What Does It Take to Have Civil Discourse in the Classroom?
Building Student Confidence in Oral Communication: The Importance of Low-stakes Presentations. (Dr Barbour)
Most students dread presentations. Every time I start a new semester, and I announce that presentations are a requirement, the fear and tension in the room rises and becomes palpable. Granted, not every student hates presenting, but according to Marinho et al. a majority of college students, 63.9% to be exact, have a fear of public speaking (2017). However, the authors also note that “in the corporate world, oral communication is a critical tool for professional survival” (Marinho et al., 2017, 127.e8).
Here is a recent article about how Virtual Reality (VR) is being used in college classrooms.
In this article, applications for VR at Ithica College are described.
Moonshot Scholars Program—Building Entrepreneurship Skills
This is a non-degree co-curricular program on entrepreneurship and innovation, otherwise known as our Moonshot Scholars Program, that aims to help you exercise your creative muscles so you can better meet the needs of tomorrow.
Virtual Reality was more effective at teaching soft skills concepts than classroom.
A new Study showed that Virtual Reality was more effective at teaching soft skills concepts than classroom and e-learning training.
Below is a link that provides a lot of detail into a new study demonstrating the effectiveness of Virtual Reality in teaching "soft skill" concepts.
Working Smarter, Not Harder: Setting Up an Online Course to Save Time! (from Dr. Michael Barbour)
Faculty in higher education have found themselves with more classes, more students, and overall less time and methods for saving time. Therefore, using time more efficiently has become necessary to accomplish our goals. Below are strategies that faculty can use to effectively allocate time, maximize output for students, and minimize time spent revising or creating course materials throughout the semester or academic year.
Tips for new lecturers on the human elements that make students feel included. (Michael K. Barbour, Ph.D.)
Whatever one thinks about lectures, they’re here to stay. I just wish we better prepared people to give them. So, here’s a few things that I would like to say to a new lecturer.
How to Hold a Better Class Discussion (Michael K. Barbour, Ph.D.)
Good discussions involve taking risks, by the students and the professor.
This comprehensive guide is filled with tips to help improve yours.
Building Relationships
There are a number of reasons — such as timing, competing commitments, differences of opinion, geography — why emotional distance can creep into the most important bonds. Here’s advice from seven TED speakers to help bridge some of them.
The Art of Listening
Dear Colleagues,
My favorite psychologist and educator, Dr. Carl Rogers, was one of my mentors. He was the founder of student-centered learning and client-centered psychotherapy.
In my lifetime, I have found that the best way to connect with others is through careful listening. Almost everyone wants and needs to be listened to.
Here is a wonderful article the explains in detail the art of active listening. Read Now!
Enjoy!
Dr Jim O'Connor
Professor and Founding Dean Emeritus of the College of Education and Health Sciences
Director of the Center for Innovative Learning and Teaching, Western Division
Touro University California
Thinking About Grading (Michael K. Barbour, Ph.D.)
This week I wanted to share several items related to grading that have pass over my electronic desk in recent weeks.
The first item
was a 12 year old article “Class Attendance in College : A Meta-Analytic Review of the Relationship of Class Attendance With Grades and Student Characteristics.” The abstract for the article read:
A meta-analysis of the relationship between class attendance in college and college grades reveals that attendance has strong relationships with both class grades (k = 69, N = 21,195, r = .44) and GPA (k = 33, N = 9,243, r = .41). These relationships make class attendance a better predictor of college grades than any other known predictor of academic performance, including scores on standardized admissions tests such as the SAT, high school GPA, study habits, and study skills. Results also show that class attendance explains large amounts of unique variance in college grades because of its relative independence from SAT scores and high school GPA and weak relationship with student characteristics such as conscientiousness and motivation. Mandatory attendance policies appear to have a small positive impact on average grades (k = 3, N = 1,421, d = .21). Implications for theoretical frameworks of student academic performance and educational policy are discussed.
You can access the article directly at Here
The second item
was actually a webinar that I attended, which was offered by the California Community Colleges. This particular session focused on the issue of ungrading, and the description and information to access the recording are below.
To access the recording, please follow the steps below:
1. Click Here
2. Enter this password: TeachForAll2021!
The third item
that I wanted to share is the notice of an up-coming session next month from a European organization that may be of interest to some faculty.
How practicing unconditional positive regard can have a motivational effect on your students and your colleagues (5 minute read)
Dear Colleagues and Students,
Practicing Unconditional Positive Regard is a cornerstone of both student-centered teaching and client-centered psychotherapy.
