By Sindya Bhanoo, OSU College of Liberal Arts
Intentional Tech by Derek Bruff explores different ways in which instructors can effectively and creatively use technology in their classrooms. The word technology brings apps, devices, and online collaborations to mind but in Chapter 4 of his book, Bruff highlights a piece of technology: the sticky note.
Bruff, a math instructor by training, also teaches a novel in one of his graduate seminars. After reading the assigned book, a cybersecurity thriller called Little Brother by Cory Doctor, Bruff asks students to work in groups of three to identify pro-security and pro-privacy arguments made by different characters in the novel. They write these arguments down on Post-It notes.
Then, groups are asked to share their arguments by posting the notes on the chalkboard and sharing them out loud. The goal is to understand whether the arguments are “practical arguments” or ones more connected to principles. The visual aspect of this “debate map,” as Bruff calls it, enables students to see how arguments about a certain topic interact with one another.
Previously, Bruff took a more high-tech approach to do the same activity by using the presentation tool Prezi. The final maps were snazzy but this approach did not work as well because students worked at different speeds and populated the virtual chalkboard in a less controlled, less structured way. Leaving time for the visualization to unfold slowly was an important part of the learning process.
This seems like a crucial concept to grasp as an instructor. Faster is not better. And for the most part, the process (at least while a student) is far more important than the final product.
It led me to think about how slowing down, rather than speeding up, might be beneficial to both students and teachers.
Inspired by the Slow Food Movement, I’m dubbing this concept “Slow Teaching.”
I teach creative writing and journalism. Here are some examples of ways I might incorporate Slow Teaching in my classroom down the road:
- NOT Filling Every Moment: Sometimes I plan out class time down to the minute. In the quarter system in particular, the term flies by. I’m now motivated to leave a little more open time in class so the students and I can together reflect on what we are working on.
- Prioritize Collaboration: I’m thinking about how to best use in-class time. Perhaps it is less a time for me to talk, and more a time for us to collaborate. It is, in fact, the only time we are physically in the same space, where an activity like the Bruff’s Post-It Note visual map is possible. Sure, something similar can be done online, but the particular movement from large group to small group to chalkboard, with each student physically (and slowly) witnessing the populating of a visual map can only be done in-person.
- Extra Examples / Reinforcement: The beauty of having a classroom in-person and online is not just that more ground can be covered, but also that the same ground can be covered in different ways. In other words, the dual modalities allow for me, as an instructor, to introduce the same concept multiple times. It allows me to reinforce concepts and, since different students may appreciate different approaches, it’s a chance to offer students options.
About the author: Sindya Bhanoo teachings in the School of Writing, Literature and Film. She is a fiction writer and journalist.
Editor’s note: This is part of a series of guest posts about resilience and teaching strategies by members of the Fall ’24 Resilient Teaching Faculty Learning Community facilitated by CTL. The opinions expressed in guest posts are solely those of the authors.
Top image generated with Microsoft Copilot
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