Week 4: SHIZAAM! and Mardi Gras

* Please note I copy/pasted my pages to posts so it makes more chronological sense now (at least to me).  The dates will all say today, but I really did not write those posts in the 2 minutes that the site indicates. 🙂 *

NEURON SIMULATION! So wow.  Tuesday, Josh and I led the neuron simulation and I think it went pretty smoothly.  It was a bit of pressure, but I think we pulled it off!  Josh brought the supplies, I set the people up in their spots and gave them orders on what to do/when to do it, Josh helped the class identify each part, I reviewed the process again and then Gurung made it known to the class about what happens when things don’t fire.  I think it was entertaining to the class and the class learned the basic idea of how a neuron fires.  Personally, I think it would’ve gone a bit smoother if Josh had it memorized (in reviewing the video, there were some lulls), instead of reading things from the paper, but I know it is a lot to memorize and I’m sure he wanted to make sure he was giving the class the right information.  I think the students who volunteered did a good job, but I think it could’ve been much more entertaining if different people were involved.  And now that I think about it 6 volunteers => 6 TA’s, we would’ve definitely been able to liven it up a bit and save some time, as Gurung would be the one to explain things and use his theatrics.  However, I realize the learning value (from my perspective) that I received in setting this up and seeing what its like to improv like that in front of the class.  I’m glad we did it- it was a lot of fun and I surprised myself by how calm I was up there.  On another note, I thought it was cool how Gurung used students not once or twice but THREE times within one lecture to not  only simulate neuronal communication but how info travels like a “wave” down an axon and using the two gentleman in the middle to simulate brain activity as well.  I’m sure it kept the class on its toes!

GURUNG & BORD’S ARTICLE ON REVIEW SESSIONS!  With the exam coming up on Tuesday the 24th, it is important to realize what works and what doesn’t in the review session.  The article discussed how important it is to have a well-designed review session.  Many things go into the design, like formations of groups, possible games, recollection/recognition processing, etc. IT’S ALL IMPORTANT!  Here are some key things I learned from it: Foster cooperation, not competition. A review session is for just that- reviewing (no new material).  The best time frame is the day before and give students at least 3 options of time frames.  Help students learn the difference between recollection and recognition so that they know the answer BEFORE they read the Multiple Choice.  Students are more likely to benefit from going to study sessions than to not.  It’s important to incorporate these elements in the review sessions I am a part of it because it is tried and proven to work.  That’s what research is all about…to advance the science of psychology and teaching pedagogy!

MARDI GRAS! Thursday we all wore beads and had a nice little review session at the end.  It’s always good news when the students know the answers before you give the choices to them! On a side note, I liked how Gurung coordinated his outfit to match his tie and how he incorporated that hilarious pic of his son.  That made HUGE laughs.  Many of the things we learned about (attraction) on Thursday were things I had just learned about in my Personal Relationships class.  Students were obviously more attentive because they felt they could relate (or just thought they could get some advice).  Regardless, I’m sure it has a greater popularity than with the cognitive lecture, for example.