13. What do you see as THE central issue that you and students face in an assignment you give
Ability to integrate information in a holistic manner, and to view problems from multiple perspectives
Developing critical thinking skills
Having the student understand the concepts, but wanting them to answer from their own perspective. I want to know what they know or have to say. I do not want them to write what they think I want them to say.
Ability and desire to approach learning as an exploration of new ideas. Seeking multiple resources to prove or disprove a point.
Students tend to just do enough to complete assignments rather than recognizing the value of the assignment for their learning.
Having motivation to complete
Motivation to do the daily drill required to master math skills.
Having common agreement about expectations
Deadlines. What does "This assignment is due on...". Students tend to see a "maybe" somewhere.
An understanding of what the assignment entails and what objective is to be met.
Complaints about misunderstanding of assignment when their work indicates that they did in fact understand a particular assignment, but are held back by grammatical problems.
Students often do not understand the necessity of producing quality work, work which reflects and interest in and an understanding of the subject. They are primarily interested in spitting out information that will get them a grade, but there are only two grades, A and B. To too many students, assignments are a means to an end, rather than a way to learn a discipline.
Understanding how the assignment fits into the bigger picture of the course objectives and what the course is about.
Clarity of instructions and follow through by students
My central issue is always making the assignment engaging and useful...figuring out what students actually need and how to make it appealing. From what I can see, their central issue is how to complete this assignment quickly and effectively (most do seem to want to do a good job) in the face of a ton of other tasks that are competing for their time and attention.
In my assignments, I try and capture application of the material being covered. For example speak with someone who works in that area and discover what they do. This adds value to the course and objectives. The students can relate to the importance of the topics/curriculum.
Meeting the objective is always the most salient issue.
The need to be attentive to theory and discriminate between trivia and profound understandings
The ability of students to effectively express themselves in written format.
The long term value of the concept learned
Assessing demonstrated outcomes
Quick and immediate feedback.
Originality and creativity; making the assignment new, relevant, and worthwhile.
Time
Timely feedback
Math ability and math fear
Time and interest
Meaning and motivation
Helping each other in class
The disparity of digital knowledge.
Quantitative analysis
Building on learning from other classes
I don't think there is just 1 central issue. Sorry.