The Accounting Educator

The Newsletter of the Teaching and Curriculum Section
American Accounting Association
Vol. VIII No. 2 - Spring 1999

Teaching Tipster

This is a column devoted to addressing teaching problems and issues. Anyone with a problem or issue may write in. Anyone with a solution or comment may answer, and we'll print the answers in the next Accounting Educator. Please send questions or solutions to Janet Cassagio, Accounting and Business Administration Department, Nassau Community College, One Education Drive, Garden City, NY 11530. Her fax is (516) 935-5195, and her e-mail is jsbkc@prodigy.net.

From the Fall 1998 issue

Dear Teaching Tipster:

After hearing about "one-minute papers" for years, I decided to try them this semester. On the first day of classes, I explained the objective of these forms and told students that I would allot time to complete them at the end of each class. I have been using these forms for seven weeks, and am very disappointed in the results. Students have decided that this is a "license" to end class early and rarely give these forms more than cursory consideration. I have been relegated to acting as a "gatekeeper," standing at the door to ensure students don't sneak out without handing me the forms. My question is, when I try something new like this and it doesn't work, do I cut my losses, give in, and announce that we won't be using the forms anymore, or do I continue with it until the end of the semester and not repeat it in the future?

Considering Surrender

Can you help Considering Surrender?

Answer:

Don't give up this really useful tool (the One-Minuter) just yet. When I began using the One-Minuter, my students were not considering this feedback instrument as important as I was. Also, I feel the One-Minuter helps the student focus on the learning benefit gained during the class by requesting each student to list the big idea they learned during the class. So, I now emphasize its use each class period. I use different colored paper for each course I teach so that the one-minute form is very evident and is different from my other many handouts. At the beginning of the semester, I have each student take about 16 forms that are on a half sheet of paper. Each form has the following items on it: the title of the class, a space to write in the date, and the two items: "What is the Big Idea you Leave Class with Today?", and "What is the Unanswered Question you Have from the Class?" Then, at the end of each class period, I ask each student to turn their form into me at the front of the classroom before they leave.

Very shortly after the end of class, and no later than the next day, I summarize all the students' responses to the Big Idea item, and then summarize and provide my responses to each grouping of Unanswered Questions. Often, my summary and responses can be up to a page or even two in length. I try to incorporate all the students' responses, but in my response, I reemphasize the importance of this feedback to me as I plan for the next class period. Then, I duplicate my response page(s) and place them on the table in the back of the classroom at the beginning of the next class. I will quickly note the big ideas and unanswered questions from the last class at the beginning of the next class. It is interesting to the students to see that their big ideas are similar to others, and that their unanswered questions are often the same as other students. And often, my summary of their big ideas gives me a chance to elaborate a little more on the major ideas, thus reinforcing the topic. And the summary and my responses (I use italic font for my responses) to their unanswered questions gives me the opportunity to reinforce a point that I may not have made sufficiently in our class discussion. Also, if a large number of students have the same unanswered question, then I spend some more class time on that topic, again noting to the students that the One-Minuter showed me that we need just a little more coverage of that topic. It is important that the students understand that you consider the feedback to be important in your efforts for them.

You do not need to use the one-minuter every class. For example, if you meet two or three times during the week, you might give the one-minuter only at the end of your last class for the week, and then change the form to capture the big idea and unanswered question for the week, rather than just for the class period.

I have found that if the students understand how important it is to me to keep current on the students' feelings and questions by using the One-Minuter, then the students will respond in a professional manner. Every once in a while I receive a comedic note, and I may or may not include that in my responses. But, I find that my written responses to the students are an essential part of effectively using the One-Minuter.

Don't surrender on this very important teaching tool. I have found it to be very valuable in shaping my teaching efforts. Good luck with your efforts. Tipster #1

New Teaching Tipster

Dear Teaching Tipster:

As I incorporate different types of assignments into my curriculum (for example, group projects, writing assignments, individual outside of class research projects, etc.), my colleagues question whether my student's grades are inflated, because these assignments are not completed in a controlled environment. I believe these assignments are providing a valuable learning experience for my students and over a period of several years have not felt guilty of inflating grades, but how do I respond to my colleagues?

Need advice

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