PPT

My PowerPoint preparation continues apace. As of tonight, I've almost completely outlined what I'm going to say next week. If I sprint hard, I might even be done with all my prep by this coming Sunday. That would be nice. The basic outline of my November 20 presentation—in which I'll be pontificating on the round-robin (RR) technique I've been employing this semester—goes something like this:

I. Intro: have the audience participate in an actual round-robin class, but radically scaled down for time. Quick discussion afterward.

II. Theory: talk about the theoretical and philosophical bases for the RR method: the superiority of experience/doing over lecture/hearing; the current focus on task-oriented, student-centered activities; the way in which conferring responsibility builds self-confidence, which in turn lowers the affective filter.

III. Practice: discuss the RR method in some detail; talk about its advantages and disadvantages; address potential objections to the method; discuss actual failures encountered this semester (e.g., my beginner-level students, who resisted the RR); explore ways to improve the method next time around.

I plan to offer evidence (well, "evidence") that the method works by displaying student quiz and test results, as well as by showing a one-minute video of the RR in action, and by playing audio samples of students taking the midterm to show that student performance, with my method, is comparable to that of students in other teachers' classes.

We'll see how it all goes. I'm not looking forward to making the PPT slide show itself.


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