Through a combination of group work and several classroom presentations, the students create an overview of texts, key concepts, and points from the course.
The motivation is to create an overview and understanding of the syllabus across lessons. In addition, this exercise helps students brush up on the syllabus before the exam.
The activity is carried out during the final lesson and requires approx. three hours.
The students have to find all texts from the syllabus including their notes and repeat them for themselves.
At the beginning of the lesson, the students are divided into groups of three to four people.
Each group is responsible for two to four texts from different lessons. They have to find at least two important points and at least two key concepts for each text. At the top of an A3 sheet, they write the author of the article and the title (in brief). Underneath they first write the points and then the concepts. This should be written clearly in capital letters, so the entire class can read it. It might be a good idea to use different colours for author and title, points and concepts, so it is easier to distinguish between them. This round of group work normally takes between 30 and 45 minutes depending on the number of texts.
Afterwards, the groups present their discoveries to each other and stick their A3 sheets to the board using adhesive. Texts used during the same lesson are placed close to each other. Lessons will either be separated with a drawn line or a large space. This should take about 45 minutes.
During the next round, the students find relations between their own texts from the first round and texts from the course’s other lessons. This can usually be done in 30 minutes.
The groups take turns to explain the relations they have found in front of the class. The relations are visualised with ribbons (preferably golden) connecting one text to another. Once all groups have presented, the board will be filled with points, concepts and their relations.
The activity ensures that the students refresh all of the texts, including the ones from the beginning of the semester.
They are required to think about the syllabus in relation to the individual text, but also in relation to the entire course. The latter is especially useful when they have to think about the exam assignment.
Faculty: Arts
Degree programme: Information Studies, IT University West professional Master’s degree programme
Study level: MA
Size of class: 15-26 students
Form of instruction: Classroom instruction
Extent: Activity
Primary activity type: Knowledge and information
Form of completion: In-person teaching
Applied technology: A3 paper, adhesive, golden ribbon