Managing Adjunct Faculty by
If your institution's cohort of adjuncts is like most, it's been put together on an ad hoc basis based on instructional needs. As a result, you might be lacking the proper framework to support and manage those adjuncts. That can be a problem. In addition to creating an atmosphere of inefficiency and uncertainty, the absence of sound oversight can lead to issues ranging from declining retention to poor student outcomes. Fortunately, recent years have seen the establishment of best practices in adjunct management, and you'll find a wealth of them in Managing Adjunct Faculty: A Resource Collection for Administrators. This compendium of articles drawn from the newsletters Academic Leader, Recruitment and Retention, and Distance Education Report features some of higher education's leading voices offering guidance and perspective on adjunct management. The book includes sections dedicated to adjuncts working in both traditional and online classrooms. It covers issues including: Retaining and supporting adjuncts Monitoring performance and resource needs Developing policies for adjunct support Identifying professional development opportunities that engage adjunct faculty Getting online adjuncts on board quickly and effectively Supporting adjuncts in small online programs Understanding the impact of adjuncts on admissions Equipping adjuncts with tools for online success Managing Adjunct Faculty: A Resource Collection for Administrators also contains supplemental resources, including an adjunct training and development topic list, reflection questions, online teaching competencies checklists, and evaluation forms for identifying teaching competencies. Give your adjuncts the management and support they need to succeed. Bulk Purchases To purchase multiple print copies of this book, visit www.MagnaGroupBooks.com
Essential Teaching Principles: A Resource Collection for Adjunct Faculty by
You enter the classroom as a subject-matter expert--but not necessarily as a teaching expert. You face the daunting prospect of quickly getting up to speed on teaching's myriad responsibilities. To compound the challenge, formal training for adjuncts is often scarce or spotty at best. What are you to do, then, to acquire the skills and knowledge necessary for classroom success? Essential Teaching Principles: A Resource Collection for Adjunct Faculty was created to meet that very need. It provides a wealth of both research-driven and classroom-tested best practices to help adjuncts develop the knowledge and skills required to run a successful classroom. A collection of dozens of articles drawn from the pages of The Teaching Professor newsletter, this helpful guide was compiled and edited to ensure student success by Maryellen Weimer, PhD, the newsletter's longtime editor and an award-winning professor emerita of teaching and learning at Penn State Berks. Featuring contributions from an exceptional assembly of experienced educators, Essential Teaching Principles: A Resource Collection for Adjunct Faculty is organized into seven chapters, each focused on a core aspect of teaching: Mastering instruction essentials Designing courses Advancing student learning Creating an optimal learning climate Constructing meaningful assessments Giving students feedback Teaching online Throughout the guide, you will find careful examinations of a wide range of issues critical to classroom success. These include: Build a syllabus Use active learning to keep students engaged "Right-size" course content Develop meaningful assignments Manage a classroom Develop a "teaching persona" Create a good climate for learning Develop effective exams and quizzes Protect academic integrity Make grading both meaningful and manageable For those whose work also takes them into the online classroom, there is an entire chapter devoted to the fundamentals of teaching in that space as well. Compact and reader-friendly, Essential Teaching Principles: A Resource Collection for Adjunct Faculty is conveniently organized to serve as a ready reference whenever a new teaching challenge arises--whether it's refreshing older course design, overcoming a student's objection to a grade, or fine-tuning assessments. And because each of its dozens of articles include references and resource lists, it's easy to pursue a given subject in even greater depth. Essential Teaching Principles: A Resource Collection for Adjunct Faculty lets you enter the classroom as confident in your teaching ability as you are in your subject-matter knowledge. It's an important step forward in your professional development. Bulk Purchases To purchase multiple print copies of this book, visit www.MagnaGroupBooks.com
33 Simple Strategies for Faculty by
Winner of the 2020 Scholarly Contributions to Teaching and Learning Award from the American Sociological Association. Many students struggle with the transition from high school to university life. This is especially true of first-generation college students, who are often unfamiliar with the norms and expectations of academia. College professors usually want to help, but many feel overwhelmed by the prospect of making extra time in their already hectic schedules to meet with these struggling students. 33 Simple Strategies for Faculty is a guidebook filled with practical solutions to this problem. It gives college faculty concrete exercises and tools they can use both inside and outside of the classroom to effectively bolster the academic success and wellbeing of their students. To devise these strategies, educational sociologist Lisa M. Nunn talked with a variety of first-year college students, learning what they find baffling and frustrating about their classes, as well as what they love about their professors' teaching. Combining student perspectives with the latest research on bridging the academic achievement gap, she shows how professors can make a difference by spending as little as fifteen minutes a week helping their students acculturate to college life. Whether you are a new faculty member or a tenured professor, you are sure to find 33 Simple Strategies for Faculty to be an invaluable resource.