Putting this practice into use can increase student motivation and have a positive effect on your relationships with your colleagues.
It can also have a positive effect on your well-being and personal motivation.
Below is a quick read, both explaining the concept and the benefits of unconditional positive regard.
Here is an interesting read discussing Dr. Esther Steinberg's work on the effect of stress on emotions and disease.
One interesting aspect is the effect on human memory.
At a time when critical thinking is of utmost importance, it is important to review some basic rules of critical thinking to fortify our thinking against propaganda, pseudoscience, and general falsehoods.
Dr. Carl Sagan, famed American astronomer, planetary scientist, cosmologist, astrophysicist, astrobiologist, author, and science communicator, shares some important aspects of critical thinking in this 10 minute read.
Dr. Pamela Redmond and Dr. Chitra Pai receive first annual TUC Outstanding Teaching Award
The Office of the Provost and the Center for Innovative Learning and Teaching (CILT) are excited to announce that the first annual TUC Outstanding Teaching Award will go to two recipients; Dr. Pamela Redmond of the Graduate School of Education, and Dr. Chitra Pai of the College of Osteopathic Medicine.
All of this year's applicants were truly outstanding teachers, so it was a difficult task for the selection committee to determine the inaugural winners for this award. The selection committee (Dr. Ted Wang, Jennifer Pimentel, Dr. Gordon McCarter, and Dr. Jim O'Connor) after independently scoring the applications, made the decision to honor both Drs. Redmond and Pai.
Both Dr. Redmond and Dr. Pai will receive a $1000 award as well as a plague commemorating this honor. Furthermore, a permanent plaque, which will be placed in Lander Hall, will include their names as the first two recipients of the Outstanding Teaching Award. They will also be honored on Employee Appreciation Day on June 18th. Both Drs. Pai and Redmond will be part of a TCUS system-wide webinar on July 28th at noon (PST). They will join two award winners from the TCUS system in sharing some of their practices, which effectively promote student learning.
Below is a synopsis of Dr. Redmond's and Dr. Pai's attributes, which resulted in being the first annual recipients of this award.
Dr. Pamela Redmond was nominated by Dr. Louise Santiago, Director of the Graduate School of Education and Assistant Dean of College of Education and Health Sciences. Dr. Redmond joined TUC in 2008, and during her 13 year tenure as Chair of Graduate Studies in the GSOE, she has designed (or redesigned) and taught courses across 5 master’s degree concentrations. As a former special education and inner-city Chicago teacher, she is passionate about equity and inclusion. She articulates this passion across her teaching by encouraging teachers to not only be advocates for social justice, but to walk the walk by developing policies, teaching practices and lessons that provide multiple lesson entry and exit points so that every child can be part of learning activities and contribute. She asks teachers to re-imagine not only lesson delivery but how they create their classroom culture. As one who is facile with technology and media as well as with meeting the needs of those who learn differently, Dr. Redmond has long believed that we now have the tools to help every student access subject matter content in the way they learn best. She advocates for student voice and choice in how they learn. She also applies these principles to her own teaching practices. Over the last decade, Dr. Redmond has finely honed TUC GSOE Master’s programs via direct input from the field. She regularly meets with school district, county office and community college partners as well as with leading organizations to discern specialty areas in which there is need for leadership and teacher development. The programs she has developed support our district partners to leverage our graduates as internal professional developers and teacher leaders.Her teaching style is to model what 21st century classrooms should look like. Her classes are interactive and model the use of new technologies and pedagogies for learning. Dr. Redmond practices continuous reflection for improvement as an ongoing part of her daily practice and requires her students to keep a blog of their own reflections of their teaching and learning experiences as they grow during their studies at Touro. Over her Touro career, her course evaluations have been consistently above 4 on a scale of 5. Regarding efficacy, we know that in the Innovative Learning Master’s Program, the program in which Dr. Redmond currently teaches, has a 98% program completion rate. One in three of graduates moves on to a leadership position at the district or county office of education level according to an alumni survey (NapaLearns, 2020).
Dr. Redmond’s service to the profession is a testament to the importance she places on innovation in curriculum and teaching. She dedicates her time and effort to garnering input and serving organizations who influence the future of education: She co-chaired the American Association of Colleges of Teacher Education Innovation Committee for two terms, she serves on the Board of Directors for the NapaLearns non-profit, and the board of the Northbay Computer Using Educators. Dr. Redmond earned an Ed.D. in Organization and Leadership from the University of San Francisco. She also has an M.A. in Special Education from San Francisco State University and a B.A. in Human Development from Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois.
