Using the 5 Practices to Improve Facilitation of POGIL Activities (Abstract Only)

POGIL (Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning) is a flipped classroom, problem-based learning technique for teaching students content through carefully designed questions that they work through in teams with well-defined roles. This technique enables students to retain content while also learning process skills such as communication and teamwork. Developing POGIL activities and facilitating them takes practice and experience. Few, if any, current faculty have been taught using POGIL activities and so have less experience to bring to their development and especially to their incorporation into the classroom. The skills and preparation for delivering an effective POGIL class are very different than faculty have seen in action. The 5 practices: Anticipating, Monitoring, Selecting, Sequencing, and Connecting can be used to better understand how to prepare for and facilitate POGIL activities. While the POGIL organization (pogil.org) has many training sessions, including facilitator training available, most computer science materials still do not incorporate facilitator information that goes beyond the answers to the questions and suggested timing for sections of activities. A brief example of an activity prepared using the 5 practices will be shared to illustrate the potential along with anecdotes and tips for transitioning from traditional lecture to POGIL activities in the classroom.