3 First-day Questions to Ask Students to Introduce them to Team-based Learning

Apr 26, 2023 • 3min read

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"Students learn best in classrooms that incorporate active learning and other learning science-based principles.” 

   - ‘From Strategic Learning: A Holistic Approach to Studying’ 

Education systems often rely on passive forms of learning, such as direct instruction and memorisation, rather than incorporating active learning and other learning science-based principles. To introduce students to team-based learning, educators can employ a first-day question activity to start a dialogue with their students. The first-day question activity is essential for getting student buy-in to why active learning strategies are effective in promoting learning. Without this introductory dialogue, students may not understand the expectations of coming to class prepared, working with peers, and completing various team activities. 

According to the paper titled First-Day Questions for the Learner-Centered Classroom, you can ask the following three questions to your students to start the conversation:

Q1: Thinking of what you want to get out of your college education and this course, which of the following is most important to you? 

  1. Acquiring information (facts, principles, concepts)
  2. Learning how to use information and knowledge in new situations and real-world scenarios.
  3. Developing lifelong learning skills

Q2: Of these three goals, which do you think you can make headway on outside of class by your own reading and studying, and which do you think would be best achieved in the class working with your classmates and me? 

Most students might respond that acquiring information is the easiest to do alone and that the other two goals seemed more complicated and would profit from peer and instructor influence.

The last question you can then ask your students is:

Q3: How do they think they can best achieve goals 2 and 3? 

According to the book titled Tools for Teaching (Davis, 1993), students learn best  when they take an active role: 

  • When they discuss what they are reading 
  • When they practice what they are learning 
  • When they apply practices and ideas

Depending on the course context and the learning objectives, you might consider asking your students the following questions as well: 

Q. What goal do you want to achieve out of your college degree/course module? 

  • To master the content 
  • To apply knowledge gained to real-world scenarios
  • To become life-long learners
  • To develop interpersonal and team interaction skills
  • To become employable

According to Larry Michaelsen, the creator of Team-based Learning methodology, it is important that you regularly and openly describe your rationales for using TBL with your students. A good starting point is to review the overall course objectives with the class. Michaelsen would start his class by sharing the following learning objectives with his students:

  • Ensure that students master the course subject matter
  • Develop student ability to use course concepts in thinking and problem-solving
  • Prepare students to be life-long learners
  • Develop students’ interpersonal and team interaction skills
  • Have students enjoy the course

 Q. According to you, what skills/abilities do employers expect a college graduate to have?

According to WEF, critical thinking and problem-solving top the list of skills that employers believe will grow in prominence. The top future skills will be in four main areas: problem-solving, self-management, working with people, and technological skills. 

These questions could be great dialogue starters with your students. Now is your time to introduce your students to the science behind learning and the team-based learning methodology.