Dr. Chitra Pai was nominated by a group of 76 students in the College of Osteopathic Medicine. Dr. Pai joined Touro University California in 2018 as a Professor of Basic Sciences specializing in Microbiology and Immunology. She is the Integrated Systems Course Coordinator and the Global Health Program site coordinator.
She has a M.B.B.S (Bachelor’s in Medicine and Surgery) from J. N. Medical College, Karnatak University, India, and an M.D. in Medical Microbiology from J. N. Medical College and Hospital, Karnatak University, India. In 2011 she did a Postdoctoral fellowship in Laboratory medicine at The University of Minnesota Medical School. In 2017 she received Board certification in Public Health and Medical Microbiology by The American Board of Medical Microbiology.Here are some of the comments from the 76 students who nominated Dr. Pai. "Dr. Pai is the epitome of a great medical school professor. She goes above and beyond for her students." "She works diligently to deliver medical education in manner that helps facilitate learning. This proved to be even more true during the remote learning part of the semester." "There is nothing more Dr. Pai can possibly do to enhance my learning experience than what she has already done". "Absolutely exemplary when it comes to remote teaching. Dr. Pai made it so easy for us to get access to the material - both the slides and the video lectures.She always made sure to either have pre-recorded videos (that fit her slides) or made sure to record/upload her zoom sessions to canvas for those that did not attend it live." "She truly should be setting the precedent for how remote-medical school should take place." "In my opinion, Dr. Pai is doing everything that I could want a medical school professor to do for me as a student. A few of the things that she does that separates her from the rest include:
Offers abundant practice questions/spreadsheets/other resources for review of complicated material; provides clearly organized and digestible lecture slides; maintains a positive/supportive rapport with all students; stays abreast of updates to current literature on the subjects she teaches; provides clinical context for nearly all concepts she teaches." "I really can't think of anything more Dr. Pai could do to enhance my learning experience." "Favorite professor out of all my classes this semester !! Others need to take note of how she turns her sessions into an active learning environment!" "I think Dr. Pai is fantastic. She really wants us to think critically so we can become the best doctors possible."
"Dr. Pai is one of the best! Her material is well organized, relevant, and important to learn well! She is also very kind and serves as a great example as a physician." "Dr. Pai is an amazing professor and I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to learn from her this semester. "I truly appreciated how much she cares about not only our success, but also our wellbeing!" "There is nothing I can think of that Dr. Pai could do to enhance my learning experience." In her application, she was also nominated by her department chair, Dr. Greg Gayer. Some of Dr. Gayer's comments include: "One of my faculty, Dr. Chitra Pai, does stand out amongst her peers for the quality, quantity and innovation regarding her educational efforts. I was instrumental in hiring Dr. Pai to teach Microbiology and Infectious Diseases. Dr. Pai based on her previous experience, teaching awards, and leadership as a faculty at various universities was by far the best candidate... Dr. Pai is responsible for delivering all of the microbiology content to both the COM and MHMHS students. This is a large load requiring both a strong clinical understanding of disease states and significant knowledge regarding the specifics of microbiology." "Within her short time at TUCOM, it became very evident that she belongs to the breed of forward-thinking and creative educators that use the best practices of well researched pedagogy. She is an enthusiastic professor who strives to diversify her teaching. Her lectures are engaging and interactive and leverage the use of ‘pair and share’ and the ‘Audience Response Poll’ systems.She incorporates student-centric, active learning sessions that encourage higher order thinking and application."
CONGRATULATIONS TO BOTH DR. PAMELA REDMOND AND DR. CHITRA PAI.
TUC Innovative Teaching Award Winners: Congratulations Drs. Gloria Klapstein, Carinne Brody, and Elena Lingas
The Office of the Provost and the Center for Innovative Learning and Teaching announce the winners of the first annual TUC Innovation in Teaching Awards.
Congratulations to Drs. Gloria Kapstein and Carinne Brody, who each receive a $500 award for their innovations at the course/curriculum level, and to Dr. Elena Lingas, who will receive a $250 award for her innovation at the assignment level.
Not only will each recipient receive a monetary prize, they also each receive a plaque commemorating their achievements in innovative teaching.
