Teaching Squares Observation Activity

"If you see a great master, you will always find that he used what was good in his predecessors, and that it was this which
made him great." —Goethe

Learning Objectives:

• Provide a forum for classroom observation and reflection on teaching and learning
• Provide a faculty peer exchange of teaching ideas and strategies
• Build community among new and returning MCC faculty
• Observe great instructors with different methodologies
• Meet faculty from other disciplines and divisions

Procedures:

• Send your weekly schedule to Kathy Hayhurst (khayhurst@mchenry.edu) by end of January

• Contact three tenured faculty members to observe:

o Choose two faculty members from outside of your own division
o Choose one faculty member from within your own division
• Fill out a Teaching Squares Report Form for the three classes you observe:
o Send one copy (via e-mail) to the chair of faculty development by mid-April
o Use the other copy during your meeting with your executive dean
• Ask one tenured faculty member to observe one of your classes:
o Schedule a follow-up meeting with this faculty member to exchange ideas
o Notify the chair of faculty development when this exchange has taken place

Note: The purpose of the Teaching Squares exchange and reflective experience is to focus on
observations of classroom management, student/instructor interaction, and methods of teaching and
facilitation. There is no judgment or evaluation taking place in this experience.
 Teaching Squares Report Form
Name: Christen Louderman
Instructor, Subject, Time, &
Date of Class Attended
Session One
Two Strategies Learned
During Session
& She uses open texts for reading which allows for the information directly
Notes on Applying them to
My Classroom
Instructor, Subject, Time, &
Date of Class Attended
Session Two
Two Strategies Learned
During Session
&
Notes on Applying them to
My Classroom
Sarah Sullivan 3/8/17 HIS 132 9am
Flipped class- have a preassigned reading. Prior to asking questions of the
students give them time in small groups to discuss readings and allow for
preparation. With this they are more responsive to participating in the full
class discussion.
I also was able to see how she managed the class with difficult/challenging
students. Allowing for all students to feel valued while still keeping the
momentum of the class.
from the source.
I am going to incorporate the use of pre-reading and small group discussion
to foster larger group participation in both my HCE and future PTA courses.
Class management was great to experience, as she it handled differently
than I would, and it was great to experience and consider different ways to
manage student personalities. The open texts are a great option but more
difficulty to incorporate in health care, as there are no specific texts that I am
aware of.
Rob Smith, Microbiology 4/10/17
Note cards given to students to use on exam.
Used a study guide as the question based outline for each section on
Canvas, lecture posted under the guide heading. Each topic in the study
guide pertained to a course objective and subsequent test question.
PowerPoint presentation without use of words, only picture and charts to
explain topics/concepts. None of the images were from text to give students
a new and different perspective.
Links labs from the beginning of the class to the end to create a big picture.
Significant review of previous lecture. Stated was due to the difficulty of the
concept and not all lectures will have a review of the length.
I would like to incorporate the study guide on Canvas for my courses to
assist student with additional practice of topics. Also I would like to have the
big connection of topics throughout course and multiple courses in the PTA
program. Possible use of note cards for exams.
 Instructor, Subject, Time, &
Date of Class Attended
Session Three
Two Strategies Learned
During Session
& be covered, very little information. All information give in conversation
Notes on Applying them to
My Classroom
Observing Instructor, Time, &
Date of Class Attended
Session Four—My Classroom
Notes on Experience and
Discussion Points During
Follow-Up Meeting
Angela Sass Nus 120 4/12/17
Started class with 2 case studies from previous lecture. Student have
had a quiz on this topic prior to this class. Modified plan based upon
students length of time. Asked probing questions based upon
student's answers to help guide them to form a complete response.
Lecture, break, quiz based upon current lecture. Non graded but
used to help student focus on important topics.
PowerPoint presents very simple with topic and outline of content to
lecture style with student participation for critical thinking. Lots of
discussion and questions to student during each slide.
I like the use of case studies to start the class and connect to
previous topics. I also like the mid lecture non-graded quiz and would
like to incorporate both into my classes. I would also like to use the
probing questions based upon cases and patient scenarios after
concept is introduced to encourage critical thinking.
Mary CaDavid 4/18/17 HCE111
Biggest point we covered in our follow up was how to handle
when overall the students do poorly on a question on an exam.
How to assess if it was the way I presented the topic, the way
the question was worded or the students preparation for the
exam. I offered a make up in the form of extra credit for the
students only covering topics that tested poorly. We discussed
the benefits and downfalls of doing it this way.
She indicated that my classroom management and engagement
of the students was good. We are going to follow up on some of
the questions I posed to her which were: how to accurately
determine if its my presentation of the material or the student
engagement and methods to overcome without using "extra
credit".