Cultivate a Classroom with a Sense of Belonging Using “Oral Communication”
Diana Zhu
Mathematics
College Algebra and Trigonometry (Fall 2025)
Activity Description: Provide a brief description of the activity
During the semester, I will be using collaborative quizzes in class and weekly extra credit assignments on Bright Space to enhance students' learning.
Learning Goals: What do you aim to achieve with this activity?
The purpose of this assignment is to help students create a safe, welcoming learning community where each student is willing to openly express their ideas without thinking about right or wrong, asking questions, and seeking help from individuals outside of the classroom to foster understanding of the course content and increase knowledge.
Timing: At what point in the lesson or semester do you use this activity? How much classroom time do you devote to it? How much out-of-class time is expected?
I will give students 15-20 minutes for the collaborative quizzes each week. If I am tight with schedule, then I will give students simpler questions and give them 10-15 minutes for discussions and submitting the answers as groups. I expect students to have at least 2-3 hours per week to study aside from completing their homework assignments. The extra credit assignments are encouraged but not required.
Logistics: What preparation is needed for this activity? What instructions do you give students? Is the activity low-stakes, high-stakes, or something else?
Students need to work on their homework assignments in order to be prepared for the quizzes. Since we will have collaborative quizzes, it doesn't mean that we can simply reply on others to do the work. As a team, each member needs to do their work and hold each other accountable. I would say this can be "low-stakes" because they can work on it together, and it can be "high-stakes" because they will be counted as their grades.
Assessment: How do you assess this activity? What assessment measures do you use? Do you use a VALUE rubric? If not, how did you develop your rubric? Is your course part of the college-wide general education assessment initiative?
It will depend on what questions I gave to my students each week, and each member from the same group will receive the same grade. I hope this will encourage students to study more when they see that effort is needed for all to receive a good grade. I will use "Oral Communication" to assess students. Hopefully, students will make changes when they are not getting the grades they aimed for. I will assign students at random for the collaborative quizzes. After one month, I will ask them if they want to switch for groups and why.
Reflection: How well did this activity work in your classroom? Would you repeat it? Why or why not? What challenges did you encounter, and how did you address them? What, if anything, would you change? What did students seem to enjoy about the activity?
I didn't get a class to teach to implement it, so it will be my first time doing it in the Fall. I might have two classes to teach in the Fall, and I am thinking if I should do that for both classes to compare the results. For this semester, I was supporting an instructor that I noticed students struggled with attendance. I hope this new way of quizzes will motivate students to come to class on time and be prepared for themselves and for their peers. I would like to cultivate a classroom environment where each student is willing to try, to learn, and to achieve their academic goals.
Additional Information: Please share any additional comments and further documentation of the activity – e.g. assignment instructions, rubrics, examples of student work, etc. These can be links to pages or posts on the OpenLab.
Please share a helpful link to a pages or post on the OpenLab