Just in Time Teaching

Engaging Learners: 21st Century Pedagogies
MSU-Denver
Teacher-Scholar Forum
March 14, 2014

Another session I attended at the Teacher/Scholar Forum was presented by Jeff Loats on "Just in Time Teaching (JiTT)" I think many classroom instructors would be able to identify with what is often times a big challenge: getting students to complete prep work before they come to class.  Just in time teaching has some similarities (and differences) to the flipped classroom technique but focuses on the accountability of prep work to allow for an increase effectiveness and engagement during class time. JiTT is NOT about moving assignments online.
Loats explains that the purpose of JiTT:  1) hold students accountable for prep work and 2) to improve faculty insight to optimize in-class experiences.

They had a panel of 6 instructors who tried the JiTT approach into their teaching and they pointed out that indeed it is shift in thinking, not only for students but for the instructor as well. One instructor illustrated this by comparing non JiTT versus using JiTT in that perhaps what instructors are using to having a given plan for teaching a session and they do it the same way each year for the "average" student. Just in time teaching will have the instructor plan the session on that 'particular set of students' they have that specific term.
Here are the basics of JiTT:

1. Create a structure of encouraging students to complete prep work through (low stakes) 'warm-up' exercises that directly tie the prep work to the in class activity. The warm up activity is graded on "thoughtful effort" rather than right or wrong answers. They suggested perhaps having one basic open ended question about the reading and one essay question that begins to ask them to apply what they just read, even if they are just estimating or creating a hypothesis about a situation.
2. Students submit this 'warm-up' the night before class and the instructor reviews and adjusts the in-class activity based on it. (they offered some strategies for instructors who have 30+ students)
3. Share anonymously in class some of the student responses to the warm-ups and discuss. Break down the metacognitive thought processes

A couple of resources:
http://www.slideshare.net/jeffloats/just-in-time-teaching-jeff-loats-lmu

http://serc.carleton.edu/introgeo/justintime/references.html