FEATURE ARTICLE:
Recipe for Designing a Successful Collaborative Project: Pedagogy First - Then Technology
By: Shannon Brownrigg, Veterinary Technology Program and
Gail Allan, Learning & Teaching Services
Introduction :: The Recipe :: Final Results
Cooking and learning are almost exactly alike in that you can do everything correctly from the technical perspective and still come up with something mediocre.
As long as you follow all the steps and don't tinker with the ingredients the output won't kill anybody but it might not make them want to come back for seconds.
On the other hand each--if structured properly--leaves the opportunity for surprise and delight: you connect the new learning with old knowledge in an unexpected way, or you decide to throw a handful of lavender into the pan with the beef even though the recipe didn't tell you to.
You may never be able to duplicate that dish but your dinner guests will want to come back for whatever you make next time.
Ron Dickinson, Intel Communications, from Elliott Masie’s collection of responses to his question: “How are cooking and learning similar?"
Introduction
Level 1 Veterinary Technology students are completing a collaborative group project as a major assessment in their Introduction to Veterinary Technology course.
When Shannon (their teacher) and I designed this project last spring, we wanted to follow a recipe that would ensure success not only academically but as the students' first collaborative experience in the program.
What follows is what we believe are the critical ingredients, tools, and steps for successful collaborative projects. Our reflections throughout the project are included to add a pinch of what we were thinking as we went along.
The Project: Group Presentation Assignment
Assignment Goals
To engage learners in a variety of veterinary technician situations where they can use newly acquired knowledge and skills about:
- animal lifecycles
- common canine and feline diseases
- role of the veterinary technician in caring for ill animals and their families
- legal implications including the management of medical records
- safety issues for the animal, family, and veterinary staff
Ingredients
- Heap of enthusiasm, imagination & motivation
- Pinch of willing to risk trying something new
- Healthy helping of understanding authentic assessment
- Spread of willing and well-prepared learners
Tools & Resources
- Course outline
- Checklist for aligning the assessment with the Course Learning Requirements
- Blackboard course
- Peer consultation strategy
- E-Classroom
- Online and on campus learning and computer support
Introduction :: The Recipe :: Final Results