Opening Plenary Session, Friday, June 1, 2012, 5:15 p.m. – 6:30 p.m

Evidence-Based Teaching: Just the Facts or Thinking Like Scientists?

Presenter: Diane Ebert-May, Michigan State University

Science in the 21st century is driven by cross-cutting questions that involve many disciplines yet, undergraduate introductory science courses are widely criticized for overemphasizing details and rote memorization at the expense of helping students develop higher-level cognitive skills. We are participating in a revolution to address this problem by creating courses and curricula designed to help students develop the skills and build conceptual connections within biology and across the curriculum. We will critically examine our research that addresses questions about teachers teaching and students learning, and how we use data to drive instructional decisions. Together we will ask ourselves, ‘How learner-centered is our teaching?’

Saturday Luncheon Plenary Session, Saturday, June 2, 2012, 1:00 p.m. -1:30 p.m.

Why Don’t They Talk? Using Discussion to Facilitate Student Learning

Presenter: Jay R. Howard, Butler University

Faculty often wish to engage students in discussion in class, but sometimes our efforts fall flat, and we give up the effort. Why should we have discussions in class? What classroom norms sometimes undermine discussion? Which students are most likely to participate, and which are most likely to choose not to participate? For what reasons? How can an instructor manage both the dominant talkers and the non-talkers? We will engage each of these questions utilizing a review of the research to identify ways to structure class discussion to maximize student participation and learning.