Below is information about each of the award recipients, and their innovations in teaching.
Dr. Gloria Klapstein
is awarded a $500 Innovative Teaching Award for her work at the course/curriculum level. Dr. Klapstein is an Associate Professor of Basic Science in the College of Osteopathic Medicine. She has been employed at Touro University California since 2004.She was nominated for the award by Dr. Greg Gayer, Chair of the Basic Science Department in the College of Osteopathic Medicine.
Dr. Klapstein's award encompasses numerous innovations including: 1.A Canvas Site Model for Integrated System Courses; 2.New technology implementation in a new online format; 3.A mechanism for formative online question review after high stakes assessment; and 4.Incorporation of TrueLearn assessments into curriculum.
In his nomination letter, Dr Gayer states "... I can assuredly state that Dr. Gloria Klapstein’s course coordinating contributions, during the dynamic COVID period and
all the mandatory immediate adaptive changes, not only deserve considerations for innovation but also deserve a medal of valor for going above and beyond in producing
creative innovative solutions that allowed the entire COM course content delivery and assessment to be successful."
Included in her nominations were comments from numerous students, including "Dr. Klapstein is an absolute beacon of light, and this semester would not have run so smoothly if it was not for her showing up day in and day out and making sure all the recordings were correct, grades came out on time, and questions were answered in a timely fashion. Dr. Klapstein attended almost every single lecture to make
sure all ran well and her commitment always brought a smile to my face. I hope you realize how much your students appreciated your commitment to making sure we had our resources. Thank you so much Dr. Klapstein, you are truly an amazing educator in every way possible.”
Dr. Carinne Brody
is awarded a $500 Innovative Teaching Award for her work at the course/curriculum level.
Dr. Brody is an Associate Professor in the global health track of the Public Health program in the College of Education and Health Sciences. Dr. Brody has been employed at Touro University California since 2012.
Dr. Brody's innovations focus on use of the flipped teaching method in the MPH Program Evaluation and Quality Improvement course, a core course for all independent, joint and dual Master of Public Health students. In her letter of application, Dr. Brody stated " In the past, all course content was delivered during the regular weekly class times. Students were assigned some reading in preparation for class time, which included lecture and skills application activities in class. Last year, I invested the time to improve this class used the flipped teaching model. Now before each live class, students complete a dynamic online module when they engage with course material and then are given the opportunity to immediately assess their comprehension and apply their skills. As a result, students come to class prepared to apply their new skills in a more meaningful way to their ongoing projects, and I am able to assess understanding before class, so I can target my teaching to areas that need more support and use class time for more advances skills application."
Specific comments about the canvas modules Dr. Brody developed provide a sense of the students' responses:“I loved the canvas modules. They are super organized and had multimedia that was helpful!”and “I like the immediate quizzes so I know how I am doing.”
Furthermore, Dr. Brody stated "Using this flipped model, I know exactly where my students are in terms of their comprehension of the material on an individual basis before each live class. I no longer have to wonder, “Are they getting it?”or ask into a sea of blank faces, “Any questions?”I have their quiz scores, their discussion posts, and their skills tests available to confirm that they understand the main concepts and are ready for the next step. We have the time to apply their new skills to their own program evaluation plan which they work on iteratively all semester long. We also have the time to build community and give each other support by sharing about their projects and process."
Dr. Elena Lingas
is awarded a $250 Innovative Teaching Award at the assignment level. Dr. Lingas is an Associate Professor in the Public Health program in the College of Education and Health Sciences. She has been employed at Touro since 2009. Dr. Lingas is receiving this award for her innovation of the final course project, which replaced the final exam in the Health Policy and Management course, which is required for all Master of Public Health students.
In her application, Dr. Lingas stated "I am most proud of the pivot I made near the end of an exhausting semester to throw out the multiple choice/short answer final exam and to instead create a completely new, and dare I say creative, assignment. I devised a final exam assignment
that asked students to: 1) pick a topic we had covered in class for which their thinking had changed; 2) explain what they had previously thought about this issue and why they had thought this way; what were the influences on their thinking? 3) explain what they now think about this topic,
and what aspects of the class influenced their thinking; and 4) to imagine a specific future professional career for themselves and how this new knowledge would impact this future work.They could present the information as follows: 1) a 3 minute or less direct talk into the camera; 2) a PowerPoint presentation with voiceover wherein they did not need to show their face on camera, again at 3 minutes or less; 3) a 3 page paper; or 4) a concept map.Students performed much better on this assignment then they likely would have on a final exam."
