In
larger universities in which a professor is responsible for a lecture
and teaching assistants are responsible for labs, there is often a disconnect
between the lecture and the lab. Many of the students we interviewed commented
on this disconnect. They often expressed frustration with it because they
had assumed that since the lab was connected to the lecture as a part
of the science course the two should be complementary, each supporting
what the students learned in the other.
The problem with this perceived
disconnect is that the lab tends to lose credibility as a vital part of
the course. This further diminishes the value of the lab in students’
eyes. The lecture is associated with the professor, the lab with a teaching
assistant. The grade in the lecture counts significantly more than the
grade in the lab. And whereas the lecture fits into students’ concept
of science as a knowledge bank, the lab is thought of as only about following
directions. Thus, the disconnect between the lecture and the lab only
serves to add further support students’ sense that the lab is not
really an important part of their science education.
Lecture professors may be able
to enhance the credibility of the lab by reducing their students’
perceived gap between lab and lecture. Here are some recommended strategies:
-
Make a point to refer in
the lecture to any links between a topic under discussion and a lab
that bears on that topic. Not only will this strategy help students
to see the relevance of the lab to the lecture but it may also enhance
students’ learning of the lecture topic because they can relate
it to an experience they have had or will have.
-
In a lecture at the beginning
of a week, briefly mention what students will be doing in their labs
that week, the scientific concept the lab is about and a procedure
they will be following. You can talk about the importance of the lab
in the scientific field they are studying in the course or how it
relates to something they have discussed or will discuss in the lecture.
-
Review some of the lab
reports your students have written and make some general comments
about them in the lecture, something you have found particularly strong
about them or something that could be improved. You could even project
on a screen a portion of a report or two that you found especially
good and worth modeling for the class— for example, a well made
graph or a Discussion that is insightful. Demonstrating that you have
read their reports and are taking class time to discuss them, even
briefly, sends the message that lab reports are important and worth
students’ spending their time on to do them well.
-
Briefly mention a scientific
article you are working on, for example, a particular part of the
article that has been difficult to write and why or what you have
learned about writing introductions. Making the connection between
the professional article and the lab reports the students are writing
helps them to see the parallel between the two genres. It is valuable
for students to understand that the writing they are doing is similar
to the kinds of writing scientists do—not just busy-work but
the writing of real scientists.
-
You could walk through
some labs in progress, talking to your students about what they are
working on and what they are learning from doing the lab. Your physical
presence in labs a couple of times a term will go a long way toward
giving the labs greater credibility.