The Cambridge Handbook of Instructional Feedback by
This book brings together leading scholars from around the world to provide their most influential thinking on instructional feedback. The chapters range from academic, in-depth reviews of the research on instructional feedback to a case study on how feedback altered the life-course of one author. Furthermore, it features critical subject areas - including mathematics, science, music, and even animal training - and focuses on working at various developmental levels of learners. The affective, non-cognitive aspects of feedback are also targeted; such as how learners react emotionally to receiving feedback. The exploration of the theoretical underpinnings of how feedback changes the course of instruction leads to practical advice on how to give such feedback effectively in a variety of diverse contexts. Anyone interested in researching instructional feedback, or providing it in their class or course, will discover why, when, and where instructional feedback is effective and how best to provide it.
The Case for the Humanities: Pedagogy, Polity, Interdisciplinarity by
Countering the perception that the humanities are unessential, this volume contends that their well-being has not only academic but also cultural, political, and existential ramifications. Our technologically-driven world possesses the means of its own destruction, while economic and financial policies undermine the very existence of our democracy. At the same time, the postmodern and post-human age fundamentally challenges our ability and legitimacy to conceive future ideals. It is within this context that the humanities provide essential paths through which the teaching and knowledge of other academic fields such as STEM and economics must be re-envisioned. In short, the humanities must be brought back to the center of academic life. The political and pedagogical implications of this interdisciplinary study thus entail a renewed critique to rethink the relation between higher education, society, and the world at large (politically, economically, scientifically, and technologically) and the importance of the humanities within it. At the heart of this reconsideration, the humanities' and humanity's fate and future become one.
Collaborative Learning Techniques by
A guide to thirty-five creative assignments for pairs and groups Collaborative Learning Techniques is the bestseller that college and university faculty around the world have used to help them make the most of small group learning. A mountain of evidence shows that students who learn in small groups together exhibit higher academic achievement, motivation, and satisfaction than those who don't. Collaborative learning puts into practice the major conclusion from learning theory: that students must be actively engaged in building their own minds. In this book, the authors synthesize the relevant research and theory to support thirty-five collaborative learning activities for use in both traditional and online classrooms. This second edition reflects the changed world of higher education. New technologies have opened up endless possibilities for college teaching, but it's not always easy to use these technologies effectively. Updated to address the challenges of today's new teaching environments, including online, "flipped," and large lectures, Collaborative Learning Techniques is a wonderful reference for educators who want to make the most of any course environment. This revised and expanded edition includes: Additional techniques, with an all-new chapter on using games to provide exciting, current, technologically-sophisticated curricula A section on effective online implementation for each of the thirty-five techniques Significantly expanded pedagogical rationale and updates on the latest research showing how and why collaborative learning works Examples for implementing collaborative learning techniques in a variety of learning environments, including large lecture classes and "flipped" classes Expanded guidance on how to solve common problems associated with group work The authors guide instructors through all aspects of group work, providing a solid grounding in what to do, how to do it, and why it is important for student learning. The detailed procedures in Collaborative Learning Techniques will help teachers make sure group activities go smoothly, no matter the size or delivery method of their classes. With practical advice on how to form student groups, assign roles, build team spirit, address unexpected problems, and evaluate and grade student participation, this new edition of the international classic makes incorporating effective group work easy.
Design, Make, Play: Growing the Next Generation of STEM Innovators
"Design, Make, Play: Growing the Next Generation of STEM Innovators is a resource for practitioners, policymakers, researchers and program developers that illuminates creative, cutting edge ways to inspire and motivate young people about science and technology learning. The book is aligned with the National Research Council's new Framework for Science Education, which includes an explicit focus on engineering and design content, as well as integration across disciplines. Extensive case studies explore real world examples of innovative programs that take place in a variety of settings, including schools, museums, community centers, and virtual spaces. Design, Make, and Play are presented as learning methodologies that have the power to rekindle children's intrinsic motivation and innate curiosity about STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) fields. A digital companion app showcases rich multimedia that brings the stories and successes of each program's and the students who learn there's to life"--|cProvided by publisher.
Design for How People Learn by
Products, technologies, and workplaces change so quickly today that everyone is continually learning. Many of us are also teaching, even when it's not in our job descriptions. Whether it's giving a presentation, writing documentation, or creating a website or blog, we need and want to share our knowledge with other people. But if you've ever fallen asleep over a boring textbook, or fast-forwarded through a tedious e-learning exercise, you know that creating a great learning experience is harder than it seems. In Design For How People Learn, you'll discover how to use the key principles behind learning, memory, and attention to create materials that enable your audience to both gain and retain the knowledge and skills you're sharing. Using accessible visual metaphors and concrete methods and examples, Design For How People Learn will teach you how to leverage the fundamental concepts of instructional design both to improve your own learning and to engage your audience.