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Testimonials

Dr. Julie M Estis Associate Professor University of South Alabama
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"Outstanding tool for face-to-face, web-blended and fully online TBL courses! We've been using InteDashboard across several TBL classes at the University of South Alabama and are consistently impressed with the tool as well as the exceptional support from the team. We look forward to increasing utilization of InteDashboard through our campus-wide project."
Dr. Sandy Cook Emeritus Professor, TBL Consultant, TBLC-APC Committee Chairperson Formerly from Duke-National University of Singapore Medical School
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"The administrative challenges behind TBL are often viewed as a major barrier to effective implementation. InteDashboard is the only technological solution that puts it all together, allowing the faculty to focus on creating the learning environment - not fumbling with papers, grading and pulling data from different sources."
Dr. John Chapman Assistant Professor Southern Virginia University
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"I'm convinced, and I've done a fair amount of looking over the past few years to identify an online quizzing/survey tool that allows for individual question submission and real-time feedback (especially for the TRAT). InteDashboard really is the premier solution in this category. Bar none. Hands down."
Dr. Jennifer Styron Assistant Professor Eastern Virginia Medical School
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"Ability to get real-time data on RAT test items during teaching and save this information (i.e. scores on assessments) has made the tool an essential element to my everyday online teaching."
Dr. Judy Currey Professor Deakin University
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"I love having real time access to my students performance data and knowing exactly what concepts have or haven’t been understood while they complete their IRATs and TRATs! InteDashboard has significantly enhanced the ease and effectiveness with which I prepare for, and teach in, my TBL classes at Deakin."
Dr. Tom DeWitt Professor Michigan State University
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"Overall, I’ve been really pleased with how InteDashboard has elevated the ability to engage students in Team-based learning."
Victor Holmes Assistant Professor University of North Texas Health Science Center
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"The InteDashboard platform is unique in what it offers for educators and learners. The ability to interact, work with the quizzes easily, and general functionality of the program are key features not to miss. I have been able to create a more experiential learning environment allowing learners to immediately dive into experiences that simulate real clinical challenges."
Dr. Sarada Harichand Bulchand Lead Associate Duke-National University of Singapore Medical School
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"InteDashboard is a fantastic and very useful platform to conduct classes in a team-based learning setting, probably because it has all the features that team-based learning requires. The features on InteDashboard are so nuanced that they help in enhancing the learning of students, which is the core objective that the educators try to achieve from TBL methodology."
Matthew Robson Senior Learning Designer Macquarie University
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"The feature which we find most valuable is the automated grading and item analysis dashboards. They effectively provide staff and students within information that help inform what the clarification session should address. Also, the InteDashboard team provides great support. The team has been responsive to our feedback when we have asked for a possible enhancement to their tool in the past!"
Dr. Chitra Pai Professor Touro University College of Osteopathic Medicine
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"The support staff was prompt when we were in the initial phase of integrating it into Canvas. It provided the benefits of graded IRAT and TRAT and was really a seamless way to provide active learning in an online environment."
Tanya Bomsta Curriculum Project Manager The Ohio State University College of Pharmacy
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"Tech support is great, the software is easy to use and learn, online TBL is awesome (and helpful in this time of the pandemic), and the ability for easy peer review is stellar."
Dr. Grady Campbell Professor Nova Southeastern University
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"Student evaluations were higher the semester we used InteDashboard than the previous semesters we held TBL in in-person setting."
Russell Marcus Department Chair & Associate Professor Hamilton College
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"The great advantage of InteDashboard is that it is a single platform for RATs, peer evaluation, and 4S activities."
Hillel W. Cohen, Dr.P.H. Professor Associate Director of Curriculum, Clinical Research Training Program Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"InteDashboard allowed a seamless transition from paper-pencil response forms to electronic response."
Michael E. Woods, Ph.D. Associate Professor Pathology & Director of Research Laboratories Burrell College of Osteopathic Medicine
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"InteDashboard gives me the ability to run online TBLs with ease. The interface is intuitive for faculty and students and matches what we would have done in the classroom."
Paul Mcdermott Senior Lecturer University of East Anglia School of Pharmacy
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"I have recommended the product to many people already. It is a very versatile product with features that can be applied across a wide range of pedagogies. I have presented this tool to my school not just as a TBL tool but also a way to collect and analyse MCQ data and as a way to facilitate group learning and peer evaluation."
Steve Schneid Managing Director University of California
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"I just want to say I love InteDashboard, and it is an integral part of my teaching!"
Dr. Simon Twedell Professor of Pharmacy Education University of Bradford
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"It’s more sustainable now – there's less printing, less admin work, and saves a lot of time."
Dr. Gemma Quinn Associate Professor in Clinical Pharmacy University of Bradford
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
“InteDashboard has made a huge difference. We could have gone back to the way things were before we started using the software, but it would have been an absolute nightmare. The platform is great – it’s all in one place!”
Dr. Steve Cayzer Director of Studies in Mechanical Engineering University of Bath
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"I think the real-time dashboard is just really, really, good. It just works. Recently, I used the histograms and answers feature that you can present to students during the RAT debrief – I found that a very useful way of presenting the results!”
Dr. Zachary Noel Assistant Professor University of Maryland School of Pharmacy
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
