Making Homework Easier to Do Than to Copy Gerd Kortemeyer Michigan State University 2011 AAPT Summer Meeting Omaha, Nebraska

Making HomeworkEasier to Do Than to Copy

Gerd Kortemeyer

Michigan State University

2011 AAPT Summer MeetingOmaha, Nebraska

Copying Homework

Do all work independently

Blind copying, no understanding

Productive collaboration,give and take

Collaboration,mostly one-way

Good?

Bad.

Ugly!

Too Good?

Grayarea

Continuum

Copying Homework

• Why do students copy homework? They don’t understand the material? They don’t have enough time? They don’t see the value of doing it? They are not aware of the consequences? It’s considered an acceptable form of

“cheating”? It’s so easy to do!

Why do students copy homework?

• They don’t understand the material? Homework may not address student difficulties

• It should clearly be formative assessment• It should be helping the students learn, not test if they

understood the material That’s what exams are for

Oftentimes problems are way too difficult• We mostly should refrain from “cool” physics• We should refrain from homework that just shows off

how smart we are• We should not assign homework that requires a “trick”


• They don’t have enough time? Our course is not their only course Students make surprisingly sophisticated

choices how to allocate their time budget Don’t assign too much!


• They don’t see the value of doing it? Why should the students pay attention to

something that you ignore?• Don’t just assign “Problems 3 through 16”• Discuss homework difficulties in lecture

Occasionally put variations of homework on exams


• They are not aware of the consequences? Homework is seen as a chore

• rather than a way to succeed in the course• they will seek out the most “efficient” method of

getting it done

Very hard to refute• students don’t believe us that it’s good for them• useful data by Bauer et al. and Pritchard et al., which

can be shared with the students (later in this session)


• It’s considered an acceptable form of “cheating”? “Everybody does it” Well, whom are they cheating?

• They are cheating themselves Usually, the vast majority of the grade is based on exams

Should we really care?• Go ahead and shoot yourself in the foot?

But:demoralization of the whole course can happen quickly

• Good students who invest a lot of time should not feel betrayed


• It’s so easy to do Remainder of this talk: making it harder “Making homework easier to do than to copy”

• while fostering constructive collaboration

Key: the right types of randomizing problems

The right types of randomizing problems

• Problem types: Multiple choice Numerical Graphical Symbolic etc.

• Randomization: Different students get different versions of the same

problem The same student always gets the same version of the

problem

The right types of randomizing problems

QuickTime™ and aTIFF (LZW) decompressor

are needed to see this picture.



Numerical

Multiple choice

Randomization

No Randomization

Completely different problems

Different scenarios with different physics

Different scenarios with similar physics

Different order of options in multiple choice

Different numbers in numerical problems

Different options

Different images, graphs, formulas

Spectrum

: low to high energy

Randomization

No Randomization

Completelydifferent problems

Do all workindependently

Blind copying,no understanding


Good?

Bad?

Ugly!

Grayarea

Productivecollaboration,give and take

Different scenarios withdifferent physics

Different scenarios withsimilar physics

Different order of optionsin multiple choice

Different numbers innumerical problems

Different options

Different images, graphs,formulas

Too Good?

Randomization?

• Next section: Show-and-Tell

• Random examples of randomization in random order

Different NumbersDifferent Numbers

• Simple numerical response

Different FormulasDifferent Formulas

• Different formulas, same concept

Different FormulasDifferent Formulas

• Different formulas, infinitely many correct answers





Different QuestionsDifferent Questions









Higher/lowernormal/frictionalforce

Different Scenarios, Same Answer ChoicesDifferent Scenarios, Same Answer Choices









Different QuestionsDifferent Questions

Lifting/lowering,speeding up/slowing down,different numbers













Different Scenario ConstructionDifferent Scenario Construction

• Carefully construct the problem

• Egyptian fraction: 1/n1+1/n2+1/n3+…

• Want limited number of small denominators

Different GraphsDifferent Graphs




















Something big changed here

Different Graphs and ScenariosDifferent Graphs and Scenarios





Same options, but different one is correct

Need to change this, too

Different Scenarios, Graphical InputDifferent Scenarios, Graphical Input

• Graphical input

• Infinitely many correct answers

Different stories

Different Line GraphicsDifferent Line Graphics

Using Learner AnswerUsing Learner Answer



Using Learner AnswerUsing Learner Answer



““Hidden” DifferencesHidden” Differences

Two ways howthe paper couldslide off the fridge:

•Magnet slides offpaper•Paper and magnetslide off fridge

Depending onvalues, one or theother decides.



““Hidden” DifferencesHidden” Differences

Most course discussion ever!

Panic.



Collaboration

Do all work independently

Blind copying, no understanding

Productive collaboration,give and take


Good?

Bad.

Ugly!

Too Good?

Grayarea

Online Discussions

DiscussionsEncouraged, since all students have different versions.Peer-Instruction.

DiscussionsEncouraged, since all students have different versions.Peer-Instruction.

Online Discussions

• Classifying homework discussion contributions

• Green: desirable collaborationYellow: unproductiveRed: undesirable (“copying”)

Online Discussions

• More

successful

students

exhibit less

“copying”

during

discussions

Online Discussions

• More

successful

students

exhibit less

“copying”

during

discussions

PostFCI=5.486+0.922•PreFCI+0.24 •%Physics

PostFCI=7.606+0.857•PreFCI-0.042 •%Solution

•Meaning what?

•Students who contribute 100% solution-orienteddiscussions on the average achieve4.2 points (out of 30) less on the post-test,controlling for pre-test

Online Discussions

• Reducing copying: don’t use simple problem types

• Multiple Choice: highest percentage of solution-oriented discussions (“that one is

right”) least number of physics discussions

• Ranking and click-on-image problems: Physics discussions highest

• Problems with representation-translation (reading a graph, etc): slightly less procedural discussions more negative emotional discussion (complaints)

Online Discussions

• Reducing

copying:

mid-range

difficulty

• Above

mid-range:

more pain,

no

(significant)

gain

Helprooms

• StaffedwithLearningAssistantsin theevenings

• Collaborative learning space, peer instruction

Homework

No Randomization





Good?

Bad.

Ugly!

Grayarea






Different options


Too Good?

Exams

No Randomization




Good!

Ugly!

Nograyarea






Different options



Remainfair

ExamsExams

• Problems can also be rendered for bubble sheets

• Every student gets a different version

ExamsExams

ExamsExams

ExamsExams

No Randomization





Grayarea


Success?

Learning Success

Learning Success

•Intro Physics for Scientists and Engineers• Grades in years before and after online homework

Learning Success

Mostly helps students who are on the brink of failing the course.

Fail

How can I write these complicated problems?

Shared content repository with almost 450,000 resources

Shared content repository with almost 450,000 resources

Almost 200,000 online homework problems

Almost 200,000 online homework problems

Thank YouThank You

Gerd KortemeyerLyman Briggs College and

Department of Physics and Astronomy

Michigan State University

[email protected]

http://www.lon-capa.org/

Documents

Making Homework Easier to Do Than to Copy Gerd Kortemeyer Michigan State University 2011 AAPT Summer Meeting Omaha, Nebraska