom] does Marla wish to contact in the office? Pronoun/Antecedent Agreement (choose the correct alternative) 1. Everything in the office is in [its, their] proper place. 2. The staff decided to write a letter expressing [its, their] satisfaction with the new rules. 3. Everyone in the room must pick up [his or her, their] term assignments by the end of the week. 4. If students need extra help in the course, [he or she, they] should contact the professor. GRAMMAR PRACTICE 2 Subject/Verb Agreement (choose the correct alternative) 1. The flowers in this bouquet [is, are] beautiful. 2. Either Brian or his children [is, are] going to do the dishes tonight. 3. The team [needs, need] to win the next game in order to stay in the tournament. 4. There [is, are] many reasons for going to university. Verb Tenses (choose the correct alternative) 1. I know that Jordan [had not been, was not, has not been] telling me the truth last night. 2. The zipper [had not, was not, has not, is not, will not be] changed since it was invented. 3. If I [was, were] rich, I would donate a million dollars to the Red Cross. 4. Tom divulged the secret, even though he [had promised, promised, has promised] not to. 5. Bob [has been, will have been, will be] studying for at least ten hours by the time he writes the exam tomorrow. 6. Albert Smith wrote that children [had needed, needed, have needed, need] love more than anything else in the world. 7. If he had gone to the store, I am sure that he [remembered, would have remembered, would remember] to buy the strawberries. 8. Two weeks after the final exam, we [will have known, will know] our course marks. 9. We are continuing to use pesticides, even though researchers [had proved, have proved, prove, will prove] that they are not the best solution to our insect problems. 10. I might have believed his story if he [had been, were, would have been] more honest with me in previous years. GRAMMAR PRACTICE ANSWERS P epa ed Ma io Te fo B a do U i e sit s “u ess Cou se Fundamentals of Inquiry Pronoun Cases (choose the correct alternative) 1. me 2. I 3. who 4. Whoever 5. him 6. I 7. he 8. whom 9. she 10. me 11. we 12. Whom Pronoun/Antecedent Agreement (choose the correct alternative) 1. its 2. its 3. his or her 4. they Subject/Verb Agreement (choose the correct alternative) 1. are 2. are 3. needs 4. are Verb Tenses (choose the correct alternative) 1. was not 2. has not 3. were 4. had promised 5. will have been 9. have proved 6. need 10. had been 7. would have remembered 8. will know Communication: Writing II Objectives:  Review paraphrasing  Discuss the importance of editing  Review the Standard Format Regulations  Assign time slots for presentations for the next two weeks Materials: Handbook, Attendance sheet, text, selected paragraph from one of your texts written on the board, sign-in sheet for presentations and/or numbers in a hat. 1. Attendance and check-in 2. Review paraphrasing Review the Avoiding Plagiarism sheet. Read the following descriptions of paraphrasing: According to Purdue University s O li e W iti g La , a pa aph ase is… i. ou o e ditio of esse tial i fo atio a d ideas e p essed by someone else, presented in a new form ii. one legitimate way (when accompanied by accurate documentation) to borrow from a source iii. a more detailed restatement than a summary, which focuses o isel o a si gle ai idea. Choose a paragraph from one of your textbooks and write the paragraph on the board. Ask everyone to write a paraphrase on their own without using any quotes from the original passage. Ask for volunteers to share their paraphrase. Review paying particular attention to too much similarity to the original paragraph as well as accuracy. 3. Discuss the importance of editing Ask how many students pass in their first draft. Describe your own experiences with editing papers and the role a second or third draft can have on marks. Review the Standard Format Regulations sheet and briefly describe any errors that you made in first year, or that you think need highlighting. Reinforce that many common editing issues would be resolved by using the editing checklists. Ask if anyone would like to exchange research papers and have a peer review their first draft, and facilitate this exchange if desired. 4. Assign time slots for presentations for the next two weeks Review the presentation assignment and clarify any questions or concerns Ask for volunteers first, and if necessary randomly assign students to presentation slots. You ill eed o olu tee s fo the fi st eek Avoiding Plagiarism: Crediting authors and sources8 Make source notes as you go. Plagiarism often begins accidentally during research. You may forget to include quotation marks around a quotation, or you may intend to cite or paraphrase a source but never do. To avoid forgetting, write detailed source and content notes as you research. Learn the difference between a quotation and a paraphrase. A quotation repeats a sou e s e a t o ds a d uses uotatio a ks to set the o ds off f o the est of the text. A paraphrase, a restatement of the quotation in your own words, requires that you completely rewrite the idea, not just remove or replace a few words. A paraphrase may not be acceptable if the wording is too close to the original. To avoid picking up too much of the original quote, read the quote several times, and then use your own