“Because InteDashboard is entirely built for TBL, you don't have to fiddle with a lot of settings and multiple softwares, so that certainly saves time. And now that we're in our third year of using InteDashboard, we're able to copy the activities from the prior years and use those, so that has certainly saved time as well!"
Dr. Suzan Kamel-ElSayed Associate Professor in the Department of Foundational Medical Studies Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"It was very, very easy for us. When comparing what we did before using InteDashboard, with what we have now with InteDashboard - it has been really easy for us. Everything is available on one platform!"
Dr. Julie M Estis Associate Professor University of South Alabama
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"Outstanding tool for face-to-face, web-blended and fully online TBL courses! We've been using InteDashboard across several TBL classes at the University of South Alabama and are consistently impressed with the tool as well as the exceptional support from the team. We look forward to increasing utilization of InteDashboard through our campus-wide project."
Dr. Sandy Cook Emeritus Professor, TBL Consultant, TBLC-APC Committee Chairperson Formerly from Duke-National University of Singapore Medical School
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"The administrative challenges behind TBL are often viewed as a major barrier to effective implementation. InteDashboard is the only technological solution that puts it all together, allowing the faculty to focus on creating the learning environment - not fumbling with papers, grading and pulling data from different sources."
Dr. John Chapman Assistant Professor Southern Virginia University
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"I'm convinced, and I've done a fair amount of looking over the past few years to identify an online quizzing/survey tool that allows for individual question submission and real-time feedback (especially for the TRAT). InteDashboard really is the premier solution in this category. Bar none. Hands down."
Dr. Jennifer Styron Assistant Professor Eastern Virginia Medical School
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"Ability to get real-time data on RAT test items during teaching and save this information (i.e. scores on assessments) has made the tool an essential element to my everyday online teaching."
Dr. Judy Currey Professor Deakin University
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"I love having real time access to my students performance data and knowing exactly what concepts have or haven’t been understood while they complete their IRATs and TRATs! InteDashboard has significantly enhanced the ease and effectiveness with which I prepare for, and teach in, my TBL classes at Deakin."
Dr. Tom DeWitt Professor Michigan State University
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"Overall, I’ve been really pleased with how InteDashboard has elevated the ability to engage students in Team-based learning."
Victor Holmes Assistant Professor University of North Texas Health Science Center
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"The InteDashboard platform is unique in what it offers for educators and learners. The ability to interact, work with the quizzes easily, and general functionality of the program are key features not to miss. I have been able to create a more experiential learning environment allowing learners to immediately dive into experiences that simulate real clinical challenges."
Dr. Sarada Harichand Bulchand Lead Associate Duke-National University of Singapore Medical School
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"InteDashboard is a fantastic and very useful platform to conduct classes in a team-based learning setting, probably because it has all the features that team-based learning requires. The features on InteDashboard are so nuanced that they help in enhancing the learning of students, which is the core objective that the educators try to achieve from TBL methodology."
Matthew Robson Senior Learning Designer Macquarie University
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"The feature which we find most valuable is the automated grading and item analysis dashboards. They effectively provide staff and students within information that help inform what the clarification session should address. Also, the InteDashboard team provides great support. The team has been responsive to our feedback when we have asked for a possible enhancement to their tool in the past!"
Dr. Chitra Pai Professor Touro University College of Osteopathic Medicine
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"The support staff was prompt when we were in the initial phase of integrating it into Canvas. It provided the benefits of graded IRAT and TRAT and was really a seamless way to provide active learning in an online environment."
Tanya Bomsta Curriculum Project Manager The Ohio State University College of Pharmacy
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"Tech support is great, the software is easy to use and learn, online TBL is awesome (and helpful in this time of the pandemic), and the ability for easy peer review is stellar."
Dr. Grady Campbell Professor Nova Southeastern University
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"Student evaluations were higher the semester we used InteDashboard than the previous semesters we held TBL in in-person setting."
Russell Marcus Department Chair & Associate Professor Hamilton College
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"The great advantage of InteDashboard is that it is a single platform for RATs, peer evaluation, and 4S activities."
Hillel W. Cohen, Dr.P.H. Professor Associate Director of Curriculum, Clinical Research Training Program Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"InteDashboard allowed a seamless transition from paper-pencil response forms to electronic response."
Michael E. Woods, Ph.D. Associate Professor Pathology & Director of Research Laboratories Burrell College of Osteopathic Medicine
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"InteDashboard gives me the ability to run online TBLs with ease. The interface is intuitive for faculty and students and matches what we would have done in the classroom."
Paul Mcdermott Senior Lecturer University of East Anglia School of Pharmacy
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"I have recommended the product to many people already. It is a very versatile product with features that can be applied across a wide range of pedagogies. I have presented this tool to my school not just as a TBL tool but also a way to collect and analyse MCQ data and as a way to facilitate group learning and peer evaluation."
Steve Schneid Managing Director University of California
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"I just want to say I love InteDashboard, and it is an integral part of my teaching!"
Dr. Simon Twedell Professor of Pharmacy Education University of Bradford
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"It’s more sustainable now – there's less printing, less admin work, and saves a lot of time."
Dr. Gemma Quinn Associate Professor in Clinical Pharmacy University of Bradford
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
“InteDashboard has made a huge difference. We could have gone back to the way things were before we started using the software, but it would have been an absolute nightmare. The platform is great – it’s all in one place!”
