6.3 Impact

Impact on Student Learning

Since introducing ICE as a conceptual framework in all of my courses over five years ago, I have noticed that students are generally more prepared, engaged, and motivated and therefore seem more able and inclined to participate in class. Students have used office hours to meet with me to get feedback on their ability to use the ICE framework via the Academic Reading Chart. During these meetings, students often express how useful and easy the ICE framework is for them to use and it reminds them of what they are to be working on and why. Their orientation towards understanding the reason behind the activity leads to deeper levels of analysis in class discussions about the readings and the connection to real social problems. With clearer expectations and concrete teaching and learning activities in the form of pre-work (such as the Academic Reading Review Chart and ICE rubric) and in class activities, students appear to be increasingly prepared to more accurately identify the essential Ideas and therefore are more able to build on that information to explore and evaluate possible Connections and Extensions.

“One of the reasons I appreciate the use of ICE is because it provides structure for thought [and] helps students get in the habit of higher-order thinking in their everyday lives.”

—Student Feedback from CCJE

The ICE framework seems to increase students’ academic confidence across a variety of contexts. As one student explained, “The ICE framework was not only applicable to the course that Professor Morton taught, but applied to other courses such as psychology, politics, and even an elective (Italian). My understanding of course content improved along with my grades. The framework is one I will continue to use through next semester and even in graduate studies.” Applying each phase of the framework students took ownership by articulating and reflecting on their learning process.^[1]

Impact on My Teaching Practice

Using the ICE framework has changed my own teaching and learning practice. It has encouraged me to be more intentional and explicit about what the course will focus on and what students will be expected to know, do, and value. More specifically, using ICE has helped me to more clearly articulate the expectations I have of my students in the context of their class participation, class discussions, and assignments. In addition to ICE being an easy way to help students recognize how to practice higher-order thinking and metacognition, it has helped me identify and distinguish the development of students’ skills and therefore how to assess them. By integrating the ICE framework as a learning outcome, and as an approach in activities and assessment, I can more readily recognize when students have arrived developmentally and therefore when and where they need support (or not) in order to increase their capacities and confidence.