The Word “Flow” Has to Go
George Lakoff and Mark Johnson’s 1980 book Metaphors We Live By famously catalogued the way metaphors influence the way we think, speak, and act. Some metaphors are so pervasive we…
Preventing Students from Ghosting Your Class
The first few weeks of class are over, the newness has worn off and now the reality of a new semester, or the first semester, is setting in for faculty…
Creating Magic in Your (Online) Classroom
We all know that the best teachers are most often those who ignite passion and curiosity within their students. What we may not all know (yet) is that we can…
Eleven Alternative Assessments for a Blended Synchronous Learning Environment
Our mid-sized state university decided to institute a blended synchronous delivery model this year. A facilitated online workshop was offered over the summer to assist faculty in designing classes for…
Tips for Chairs: Navigating Department External Relationships
Unlike faculty who for the most part work with students and scholars within their subject matter area, chairs are responsible for representing the department in an environment chock-full of unfamiliar…
From Helpless to Satisfied: Rise Up in Your Teaching with Lessons from Hamilton
As we begin teaching this fall semester, we continue to face unprecedented challenges due to the COVID-19 global pandemic. Many of us have been forced to prepare to teach our…
Raising Student Motivation During the Pandemic
In spring 2020, faculty across the country stood up to the challenging task of not only transitioning and adapting to online modes of instruction but also multi-tasking through learning new…
The Straight Scoop Syllabus
There is no shortage of professorial eye rolling when it comes to the subject of students and syllabi. Students might read the syllabus, but they typically don’t absorb the information presented…
Building Relationships: How to Connect from a Distance
“Keep teaching and learning.” This was and is still the motto of the pandemic. Unlike spring 2020 when we shifted to remote teaching after students and faculty had the chance…
Synergizing America’s Intergenerational Moment
As a teacher of adult learners in online classes, I see a lot of interaction between generations. Mostly, the students are in their 30s and 40s, but it’s not unusual…