Articles

Building Student Engagement: Classroom Atmosphere

In previous articles I’ve offered effective teaching strategies for building student engagement by setting the tone with the syllabus and first classes. Today we move to the general classroom atmosphere. The following suggestions will help you build an atmosphere of constant engagement, passion and learning.

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Fundraising Strategies for Community Colleges

If you were asked to describe community colleges, the word “entrepreneurial” probably wouldn’t be one of the first things to come to mind. That may be changing. As the traditional avenues for funding decrease and expenses increase, community colleges are turning to innovative fundraising strategies to support everything from student scholarships to program development.

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Building Student Engagement: First Classes

In yesterday’s post I provided tips on how to use the syllabus to build student engagement. In this article I offer some suggestions on how to get students involved in the first few classes to ensure a more engaging course throughout the semester.

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Building Student Engagement: The Syllabus

In this, the first installment of a six-article series on building student engagement, I offer some suggestions on how to use the syllabus to help you set a tone of engagement and excellence right from the start.

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False Assumptions Beginning Teachers Make

Lately I’ve been wondering if there’s a set of initial assumptions made about teaching and learning that inhibit instructional growth and development. Here is list of a few of these assumptions, and why I think they make teaching excellence less attainable.

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Transformative Learning: Q&A with Patricia Cranton

Transformative learning—learning that changes what students know, how much they know, and what they are able to do with that knowledge—can occur inside and outside the classroom and need not be restricted to any particular discipline.

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Rethinking Multiple Choice Tests for Assessing Student Learning

If you think multiple choice tests are only good to assess how well students memorized facts, it may be time to rethink your testing strategy. Although they are not appropriate for every situation, when properly developed, multiple choice tests can used to assess higher levels of thinking, including application and analysis.

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