Everybody Present: Mindfulness in the Classroom
*This article first appeared in the Teaching Professor on January 4, 2017. © Magna Publications. All rights reserved. Did you know that the average attention span in the year 2000 was…
Master Teachers Are Mindful Teachers
*This article first appeared in the Teaching Professor on November 27, 2016. © Magna Publications. All rights reserved. Mindfulness is paying attention to what is happening now, in the present moment.…
The Value of Worksheets for Asynchronous Online Courses
When I began teaching 15 years ago, I came to the profession with the belief that worksheets were an elementary school-level example of lazy teaching. I’m not sure where that…
Student-led Lessons Rather Than Student Presentations
This article first appeared in the Teaching Professor on February 1, 2018. © Magna Publications. All rights reserved. There’s no question that students learn an enormous amount when they assume the role…
Strategies to Elicit Engagement in Online Labs
Nonverbal communication is essential for engaged learning and effective teaching. In-person classes allowed me to assess the effectiveness of my lessons by reading the facial reactions from students. Confusion, disengagement,…
Six Tips for Cultivating a Trauma-Informed Higher Education Classroom at the Beginning of Each Semester
Collective trauma, in spite of its profound gravity, has granted us an opportunity as educators. Through the devastation of COVID-19 and chaos of various social and political events within the…
The Importance of Teaching and Learning in the Classroom
“The teaching life is the life of the explorer, the creator, constructing the classroom for free exploration. It is about engagement. It takes courage. It is about ruthlessly excising what…
Take the Zero: Helping College Students Have a Healthier Way of Thinking About Grades
*This article first appeared in the Teaching Professor on August 7, 2018. © Magna Publications. All rights reserved. For the last seven years, I have had the absolute honor of working with…
The Importance of Self-reflection Assignments Between Essays
Each semester I have students complete different writing assignments in my critical thinking and writing course, including two essays: essay 1 (20%) and essay 2 (30%). In between these two…
Teaching and Learning Without Grading
Imagine if faculty did not design courses, select course materials, or grade student work. What role would faculty play in teaching and learning? We serve as instructors at Western Governors…