December 2023
Faculty have recently been bombarded with a dizzying array of apps, platforms, and other widgets that may or may not be the Next Big Thing in
The rapid rise of livestream content development and consumption has been nothing short of remarkable. According to Ceci (2022), 126.7 million users in the United States viewed livestreaming
Feedback on performance has proven to be one of the most important influences on learning, but students consistently report that they want and need far more feedback than
Love ’em or hate ’em, student evaluations of teaching (SETs) are here to stay. Parts one and two of this series explored discussing SETs’ bias in the classroom; here, in the final installment, I offer three not-so-obvious
Since January, I have led multiple faculty development sessions on generative AI for faculty at my university. Attitudes from faculty at these events have ranged from concerned to frustrated, overwhelmed to worried, as well as a sense of grim resignation (to be fair, there were
Does your class end with a bang or a whimper?
Many of us spend a lot of time crafting the perfect first day of class to ensure we set the right tone and build community. We then pay close attention to how we structure and script
“If identity and integrity are more fundamental to good teaching than technique—and if we want to grow as teachers—we must do something alien to academic culture: we must talk to each other about our inner lives—risky stuff in a profession that fears the personal and seeks safety in the technical, the distant, the abstract.”
I probably shouldn’t admit this, but when I was just beginning my teaching career, I had one clear goal on
Our reader-submitted collection of syllabi and ideas about them contains any number of interesting ways of handling the small syllabus
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Love ’em or hate ’em, student evaluations of teaching (SETs) are here to stay. Parts one and two of this series explored discussing SETs’ bias in the classroom; here, in the final installment, I offer three not-so-obvious ways to put your students’ feedback to work.
Since January, I have led multiple faculty development sessions on generative AI for faculty at my university. Attitudes from faculty at these events have ranged from concerned to frustrated, overwhelmed to worried, as well as a sense of grim resignation (to be fair, there were a small number of us excited and eager). In defense of the less-than-positive reactions, faculty had just started coming out the other side of the pandemic when ChatGPT dropped last November. Even as faculty attend workshops and webinars on the latest practical tips for dealing with AI, we also need to be mindful of the prevailing attitudes toward and narratives about generative AI.
Does your class end with a bang or a whimper?
Many of us spend a lot of time crafting the perfect first day of class to ensure we set the right tone and build community. We then pay close attention to how we structure and script each class session, whether for the 20–30 times we have our face-to-face classes or for weekly modules in our online courses. As the end of the term or semester draws near, we are tired. During fall term, teaching the last few weeks of class seems especially exhausting. We may have been teased by a Thanksgiving break only to turn around and get back in the saddle to finish the class. Too often, our endings are rushed. We end when the content is covered. Whimper.
Faculty have recently been bombarded with a dizzying array of apps, platforms, and other widgets that may or may not be the Next Big Thing in college education. Though such novel technologies deserve attention, our aim here is to delve into a much older, frequently used, but often misunderstood vehicle for learning: dramatic film. Combined, we have decades of experience teaching cinema-based courses and publishing on the medium. We have a good sense of what students think of dramatic films, as well as academics’ attitudes toward them. Our goal here is to provide insights into approaching this resource successfully and to warn against misuses and pitfalls.
The rapid rise of livestream content development and consumption has been nothing short of remarkable. According to Ceci (2022), 126.7 million users in the United States viewed livestreaming content on mobile devices in 2019; the same year, 23 percent of Americans livestreamed content themselves. In other words, a vast segment of the US population finds livestream content valuable to both consume and create. Not surprisingly, Gen Z students are heavy livestream users (Huang, 2022). Considering the sheer popularity of livestreaming platforms, especially among those of traditional college age, educators should pay attention to these phenomena and even try to garner a few teaching strategies that may align with livestream content.
Feedback on performance has proven to be one of the most important influences on learning, but students consistently report that they want and need far more feedback than they get from their instructors (Hattie & Zierer, 2019). One of the main reasons for this relates to the distinction between feed back and feed forward. The former provides information on past performance (Wiggins, 2012); the latter tells students what they need to know or do differently to improve future performance.
