Episode 20: How to Use Scrum to Break Up Your Lectures, Design Courses, and Get the Right Things Done with Dr. Rebecca Pope-Ruark
Description:
For episode 20, I want to do something just a little different. Instead of sharing more teaching strategies and more ways to break up your lecture, I want to pause for just one episode and talk about one of our biggest challenges: time.
One of the most popular comments I’m seeing in the Lecture Breakers Facebook group and in your emails is about time. Maybe you feel you don’t have time to prepare activities so you can break up your lectures.
Or, maybe you’re finding it difficult to find time during class to break up your lectures because there’s so much you feel you need to cover. Or, maybe you can’t seem to find the time to redesign one lecture or a whole course because of all of the other responsibilities you have competing for your time…research, service, writing, advising, family, and...relaxation.
In episode 20 of the Lecture Breakers podcast, Dr. Rebecca Pope-Ruark joins me to talk about a solution that has worked for her and might work for you. It’s called Scrum.
Scrum is a simple and flexible project management framework and reflection tool. It helps you make consistent progress towards your goals so you can get the right things done.
We talked about how to use the Scrum framework related to teaching:
- How can it help you start revising a part of a course or breaking up a lecture that isn't working?
- How can it help you move a course online or redesign a whole course around something such as problem-based learning or inquiry guided learning or flipped learning?
- And, how can our students use Scrum for more effective group work?
Rebecca answers all of these questions and more. Here are a few things you'll learn in this episode:
- The 3 questions you need to ask yourself or your team every day or every week to move forward.
- How to use "sprints" and "backlogs" to organize your ideas and tasks.
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How to use a Scrum board to visualize and manage the work you're doing and the work that you WANT to be doing.
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How to re-think your time in terms of "ideal hours" vs "actual hours."
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How to use Scrum to help students work more successfully in groups, collaborate, and manage their time.
Memorable Quotes:
"The process is equally as important as the product. The process helps you break down the product so you can see progress."
Show Notes:
- Get Rebecca's book Agile Faculty*
- Listen to Rebecca's podcast the agile academic.
- Read Rebecca's blog posts about the basics of Scrum.
- Read Rebecca's blog posts for more ideas and strategies for using Scrum in your work.
- Check out the Wikipedia Scrum page
- Learn more about Rebecca's new publication: Redesigning Liberal Education Innovative Design for a Twenty-First-Century Undergraduate Education (Use coupon code HTWN for a 30% discount!)
- Get the book to learn more about David Allen's Getting Things Done* process.
- Get the book by Stephen Covey: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People*
- Read more about the Pomodoro Technique
- Connect with Rebecca on Twitter (and follow #academictwitter)
- Learn more about Rebecca's work on her website
- Join the free Lecture Breakers Facebook group
- Don't miss an episode! Be sure to subscribe to the show! (and leave a review!)
Transcript:
Some of these resources contain affiliate links (indicated by *). If you purchase a product or sign up for a program through one of these links, I receive a commission at no additional cost to you. I only endorse products and services that I think will be helpful for you and that I have used myself. Thank you for your support.