The Deliberative Pedagogy (DeeP) Faculty Collaborative consists of faculty from Davidson College and other higher education institutions who are committed to learning and implementing new ways to improve and deepen the quality of their class discussions. These faculty come from a wide array of disciplines and backgrounds to study and discuss deliberative pedagogy methods, share their ideas and questions with one another, and work to embed deliberation in their classrooms. In this special blog series, members of the Collaborative describe and reflect on their experiences developing and teaching their deliberation-involved courses.
By Uchenna Iloghalu (2023-24 Deliberative Pedagogy Collaborative Faculty Fellow)
Teaching non-biology majors biology is a little challenging, and more so, freshman students who have limited college course experience. These students come from various departments like English, Political Science, Education, History, Music to mention just a few. These students love to read but are not as familiar with natural systems and how they work. I was tasked to find a subtle way to make the non-biology major freshman students appreciate biology. To enhance the students’ understanding, I incorporated the practical approach I learned from the Deliberative Citizenship Initiative (DCI). This approach is focused on integrating the students’ perspective, encouraging their total participation, and improving their critical thinking.
What I did: The book entitled, “I Contain Multitudes” by Ed Yong, was used as our common source of information. This book systematically describes biological terms, concepts, processes, microbial activities, ecology, system biology, and so much more. It is written in a novel-like format, which endears it to these students, as it explains some convoluted biological concepts in magical ways.
I had 18 students in the class, and I randomly paired them together, which increases the chances of making new friends. These students were given at least two weeks to read an assigned chapter and make a presentation as well as have a constructive deliberation. For each chapter, we utilized read/pair/share/question/deliberate and jigsaw teaching styles. Class discussion, PowerPoint presentations, and blog writing were all utilized to enhance student engagement with key concepts. For example, chapter one talks about “Living Islands” and emphasizes the evolutionary processes of life, how cells and tissues are connected, as well as the knowledge of scientists and their inventions.
It was really an eye-opening experience for these students, as they were eager to make their points known to other students who were not presenting. Students who were not presenting asked questions, which helps in further understanding of the concept. More clarifications rather than disagreements were seen in each presentation.
Also, I shared rubrics that guided the students as they designed their presentation and prepared for class deliberation. The rubrics encouraged students in each group to know each other’s slides and be prepared to present them all and answer questions about them if any of the students were absent. We also had a peer assessment rubric in which the students were asked to highlight two strengths and two areas for improvement of each presenter. These were eventually shared with each student to help them improve on the next deliberation.
What I gained: I believe that the skills and concepts the students learned from the Deliberative Pedagogy (DeeP) teaching style will carry them through all their lives, particularly as they relate to interactions and discussions amongst peers who may not only have contrary opinions but may not fully comprehend relevant concepts. Deliberative pedagogy assists in bringing out important soft skills, such as the ability to listen, communicate, and not being too rigid in one’s thoughts. It also encourages students to acknowledge others’ views and be open to new ideas as they learn to work together more effectively and inclusively.
How it worked: It was really a blast as the students were in the forefront of their learning processes. They were in charge. By the time they were done reading assigned chapters, presenting their understanding in the class, and answering questions from peers, they demonstrated a mastery beyond what I imagined possible. This was demonstrated both by each presenter concluding with a take-home message and taking a quiz on the chapter within a week of the presentation.
What didn’t work and how to improve: Some students were either absent or excused on their day of presentation. This tends to set those students back and doesn’t allow them to demonstrate their learning. In the future, I’ll try to create opportunities for students who did not present as scheduled with cogent reasons to do so in the next class and to reward extra points for those who presented as scheduled. I believe the extra points will attract the students to do their presentations as scheduled and minimize unnecessary excuses.