Dr. Steve Cayzer Director of Studies in Mechanical Engineering University of Bath
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"I think the real-time dashboard is just really, really, good. It just works. Recently, I used the histograms and answers feature that you can present to students during the RAT debrief – I found that a very useful way of presenting the results!”
Dr. Zachary Noel Assistant Professor University of Maryland School of Pharmacy
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
“Because InteDashboard is entirely built for TBL, you don't have to fiddle with a lot of settings and multiple softwares, so that certainly saves time. And now that we're in our third year of using InteDashboard, we're able to copy the activities from the prior years and use those, so that has certainly saved time as well!"
Dr. Suzan Kamel-ElSayed Associate Professor in the Department of Foundational Medical Studies Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"It was very, very easy for us. When comparing what we did before using InteDashboard, with what we have now with InteDashboard - it has been really easy for us. Everything is available on one platform!"
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"Outstanding tool for face-to-face, web-blended and fully online TBL courses! We've been using InteDashboard across several TBL classes at the University of South Alabama and are consistently impressed with the tool as well as the exceptional support from the team. We look forward to increasing utilization of InteDashboard through our campus-wide project."
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"The administrative challenges behind TBL are often viewed as a major barrier to effective implementation. InteDashboard is the only technological solution that puts it all together, allowing the faculty to focus on creating the learning environment - not fumbling with papers, grading and pulling data from different sources."
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"I'm convinced, and I've done a fair amount of looking over the past few years to identify an online quizzing/survey tool that allows for individual question submission and real-time feedback (especially for the TRAT). InteDashboard really is the premier solution in this category. Bar none. Hands down."
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"Ability to get real-time data on RAT test items during teaching and save this information (i.e. scores on assessments) has made the tool an essential element to my everyday online teaching."
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"I love having real time access to my students performance data and knowing exactly what concepts have or haven’t been understood while they complete their IRATs and TRATs! InteDashboard has significantly enhanced the ease and effectiveness with which I prepare for, and teach in, my TBL classes at Deakin."
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"Overall, I’ve been really pleased with how InteDashboard has elevated the ability to engage students in Team-based learning."
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"The InteDashboard platform is unique in what it offers for educators and learners. The ability to interact, work with the quizzes easily, and general functionality of the program are key features not to miss. I have been able to create a more experiential learning environment allowing learners to immediately dive into experiences that simulate real clinical challenges."
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"InteDashboard is a fantastic and very useful platform to conduct classes in a team-based learning setting, probably because it has all the features that team-based learning requires. The features on InteDashboard are so nuanced that they help in enhancing the learning of students, which is the core objective that the educators try to achieve from TBL methodology."
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"The feature which we find most valuable is the automated grading and item analysis dashboards. They effectively provide staff and students within information that help inform what the clarification session should address. Also, the InteDashboard team provides great support. The team has been responsive to our feedback when we have asked for a possible enhancement to their tool in the past!"
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"The support staff was prompt when we were in the initial phase of integrating it into Canvas. It provided the benefits of graded IRAT and TRAT and was really a seamless way to provide active learning in an online environment."
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"Tech support is great, the software is easy to use and learn, online TBL is awesome (and helpful in this time of the pandemic), and the ability for easy peer review is stellar."
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"Student evaluations were higher the semester we used InteDashboard than the previous semesters we held TBL in in-person setting."
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"The great advantage of InteDashboard is that it is a single platform for RATs, peer evaluation, and 4S activities."
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"InteDashboard allowed a seamless transition from paper-pencil response forms to electronic response."
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"InteDashboard gives me the ability to run online TBLs with ease. The interface is intuitive for faculty and students and matches what we would have done in the classroom."
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"I have recommended the product to many people already. It is a very versatile product with features that can be applied across a wide range of pedagogies. I have presented this tool to my school not just as a TBL tool but also a way to collect and analyse MCQ data and as a way to facilitate group learning and peer evaluation."
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"I just want to say I love InteDashboard, and it is an integral part of my teaching!"
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"It’s more sustainable now – there's less printing, less admin work, and saves a lot of time."
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
“InteDashboard has made a huge difference. We could have gone back to the way things were before we started using the software, but it would have been an absolute nightmare. The platform is great – it’s all in one place!”
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"I think the real-time dashboard is just really, really, good. It just works. Recently, I used the histograms and answers feature that you can present to students during the RAT debrief – I found that a very useful way of presenting the results!”
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
“Because InteDashboard is entirely built for TBL, you don't have to fiddle with a lot of settings and multiple softwares, so that certainly saves time. And now that we're in our third year of using InteDashboard, we're able to copy the activities from the prior years and use those, so that has certainly saved time as well!"
Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill Star Fill
"It was very, very easy for us. When comparing what we did before using InteDashboard, with what we have now with InteDashboard - it has been really easy for us. Everything is available on one platform!"