5 Things You Should Do First Thing In The Morning To Be Happier All Day (2 minute read)
Here is a brief article from the Huffington Post about creating positive morning habits.
Hope some of you find this of value.
How to Stop Catastrophizing: An Expert’s Guide
Vision and Breathing May Be the Secrets to Surviving 2020
In a recent article by Jessica Wapner (November 16, 2020) in Scientific American,
Stanford neurobiologist Andrew Huberman discusses the two things we can always control,
even during a high-stress election and scary COVID pandemic.
Important Canvas Tech Tip - Rich Content Editor
On behalf of Debbie Millican, EdS Instructional Technology - Instructional Designer: Touro University Nevada
Canvas will go to the new rich content editor in January 2021. You may get acquainted with the changes now by going to your Canvas course settings and toggling on the RCE Enhancements under the Features tab.
Below is an excellent YouTube video explaining all the RCE changes.
Virtual Reality Creates New Worlds for Education Students BY ELIZABETH GANGEMI
VIRTUAL REALITY IN EDUCATION
Education is driving the future of VR more than any other industry outside of gaming. Here's why virtual reality gets such high marks for tutoring, STEM development, field trips and distance education.
Virtual reality can help make people more compassionate compared to other media, new Stanford study finds..
Stanford researchers found that people who underwent a virtual reality experience, called “Becoming Homeless,” were more empathetic toward the homeless and more likely to sign a petition in support of affordable housing than other study participants. The research was supported by a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
How VR is Improving Empathy Between Healthcare Professionals and Patients
Encouraging Student Engagement During Synchronous Meetings: Preventing Midterm Drop-Off
Some students become busy, overwhelmed, or unmotivated by the middle of the semester. This phenomenon has become even more apparent with COVID-19 protocols. Which is why building a community of learners has become so important despite physical distancing, but it’s also much more challenging. The following presents six scenarios with strategies and ideas to encourage accountability and build in motivation from the start of the semester so the momentum continues until the end.
Tips on Creating a Virtual Student Experience in 2020 by Rebecca Rozakis
How can schools create a virtual student experience outside the classroom? From student groups to admissions and alumni relations, get tips on getting your full campus experience online despite Coronavirus.
“Mind the gap”: Critical insights on the urgent transition to online learning in a time of crisis By Dianne Conrad
How to Build Community in a Zoom Class With Personal Essays by Rachel Toor (Credit- Dr Barbour)
Your students are Zoomed out. Here’s a way to help them connect to you and to one another.
Are You Working? How to Save Time on Grading and Doomscrolling By Rebecca Schuman (Credit- Dr Barbour)
Creating Magic in Your (Online) Classroom by Kenya Jenkins Fletcher (Credit- Dr Barbour)
5 Ways Medical Virtual Reality Is Already Changing Healthcare
Virtual reality is being labeled the 4th wave of computer technology. Many feel it is the future of both education and health care. This article demonstrates and explains how VR is already being used in the field of health care.
This is a quick read explaining VR and some of its current application. There are some cool short videos embedded in the article.
Our HyFlex Experiment: What’s Worked and What Hasn’t by Kevin Gannon (Credit- Dr Barbour)
Armed with a can-do spirit, faculty members leaped into hybrid teaching this fall. The results have been decidedly mixed.
25 Strategies to Engage Students on Your Next Zoom Meeting (Credit- Dr Barbour)
Now that we have all been thrust into the world of online learning, we have to figure out ways as educators to engage our students when they are online. Some of the first things schools did when shifting to remote learning was to hold regular video meetings with their students. These can vary based on the ages of the students and the frequency of when a teacher interacts with their students, but most teachers realized quickly that they can’t use the same behavioral strategies (like proximity) that they use in a physical classroom. This can lead to a lack of student engagement and involvement in what is trying to be taught regardless of age.
These 25 strategies listed here are not meant to take the place of deeper learning. That kind of learning is generally better when done with a mix of asynchronous learning. That said, in order to get our students to that deeper state of learning with greater depth of knowledge (DOK) levels, we need to make sure they are engaged when we have synchronous conversations and discussions. Some of these strategies take little set-up while others might take more time and energy to make them really successful. The purpose of these tools is to draw students into the lesson/activity and make them engaged and looking forward to your next virtual class meeting.
