Teaching and Learning
‘Procrastination-Friendly’ Academe Needs More Deadlines (Susan D’Agostino, Inside Higher Ed, February 10, 2023): Some faculty members believe eliminating deadlines optimizes flexibility for students. But cognitive psychology research suggests that students fare better academically and personally under numerous short-term deadlines.
Strategies for Increasing Instructor Presence (Shanda Hood, Faculty Focus, February 10, 2023): Student perceptions of their instructors’ attitude toward them has been shown to be a predictor of student motivation (Wilson J. H., 2006).
Microlectures 101: What, Why, & How? (Tolulope Noah, Faculty Focus, February 13, 2023): Traditional instructional videos are often long, address a variety of content, or lack meaningful opportunities for students to engage with the content. So, what is a good alternative? Enter microlectures.
Students Demand Endless Flexibility — but Is It What They Need? (Beckie Supiano, Chronicle Of Higher Education, February 13, 2023): Students expect ‘total flexibility’ in the pandemic-era classroom. But is that really what they need?
Tips from students on how to film engaging videos| THE Campus Learn, Share, Connect (Keith Pressey, Times Higher Ed., February 9, 2023): A discussion thread on making videos became Keith Pressey’s most successful post in 13 years of teaching – here he shares the key takeaways from the exercise.
Introducing Teaching and Learning Hubs (Karen A. Stout and Audrey J. Jaeger, Inside Higher Education, February 16, 2023): New avenue for fostering teaching and learning through strategic planning, increasing networks to increase student success.
An examination of student engagement in the classroom (Stephanie Foster and Kirk Ambrose, Times Higher Education, February 16, 2023): An exploration of what student engagement means for different individuals and how to support and assess it in the classroom.
The State of Higher Education
Tuition Revenue Has Fallen at 61% of Colleges During the Pandemic (Jacquelyn Elias, Inside Higher Ed, February 9, 2023): Net-tuition revenue — the money that institutions earn through enrollment minus any discounts and allowances provided to students — is the lifeblood of many universities.
DEI and STEMM
Fighting Racism in STEMM (Ryan Quinn, Inside Higher Education, February 15, 2023): Support of systemic changes to better support minority groups for STEMM education and advancing their careers in STEMM workplaces.
Affirmative Action and the Supreme Court
What If Colleges Lose at Supreme Court? (Scott Jaschik, Inside Higher Ed, February 6, 2023): Some colleges are starting to plan for what is widely expected to happen: the end of affirmative action. They just aren’t saying so.
More on AI & ChaptGPT
Let’s Stop Talking About ChatGPT (John Warner, Inside Higher Education, February 15, 2023): Examining alternative non-writing methods to defeat the demand for ChatGPT; moving forward rather than remaining on the concern.
Students’ Adoption of AI-based teacher-bots (T-bots) for learning in higher education (Rajasshrie Pillai, Brijesh Sivathanu, Bhimaraya Metri, Neeraj Kaushik, Information Technology & People, January 20, 2023): Paper exploring and investigating student adoption and usage of AI and Teacher bot technology.
Podcasts
Faculty Focus Podcast: Episode 53: Your Class is SO Tough: Addressing Academic Rigor and a Growth Mindset This podcast discusses ways you can foster growth mindset in your own course to improve learning and how you can make connections with your students to emphasize the task at hand.
ACE Podcast: The Culture Wars Have Come for American Higher Ed. Again. (aired Feb 9, 2022): PEN America’s Nadine Farid Johnson joins the podcast to talk about the status of “educational gag orders” at the state level, or the legislative efforts to restrict K-12 and college teaching on topics like race, gender, American history, and LGBTQ+ identities. Beyond instruction, we’re also now seeing potential restrictions on tenure, gag orders on reproductive health, and services provided to transgender students. What does the upswing in action mean in the lead up to the 2024 election? Could these gag orders happen at the federal level?
What Works Conference at Kenyon
The Center for Innovative Pedagogy at Kenyon College invites presentations on teaching and learning for the 2023 What Works virtual conference, to be held the week of May 30-June 2, 2023. They are considering all proposals that would apply to undergraduate education at a small college or university, but they especially want to encourage proposals in three areas:
- collaboration between faculty and staff to support student learning
- new applications of educational technology
- courses that employ pedagogies of diversity, equity and inclusion
Proposals are being accepted at https://forms.gle/C7rRj9aQutzRQMWV6 . The deadline to submit is Wednesday, March 1. Please feel free to contact Joe Murphy (murphyjm@kenyon.edu) or Alex Alderman (alderman1@kenyon.edu) to discuss your ideas for a session!
What’s On Your Bookshelf?
Are you reading something (higher ed related or not) that you would like to recommend to your colleagues? Let us know!
Have a short article or some news related to teaching and learning at your institution that you’d like to share with colleagues? Send your contribution along to us. Also, please email Charla White (white@glca.org) if you have colleagues who would like to receive this weekly report.
GLCA/GLAA Consortium for Teaching and Learning
Co-Directors:
Steven Volk (steven.Volk@oberlin.edu)
Colleen Monahan Smith (smith@glca.org)
Charla White (white@glca.org)