words to communicate the thought without looking back at the quote Use a citation even for an acceptable paraphrase. Take care to credit any source that you quote, paraphrase, or use as evidence. Understand that lifting material off the internet is plagiarism. Words in electronic form belong to the writer just as words in print form do. If you cut and paste sections from a source document into your draft, you are probably committing plagiarism. QUOTATION From Searle, J.R. (1999, April 8). I Ma ied a Co pute . ‘e iew of The Age of Spiritual Machines by Ray Kurzweil. New York Review of Books, 34-38. We a e o i the idst of a te h ologi al e olutio that is full of su p ises. No o e thirty years ago was aware that one day household computers would become as common as dishwashers. And those of us who used the old Arpanet of twenty years ago had o idea that it ould e ol e i to the I te et. UNACCEPTABLE PARAPHRASE The current technological revolution is surprising. Thirty years ago, no one expected computers to be as common today as air conditioners. What once was the Arpanet has evolved into the Internet, and no one expected that. ACCEPTABLE PARAPHRASE John Searle states that we live in a technologically amazing time of change in which o pute s ha e e o e as o o as dish ashe s . T e t ea s ago, o o e could have predicted the Arpanet would become the Internet (37). Source: Lynn Quitman Troyka and Douglas Hesse, Simon & Schuster Handbook for Writers, Fourth Canadian Edition (Toronto, ON: Pearson Education Canada, 2006) 519-520. 8 Carter, C., Bishop, J., Lyman Kravits, S. & Maurin, P.J. (2010). Keys to Success: Building successful intelligence and achieving your goals, 5th Canadian edition. Toronto, ON: Pearson Canada Inc., 249-250. Standard Format Regulations for Written Assignments Checklist Always proofread your written work. Check it using the following list of rules before you submit it. □ 1. Staple your pages together before handing in (top left corner). □ 2. Use 1" margins on all sides. □ 3. Use only 12pt type in a standard font (e.g. Times New Roman). □ 4. Number your pages. □ 5. Always double-space (except in lengthy offset quotations, see #14). □ 6. Do not leave blank spaces between paragraphs. □ 7. Indent every paragraph. □ 8. Avoid very long (1 page) and very short (1-2 sentence) paragraphs. □ 9. Use your central question as your title. □ 10. Do not underline your own title. □ 11. Do ot use o t a tio s e.g. do t o I e . □ 12. Avoid sla g e p essio s e.g., popped hi o e . □ 13. Introduce all direct quotations (see over). □ 14. Long quotations (>4 lines) are to be offset (see over). □ 15. Use a References or Works Cited list on a separate page (see over). □ 16. Correct all common spelling and typographical errors (use spell-check). □ 17. Read your work out loud to catch errors. Checklist # 13: Introduce all direct quotations. Every direct quotation must be part of a sentence written in your own voice, using appropriate punctuation. Do not simply insert a quote from your research. Correct: Downing (2005, p. 26) argues that choices influence the outcomes of ou li es a d that the ke i g edie t of pe so al espo si ilit is hoi e. I o e t: The ke i g edie t of pe so al espo si ilit is hoi e Do 2005, p.26). i g, Checklist # 14: Long quotations are to be offset. Quotations longer than 3 lines need to be indented and set off from the rest of your essay in a single-spaced block with no quotation marks. Example: The central requirement in retaining information is moving it from short-term memory to long-term memory. According to Downing (2005), Repetition is the key. Shortly after your study period, spend ten minutes reviewing the key concepts or terms you learned. Two hours later, review again for ten minutes. Review once more before going to sleep. For the next three days, review these same concepts or terms daily for about five minutes. Next, review them weekly for about five minutes each time. This repeated review takes little effort but creates much learning (p.192). While this level of repetition might prove beneficial, few full-time students have either the motivation or the time management skills to complete daily reviews. Checklist # 15: Use a References or Works Cited section. Follow the formatting guidelines for the referencing format required by your professor. Make sure all sources in your bibliography have been cited within your paper, and all references in your paper have been cited in your bibliography. If you have any questions, make an appointment at the Academic Skills Centre. F=0-49% D=50-57 C-=58-62 C=63-66 C+= 67-69 F=0 D = 1.0 C = 2.0 C- =1.7 C+ = 2.3 B -= 70-72 B=73-76 B+= 77-79 B- = 2.7 B = 3.0 B+ = 3.3 A - = 80-84 A=85-89 A+= 90-100% A- =3.7 A = 4.0 A+ = 4.3 RESEARCH PAPER Your research paper assignment has five steps or stages. Your paper will be a comparison of two disciplines in how they approach this ea s i te dis ipli a the e of ________________. The goal of your paper will be to understand a phenomenon, a controversy, a process or a concept relevant to our central interdisciplinary theme. You may choose any two of the following disciplines to compare: History Biology Psychology Geography Sociology Philosophy Political Science Education Step 1: Subject Exploration 1. Identify 2 or 3 disciplines to compare. You will only actually examine two disciplines in your essay, but list 3 if you ca t a o it do fu the et. 2. List all the possible questions that come to mind when you think about the broad issue of ______________. Aim for at least 20 brainstormed questions. Some may seem too broad, some too specific, and some may be too difficult for a firstea pape , ut do t e so ou self. T to use diffe e t t pes of uestio s i.e. ho , he e, h … . Look for controversies, comparisons or processes to explore. Look at the list of questions you brainstormed in tutorials on resource management for ideas. 