Designing for Kindness – Kona Jones (Credit- Dr Barbour)
When students feel like their teacher cares about them as a person, as well as their success in the course, it creates a foundation of trust that promotes meaningful interactions and learning. This session covers what this learning environment looks like, how it functions, and the impact on student learning.
Raising Student Motivation During the Pandemic (by Shruti Nagpal, PhD)
10 Ways to Make Online Learning More Engaging - Sean Nufer (Credit- Dr Barbour)
4 New Zoom Features Educators Can Use to Enhance Virtual Teaching & Learning (Credit- Dr Barbour)
Hey, teachers! Zoom has a bunch of features you can use to better manage the online teaching experience, and we just rolled out four brand-new ones! Here’s how our features will help you teach — and students learn — over Zoom.
Zoomtopia (Credit- Dr Barbour)
The Real Issue Isn’t Student Engagement (Credit- Dr Barbour)
6 Quick Ways to Be More Inclusive in a Virtual Classroom (Credit- Dr Barbour)
How do you create online or hybrid courses with an ethos of inclusion and equity embedded throughout?
Teaching: How Professors Can Help Students Get Through the Semester by Beth McMurtrie (Credit- Dr Barbour)
Managing the Chat in Online Teaching (Credit- Dr Barbour)
Due to the pandemic, educators have had to make adjustments to their classroom delivery, including utilizing online venues such as Zoom, Google Talk, or CANVAS. While the use of these platforms aid in synchronous learning, they present one issue which differs from the in-person learning environment: the chat feature.
As an online educator, there are many things you have to be mindful of as you conduct your classroom. You wear many hats during an online session: you are the host of the meeting, you are teaching or running the show, and you may elect to use additional technology such as online polling software to encourage student engagement. At this point, you may find yourself overwhelmed. Then, you notice, in the corner of your eye, a flurry of activity in the chat. How do you handle the chat on top of these other responsibilities when the comments and questions are coming in so quickly? This is where strategies of streamers on Twitch, YouTube, and Facebook can be used to your advantage.
FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT
Formative Assessment help instructors identify concepts that students are struggling to understand.
Syncing with Students: Valuable Qualities of Synchronous Online Teaching (Credit- Dr Barbour)
Examining Students’ Confidence to Learn Online, Self-Regulation Skills and Perceptions of Satisfaction and Usefulness of Online Classes by Brittany Landrum (Credit- Dr Barbour)
Playing Music and Videos through Zoom.
Storing Zoom Recordings And Transcription
Some information on Zoom Webinar.
Five Essential Strategies to Embrace Culturally Responsive Teaching.
Being culturally responsive is a critical and necessary feature of our interactions with one another. It is also vitally important in the context of education. Culturally responsive teaching is an approach that “empowers students intellectually, socially, emotionally, and politically by using cultural referents to impart knowledge, skills, and attitudes” (Ladson-Billings, 2014). The following practices provide five essential strategies for how educators can make their learning environments more culturally responsive.
1. Know your students
2. Be aware of your own personal biases
3. Transform your pedagogy and curriculum
4. Respect and reinforce student culture
5. Involve family and community
Blended Learning
Blended Learning Toolkit
- This Blended Learning Toolkit is a free, open resource for educational institutions interested in developing or expanding their blended learning initiatives. The website includes: a blog where people share ideas, a detailed section focusing on the process of building a blended course, model courses, a section on effective practices, evaluation resources, and a section on current research.
Universal Design for Learning
Universal Design in Higher Education
- According to the website, "Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is a set of principles for curriculum development that give all individuals equal opportunities to learn. UDL provides a blueprint for creating instructional goals, methods, materials, and assessments that work for everyone--not a single, one-size-fits-all solution but rather flexible approaches that can be customized and adjusted for individual needs." For those of you designing new courses or new curricula, or if you are planning on revamping your course when the campus transitions from BlackBoard to Canvas, Universal Design for Learning is a great place to start.
Student Centered Learning
Naïve Task
- The Chronicle of Higher Education publishes a weekly newsletter focusing on effective teaching in Higher Education, entitled “Welcome to Teaching." Here is an example of one article that may be of interest to you, which focuses on activating students’ curiosity.
Prezi - Carl Rogers: Student-Centered Learning and Learner-Centered
- Briefly, Rogers believed that the most important aspect of effective teaching was the development of trust between the teacher and the student. Trust could be built when the teacher demonstrated empathy, unconditional positive regard, and genuineness towards her or his students.