Theresa Julia Zielinski, David W. Brooks, Kent J. Crippen, and Joe L. March
Center for Curriculum and Instruction, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588-0355
Time management is an important issue for teachers and students. This article discusses teachers' use of time from the perspective of curriculum and instruction. Average high school students spend fewer than 5 hours per week in outside-of-class study; average college students spend about 20 hours. Procrastination, often viewed in a negative light by teachers, usually pays off so well for college students that seniors become better at it than freshmen. Three suggestions for designing instruction are: test early and often; do not waste the best students' time in an effort to improve overall performance; and use engaging activities that motivate students to give of their time. The impact of computers on curricula is a double-edged sword. Time must be devoted to teaching the use of applications, but the programs reduce busywork. Will this turn out to be a simple tradeoff, or will the programs make us much more efficient so that less time is required? Will computer programs ultimately lead to an expanded criterion for expertise, thus demanding even more time to become an expert? These issues are described and suggestions for controlling time during instruction are provided.
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Citation
Zielinski, Theresa Julia; Brooks, David W.; Crippen, Kent J.; March, Joe L. J. Chem. Educ.2001 78 714.
Keywords
General Chemistry; Introductory / High School Chemistry; Teaching/Learning Theory/Practice
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