3. Narrow your list of questions down to 3-5 possible central questions. A good u i e sit esea h pape is ot a out so ethi g, ut t ies to add ess a question. This is the first step to writing an excellent essay. Look for ideas that repeat in your big brainstormed list. What is it about __________that you most want to understand? Review the central questions that each tutorial group de ided o fo thei esou e a age e t tuto ial. A good e t al uestio has the following characteristics: It is something the researcher (i.e. YOU) genuinely want to understand o Keep the brainstormed questions that are relevant and important to the general topic of technology, and that you are curious about It has no quick or obvious answer o A question that can be answered without analyzing and weighing evidence as well as evaluating arguments is not a suitable question for an in-depth inquiry o Keep the questions that have more than one reasonable answer It is researchable o The terms and assumptions involved must be capable of being made clear or defined - they may not be clear now, but they should be able to be clarified with research. o A good central question is neither too broad nor too narrow. Step 2: Formulating a Central Question Using your work from Step 1, you will explore the disciplines and choose a central question in this step. You will prepare a weekly assignment which will do each of the following: 1. Write the central question that your paper will seek to address using two disciplines. This question may be one of the possible questions you listed in Step 1, but it does not have to be. 2. Find 8 sources on _____________such that: a. You have at least three sources from one discipline b. You have at least three sources from a second discipline c. You have one or two books d. You have one academic internet source e. You have 5-6 peer-reviewed journal articles. Step 3: Journal Article Critique You will do a critical review of one journal article that you will use for your essay. A critical review of a jou al a ti le is a e aluatio of a a ti le s st e gths, eak esses a d alidit . It is used to i fo eade s of a a ti le s alue th ough e pla atio , interpretation and analysis. The review must present information that will allow the reader to make a judgment about the article. This critique will involve answering 8 questions, to be explained in class. The journal article you choose for this assignment should be one that speaks to your central question from either of your chosen disciplines, or from an interdisciplinary perspective. Step 4: Annotated Bibliography You will complete an annotated bibliography for your research paper that includes a brief description and evaluation for six academic sources. Included in these six sources will be one book chapter and five journal articles (from journals in the library, on-line journals or full-text articles that you access through database searches). An annotated bibliography includes the complete citation for each source (in either APA or Chicago formatting styles), as well as a paragraph to explain how this particular source is relevant to your essay. We will be going over how to do an annotated bibliography in class and giving you more information. Step 5: Research Paper The research paper will be approximately 2000 – 2500 words, the equivalent of about 8 pages. It will be typed using a 12-point standard font, double-spaced, with one inch margins. The paper will use either APA or Chicago formatting styles, which will be explained in class. I encourage you to go and visit them for help along the way. These styles dictate citation and referencing formats as well as a host of other small details. The referencing manuals are available in the Academic Skills Centre, as well as online. In the final paper you will cite AT LEAST 6 academic sources. To cite a paper in your bibliography or reference section, you must refer to it within the paper. If you read an article, make sure you use it in the paper. Do not read an article, make no reference to it in your writing and then include it in the bibliography. Before you pass in your assignment, ensure that you have followed the Standard Format Regulations checklist. Writing a successful university research paper involves several stages of work. A ade i iti g uses the thi d pe so a d elies o e pe ts ideas a d esea h findings. Your role is to read broadly, summarize appropriately, and focus your integrated review of several reputable sources into a coherent paper that presents an argument or position. Weekly assignments throughout the course will help you to develop the reading, summarizing and analyzing skills necessary to complete this paper. Follow along with the assignments and complete them regularly, and future essays at university will not be intimidating! I am here to guide you every step of the way. Communication: Oral Presentations I & II Objectives:  Listen to and grade presentations Materials: Handbook, multiple copies of presentation evaluation forms. 