To Teach to the Test or Not
There has been a long discussion within our college about whether or not teaching to the test is appropriate. Of course, the test that we
Laura Trujillo-Jenks, PhD and Warren Ortloff, PhD
June 5, 2019
HIGHER ED TEACHING STRATEGIES FROM MAGNA PUBLICATIONS
Articles
Seven Strategies to Promote Community in Online Courses
Over the years, I’ve had the pleasure of working with approximately 300 faculty who have developed and taught their first online course. One of the
Brian Udermann, PhD
June 2, 2019
How to Get the Most Out of a Professional Conference
An initial look at a conference program can lead attendees to become (in the words of a former colleague) “paralyzed by the possibilities.” There are
Linda K. Shadiow, PhD
May 31, 2019
Back to Basics in the Classroom
After a fifteen-year hiatus from teaching musicianship classes (I typically teach undergraduate music theory core classes and graduate classes), I taught Musicianship 1 last semester
Kevin Clifton
May 29, 2019
Designing Effective Team Projects in Online Courses
Participating in team projects offers students the chance to develop interpersonal communication skills (Figueira & Leal, 2013), build relationships with classmates, and increase the level
Stephanie Smith Budhai, PhD
May 24, 2019
On Diets, Politics, and Faculty Development
In the world of diets, movements are the thing that sells…Vegan, Paleo, Whole 30, Keto, and, now, Carnivore (…seriously, it’s a thing). Yet, upon closer inspection, many of these diets perform similarly in the long run, which is to say they perform underwhelmingly. When a dieter fails to get the pseudoscientific benefits promised, they are likely to blame themselves. They relapsed, cheated, or otherwise failed to follow instructions (succumbing to the fate of being an imperfect human being). It is less likely that we question the diet. Instagram before and after posts abound. Diets can put people in a bind: why won’t this work for me? Given the gap between basic principles (eat your vegetables, less processed foods) and the dos and don’ts of diets, it’s worth asking what value diets add to our lives.
Adam Smith, PhD
May 22, 2019
Active Learning That Distracts from Learning
Because I teach mixed demographic courses, I often look out at a sea of distracted and unmotivated faces. Motivation is a large part of learning (Pintrich and deGroot, 2003). So, I use active learning activities, such as think-pair-share, to not only motivate students (Marbach-Ad et al., 2001), but also to enhance student learning (Bonwell and Eison, 1919; Freeman et al., 2014). If I’m being honest, active learning also has the added perk of distracting students from the monotony of my voice. Yet, in the past few years, I have begun to wonder if I have taken it too far? Am I simply using active learning as a way of keeping bored students active?
Adriana J. LaGier, PhD
May 20, 2019
Remembering Our Mission to Teach
Have you ever become so frustrated with students and overwhelmed by your workload that you start questioning what you are doing? At times it can feel suffocating. Baruti Kafele, an educator and motivational speaker offers a perspective of being mission oriented to educators and others working with young people in our nation’s classrooms. He suggests affirming your goals and motivations to facilitate successes among students. However, in the college classroom, it is also essential that we, as faculty members, remember and affirm our purpose, acknowledge the contributions we make in students’ lives and professional pursuits, and respect the call or passion that brought each of us to the teaching profession.
Candice Dowd Barnes, EdD
May 17, 2019
Tips for Teaching Students ‘What to Learn’ and ‘How to Learn’ During Lectures
It was soon after my son enrolled in a local junior college that I realized something was wrong. Success, which seemed to come so easy to him in high school, was suddenly out of reach. In fact, he was failing every course! I quickly learned that in high school he did not have to exert any effort and was taught to simply memorize material.
Tiffany F. Culver PhD
May 15, 2019
Footnote, Endnote, Thank-you Notes
Thank-you notes make people happy. For as much joy as they give me, I don’t send them enough. In fact, I think writing thank-you notes is a dying art. They’re overlooked forms of positive closure. Gratitude on its own is powerful, and when it’s exchanged, it feels amazing. After I thought about what notes of gratitude could accomplish, I started emailing thank-you notes to my students, waiting until well after the semester for the most impact.
Stacy Greathouse, PhD
May 13, 2019