Teaching and Learning
What If Writing Is Transitional? (Matt Reed, Inside Higher Ed, June 23, 2023): How can we encourage deep engagement if writing is rendered obsolete?
Supporting First-Year Students in their Educational Journey (Marva Brewington, Tierney King, Dorian Rhea Debussy, Kristin Ziska Strange, Faculty Focus Live). Being purposeful in your course design for first year students, from studying habits to evaluations, and ways to help first-year students engage in discussion and increase confidence in their abilities. Transcript and Podcast (18 min.)
Why Do Underrepresented Students Struggle to Get the Math They Need for College? (Daniel Mollenkamp, EdSurge, June 22, 2023): Students who don’t know that colleges prioritize calculus find themselves at a disadvantage in college admissions, according to “Integral Voices: Examining Math Experiences of Underrepresented Students,” a recent report from Just Equations, a California-based policy institute focused on making math more equitable.
The Soft-Pants Effect (Monica Chrambach Kucich and Jenny Weil Malatras, Inside Higher Ed, June 21, 2023): The authors explore why students are struggling and often disengaged – and offer some advice on how we can help.
To Improve Student Retention, Some Colleges Consider ‘Ungrading’ (Ki Sung, NPR, June 17, 2023): Some colleges are ditching letter grades for first year students.
AI and Higher Ed
Reckoning with ChatGPT (Beth McMurtrie, Chronicle of Higher Education, June 22, 2023): McMurtrie shares her readers’ experiences with generative AI in the classroom.
Assigning AI: Seven Approaches for Students, with Prompts (Ethan R. Mollick and Lilach Mollick, SSRN, June 21, 2023): Seven approaches for utilizing AI in classrooms: AI-tutor, AI-coach, AI-mentor, AI-teammate, AI-tool, AI-simulator, and AI-student, each with distinct pedagogical benefits and risks.
Building the New Model for Teaching and Learning (Ray Schroeder, Inside Higher Ed, June 21, 2023): Open AI, assisted by Khan Academy, is building a new model for teaching and learning, to be called Open AI Academy. At the center of the model is generative AI.
The Education Department Outlines What It Wants from AI (Daniel Mollenkamp, EdSurge, June 2, 2023): An article on the Department of Education’s recent report on AI and the future of teaching and learning.
The Liberal Arts
Top Hurdle for Kalamazoo Promise Isn’t Sending Kids to College. It’s Getting Them to Finish (Julie Mack, MLive, June 13, 2023): Since the first class in 2006, more than 9,500 students have qualified for The Promise. About 43% are white, 40% are Black, 9% are Hispanic. Almost 90% of Promise-eligible students have enrolled in. But there is a big racial gap in postsecondary completion rates.
Higher Ed
Is College Worth It? Recent Analysis Says Yes (Jessica Blake, Inside Higher Ed, June 22, 2023): According to a report released by the Institution for Higher Education Policy Wednesday, a college degree still has value for about 93 percent of students.
Affirmative Action
With ‘Armageddon’ Looming, a Last Look at the Legal Fault Lines in Race-Conscious Admissions (Eric Hoover, Chronicle of Higher Education, June 21, 2023): The conclusion here could include nuances that complicate, or even temper, the plaintiffs’ anticipated victory.
How White People Stole Affirmative Action – And Ensured Its Demise (Evan Mandery, Politico, June 16, 2023): If elite colleges owned up to their racism, the Supreme Court might rule differently.
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 Colleen Monahan Smith (smith@glca.org) if you have colleagues who would like to receive this weekly report.
Steven Volk (steven.volk@oberlin.edu), Editor
GLCA/GLAA Consortium for Teaching and Learning
Co-Directors:
Lew Ludwig (ludwigl@denison.edu)
Colleen Monahan Smith (smith@glca.org)