Initial Publication Date: April 17, 2007

Team-Based Learning Workshop: Goals & Workshop Schedule



Alumni Guest House Meeting Room, Carleton College



Friday May 11, 7:00 - 9:00 pm (reception/dinner 5:30 - 7pm)
Getting Beyond Covering Content

The workshop opening will: 1) demonstrate a readiness-assurance process that enables instructors to use the vast majority of class time for developing students' higher-level thinking and problem solving skills without reducing coverage of course concepts and 2) familiarize participants with a small-group based instructional format, Team-Based Learning (TBL), which has consistently resulted in high performance, attendance and student satisfaction in a wide range of settings. Following the demonstration, discussions will explore additional issues and concerns about using groups including:

  • How to ensure coverage of basic content in less than a third of the time required for lectures by creating incentives for pre-class preparation and opportunities for peer teaching.
  • How to build groups into learning teams with norms that promote high levels of individual preparation and class attendance.
  • Coping with the mechanics (e.g. physical layout, materials and exams, classroom procedures, grading, etc.).

    • Saturday May 12, 9:00 am—noon (continental breakfast 8:30 am, lunch noon - 1 pm)
    Designing Effective Group Assignments

    Attendees will participate in a series of activities that: 1) demonstrate why group assignments often result in social loafing (uneven participation) in learning groups and, 2) highlight three key variables that must be managed to create broad-based member participation and learning. The morning will include time for participants to work on improving their own group assignments. In addition, the session will explore related issues and concerns about using groups including:

  • How to design effective group assignments for teaching higher level thinking and problem solving skills.
  • Why well-designed assignments are the key to ensuring fairness in grading of group work.
  • How to deal with contextual problems such as large classes, classrooms designed for lectures, not group work, resistance from traditionally focused students, faculty peers, and administrators.