1. Use the P ese tatio E aluatio fo to liste to a d g ade stude ts p ese tatio s Organize the students in their assigned (or allotted) schedule Ti e the stude ts p ese tatio s to e su e that the do ot go o e the ti e limit Pass out the presentation evaluation forms, and remind the students of the importance of constructive written feedback Colle t the e aluatio s afte ea h stude t s p ese tatio – including yours! – and redistribute forms for the next speaker At the o lusio of this eek s speake s, eturn the completed forms to my office 2. Repeat the process next week for the remaining speakers Presentation Assignment Pick an area of interest from your research paper. Prepare a 5-8 minute mini-lecture that teaches one or two key concepts. Choose something from your research paper that you think would be interesting for others to learn about and relatively easy for you to explain. Use what you have learned from your research to tell a brief story, and provide an example or statistic to make the story more interesting. Your goal is to inform the group about the key concept in a clear, organized and interesting manner. The first step in preparing for an oral presentation is to choose a topic that really interests you, which hopefully you have already done with your research paper. If your topic is of interest to you, you will learn something of value to you personally, and it is likely that other students in your class will too! The more interested you are in your topic, the easier it will be do keep motivated as you do your research and preparation. When you give a presentation on a topic that is interesting and that you know something about, you will be more enthusiastic and will rely less on speaking notes. Even experienced public speakers find it helpful to have a sheet of paper with key words or phrases as speaking notes. It is best not to have a script or even complete sentences on this sheet, because you may be tempted to read from it. Index cards can be distracting to the audience when flipped, so a single sheet of paper may work better. You may want to use large font or type. Practice! Time yourself – you only have five to ten minutes, so practice with a clock and decide what may need to be omitted from your talk yet leave the central idea organized and clear. I will cut you off if you go over the allotted time. Try to keep a conversational tone, like you would use to speak to friends over coffee. You a p epa e a ha dout o use a o e head to keep ou audie e s e es a a f o you and help with clarity. On the day of your presentation, stand wherever you feel comfortable, and wear clothes that you feel good in (and are appropriate). Try to concentrate on the audience rather than yourself. Thinking about communicating information to others instead of thinking about what others are thinking of you is an effective way to change from being a self-conscious speaker to a comfortable speaker. You may wish to choose a few people in the room to look at, and make eye contact with. Make sure that these friendly faces are scattered around the room. Remember to refer to your notes, but not read from them. Your presentation will be judged on the guidelines for oral presentations discussed in class. There are three categories of skills to be evaluated: delivery, organization and quality of presentation. The higher the quality of material in your presentation, the easier it will be to deliver it. PRESENTATION EVALUATION Use the scale below to rate each criteria from 1 to 5. Weak 1 2 Average 3 Excellent 5 4 Prese ter’s Na e: ________________________ Topic: _______________________ Delivery: 1 eye contact and posture voice clarity and timing presenter responds well to questions presenter does not read from text presenter shows interest in material 2 3 4 5 Organization of material: 1 2 3 4 structure, introduction and conclusion logically developed and easy to follow example or statistic is presented or visual aids are provided 5 Quality of presentation: 1 2 3 4 5 central question is made clear background for the central question is provided well-researched; principal lines of evidence and argument are presented Explanation of criteria (above) best fulfilled: Explanation of criteria (above) least well satisfied: References Aleman, A. (1994, April). The Cog itive Value of College Wo e ’s Frie dships. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, New Orleans, LA. Boylan, H. (2002). 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Columbia, SC: Policy Center on the First Year of College Weinstein, C., Goetz, E., and Alexander, P. (Eds.). (1988). Learning and Study Strategies: Issues in Assessment, Instruction, and Evaluation. New York: Academic Press. Weinstein, C.E., Dierking, D., Husman, J., Roska, L., & Powdrill, L. (1998). The impact of a course in strategic learning on the long-term retention of college students. In J.L. Higbee & P.L. Dwinell (Eds.), Developmental Education: Preparing successful college students (pp. 85-96). Columbia, SC: National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition. World Commission on Environment and Development. (1987). Our common future. Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 43.