What Are Skill Stations
Skill Stations Instructors
who want to address skills in their classroom can use Skill Stations:
student-centered modules that teach skills with the flexibility to change
as students develop. Skill
Stations don’t take much classroom time.
They introduce the skill, let students practice it during class,
and allow students to reflect on their progress toward skill mastery.
This approach to skill development is described more fully in
Using Skill Stations. Our Skill Station on Professionalism is a good example. Skill
Stations are flexible and tailorable.
Instructors choose Skill Stations based on student needs.
For example, if your class is working on an emotionally charged
topic, you might want to do a Skill Station on Constructive
Criticism before the discussion.
If your students are in a newly formed group and are unable to
rely on each other yet, a Skill Station on Trust
will get them thinking about trusting and trustworthy behaviors. If there is no skill station that addresses
your needs, the method is simple-write your own. The Research We
tested this technique in a non-majors Introductory
Biology course. Skill Stations were designed to build the skills
students need to work effectively in groups.
Each week during lab, students learned and practiced small-group
social skills. We compared sections
with and without the skill stations.
We also interviewed students and instructors and made classroom
observations of student interactions.
Although we did not see a change in academic performance or attitudes
toward science, we did see an improvement in social skills in the sections
that used Skill Stations. Instructors also reported improved classroom
management. Read more about this study. Go
next to Using Skill Stations. Further Johnson,
D. W. and Johnson, F. P. (2003). Joining Together: Group Theory and
Group Skills. Boston, MA, Pearson Education, Inc. |
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