Facilitate active learning online
We learn better when we are involved in constructing our own knowledge. Some of us know this from experience — it’s why we do research, why we collaborate, why we ask our kids questions when we read to them. But this is also a finding backed by decades of...Storytelling as Teaching
Storytelling is a powerful tool for communicating a message. How can you leverage this power in your teaching? Whose stories are shared — yours? Students’? In this workshop, we’ll look at examples of how and where storytelling can be most impactful...Reflecting on your teaching
With all the logistics that go into wrapping up the semester, it’s hard to think about almost anything else — painful to think about the whole semester that you’re just trying to move beyond. But of course, as teachers we know that there’s great value in...Try inclusive class agendas
An agenda creates transparency and welcomes inclusion in the classroom. If these are qualities you strive for in your teaching, consider these principles for creating open, inclusive class agendas.
Gathering student feedback
Ideas for collecting feedback from your students and how to get them to participate.
Swimming with the Sharks … and Loving It!
When I decided to apply for the Graduate Fellowship back in April 2018, I had an idea in mind, however nascent, that I felt was worth exploring. The desire to apply was not urgent, and it took a brief chat with the Lab coordinator in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry to finally give it a shot.
Journaling for reflection and critical thinking
Reflective writing can help us carry ourselves through processes of change. Learning is a process of change and research shows that journal writing can support students across disciplines in connecting with and making meaning of their learning.
Students and learning in the “open”
Turning your course open with Open Education resources, practices, and pedagogy can have profound impacts on how students relate to the materials, to you, to their learning and their positioning relative to that learning. Ready to get started?
Hello? Use phone calls to connect with students
We’re at a point in the semester when energy gets low. Students have gotten quiet on discussion boards, you’ve got grading to last you the rest of winter and winter isn’t near over yet. It can be hard to keep everyone engaged in your work together, but making a simple phone call could make a big difference.
1. Objectives and Objections
EPIC: Home Activities Discussion Case Studies Resources Discussion of “learning objectives” and “measurable outcomes” is common across educational settings. In many of the conversations you might have come across already, the debate is around...7. Beyond the Classroom: Open Education, Community Engagement
EPIC: Home Activities Discussion Case Studies Resources This week we explore open education which includes topics of open educational resources (OER), open educational practices (OEP), open admission, and open access. Often, viewpoints you will encounter regarding...Teaching as mentoring
How do you guide your students not only through course material, but through navigating the university, their professional ambitions, a balance between personal and academic lives? This is the work of the teacher-as-mentor.
8. Workflow Management
EPIC: Home Activities Discussion Case Studies Resources How do you stay on top of all that you do? Or rather, how do you stay sane and energized and on track to keep doing it, even when you’re buried? There are a number of helpful tools and practices out there...Make space for student creation
In order for your course to go well, must it go as planned? Interrupt your class’s routine with tactics that make space for students to build and create.
Collaborative annotation brings context and conversation
Annotating helps a reader engage with, analyze, and comprehend a text. Online, collaborative annotation tools afford these benefits plus the opportunity to interact with peers and other annotators around the world.
Great Discussions and their Environs
WHY … What are students meant to take away from discussion? What impact does it have? Activity #2 You must post three times each week. Your first post should be an original thought with at least one secondary source. Your second and third posts should respond...How to blend the world into your classroom
When the world feels too big to shut out of your classroom, do you close the door or do you invite in what’s on the minds of so many? Integrating current events into your course is not only engaging for students, it teaches them to approach challenging conversations as learners and to defend their positions with evidence.
You’re not alone! And your students aren’t either
The physical space of a campus blends student support into the learning environment: on the first day of school, students taking face-to-face courses walk onto campus, stroll past the library, the Writing Center, and their advisor’s office on the way to your class. They greet their classmates who, a few weeks into the semester, are the ones they will ask when they’re confused about your instructions.
How to prepare for fall while enjoying summer
Summer is in full swing! You are camping, gardening, roadtripping, hiking, netflixing, swatting at mosquitoes — maybe even teaching. Meanwhile, you’re actively ignoring that buzz behind your ear: Fall’s coming … Teaching … Teaching … Teaching. No one will blame you for swatting that buzz away until, say, August. It’s summer, after all. But what if you could do something now to make your course development a month or two from now a bit easier?