Just-in-time Teaching, Just-in-need Learning

This week I was fortunate to have conversations with faculty on "just in time (JiT)" teaching, which led me to the 2015 article, "Just-in-time Teaching, Just-in-need Learning (JiN)" by Killi and Morrison. The authors remind us of two main approaches to teaching, project-based learning (PBL) and an argumentative approach by exploration. They found that in PBL, different ways of teaching methods should be timed with the different types of student motivation. The key to understanding these two concepts and related practices is to know when the timing for input is optimal. The challenge of timing relates to an earlier 2013 article which I shared on the topic of Sequences of Frustration and Confusion, and Learning. Killi and Morrison add to this approach saying, "in contrast to the usual attention given to building constructive motivation and a form of ‘progressive’ problem solving, frustration combined with motivation may act as a powerful agent for learning."

Of course, the concept of learning is complex, so simply reducing the time of providing correct responses is not an effective approach. Instead, instructors should carefully examine the correlation of JiT teaching and JiN learning with the sequence of when, how often and the duration of student confusion followed by frustration scaffolded by appropriate conceptual connections (frequently this can be accomplished through one of the 288 active learning strategies offered as formative assessments).

Killi and Morrison connect JiT and JiN by integrating the research on why the "interest and value" of PBL has been an effective teaching and learning method as PBL allows for:

• variety and novelty, where a learning activity contains more than just reproducing known knowledge;

• activities which are realistic and have meaning;

• some type of challenge;

• closure, with a natural end to a task;

• more than one way to solve the task; and

• active, productive collaboration.

For their PBL, the authors create a "map of a motivation cycle," which compares low, medium and high motivation with their PBL design phases of Conception, Definition, Execution and Closeout. They were able to identify JiT and JiN after viewing the peaks and valleys of the curves created on students' maps.

Killi, S. & Morrison, A. (2015). Just-in-time Teaching, Just-in-need Learning: Designing towards Optimized Pedagogical Outcomes. Universal Journal of Educational Research 3(10): 742-750. DOI: 10.13189/ujer.2015.031013