Developing Faculty Learning Communities at Two-Year Colleges by
This book introduces community college faculty and faculty developers to the use of faculty learning communities (FLCs) as a means for faculty themselves to investigate and surmount student learning problems they encounter in their classrooms, and as an effective and low-cost strategy for faculty developers working with few resources to stimulate innovative teaching that leads to student persistence and improved learning outcomes. Two-year college instructors face the unique challenge of teaching a mix of learners, from the developmental to high-achievers, that requires using a variety of instructional strategies and techniques. Even the most experienced teachers can find this diversity demanding. Faculty developers at many two-year colleges still rely solely on the one-day workshop model that, while useful, rarely results in sustained student-centered changes in pedagogy or the curriculum, and may not be practicable for the growing cohort of part-time faculty members. By linking work in the classroom with scholarship and reflection, FLCs provide participants with a sense of renewed engagement and stimulate collegial exploration of ways to achieve educational excellence. FLCs are usually faculty-instigated and cross-disciplinary, and comprise groups of six to fifteen faculty that work collaboratively through regular meetings over an extended period of time to promote research and an exchange of experiences, foster community, and develop the scholarship of teaching. FLCs alleviate burnout and isolation, promote the development, testing, and peer review of new classroom strategies or technologies, and lead to the reenergizing and professionalization of teachers. This book introduces the reader to FLCs and to the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, offering examples of application in two-year colleges. Individual chapters describe, among others, an FLC set up to support course redesign; an "Adjunct Connectivity FLC" to integrate part-time faculty within a department and collaborate on the curriculum; a cross-disciplinary FLC to promote student self-regulated learning, and improve academic performance and persistence; a critical thinking FLC that sought to define critical thinking in separate disciplines, examine interdisciplinary cross-over of critical thinking, and measure critical thinking more accurately; an FLC that researched the transfer of learning and developed strategies to promote students' application of their learning across courses and beyond the classroom. Each chapter describes the formation of its FLC, the processes it engaged in, what worked and did not, and the outcomes achieved. Just as when college faculty fail to remain current in their fields, the failure to engage in continuing development of teaching skills, will equally lead teaching and learning to suffer. When two-year college administrators restrain scholarship and reflection as inappropriate for the real work of the institution they are in fact hindering the professionalization of their teaching force that is essential to institutional mission and student success. When FLCs are supported by leaders and administrators, and faculty learn that collaboration and peer review are valued and even expected as part of being a teaching professional, they become intrinsically motivated and committed to collaboratively solving problems, setting the institution on a path to becoming a learning organization that is proactive and adept at navigating change.
Faculty Development: Creating Collaborative Culture in Community Colleges by
Faculty Development: Creating a Collaborative Culture in Community Colleges addresses how faculty developers work with changes and challenges in teaching within the community college context. Using a multi-case study design based on semi-structured interviews, document analysis, focus groups and surveys, the book examines faculty development within six community college contexts. Three of these case studies, conducted before the Covid-19 pandemic, attended to how the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) and Faculty Learning Communities (FLCs) were pillars for faculty development. The other three case studies feature the pivot that faculty developers and faculty made at their institutions in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. In these cases, it is seen how faculty development shifts from long-term, sustained initiatives such as SOTL and FLCs to just-in-time (JiT) faculty development, as well as virtual and collaborative faculty development. As teaching models continue to evolve and faculty development takes hold in community colleges, this book features the role of collaboration as an essential component of faculty development, as well as what supports exist within the community college context to provide faculty with continual professional development.
Flipping the Nursing Classroom: Where Active Learning Meets Technology by
Nurse educators are constantly looking for innovative teaching strategies to meet their students' needs and to improve learning outcomes. Flipping the classroom means that students consume lecture content at home, prior to class and work through what would traditionally be considered homework during class time. The benefit to students is active learning and participation in the classroom alongside fellow students and the instructor.Flipping the Nursing Classroom: Where Active Learning Meets Technology focuses on the flipped learning model in the framework of nursing education. This text serves as a "how-to" guide for instructors, and draws on the author's extensive experience. The text opens by defining the flipped classroom and includes evidence that this technique improves student outcomes. Both learning theory and cognitive load theory are used to demonstrate why the flipped classroom is an effective mode of learning. Nurse educators will learn how to implement this technique as well as how to evaluate student success. While conversational in tone, the text is reinforced by extensive research which shows that flipping the nursing classroom is an evidence-based teaching strategy. Key Features Lectures narrated by the author Learning Objectives Key Terms Case Exemplars
From STEM to STEAM: Using Brain-Compatible Strategies to Integrate the Arts by
A is for arts, and for the advantage students gain when you integrate the arts into daily STEM instruction. As research in cognitive and social neuroscience shows, arts activities enhance creativity, problem solving, memory systems, analytical skills, all critical for achieving STEM success. Now David Sousa, the best-selling author of How the Brain Works, teams up with veteran arts educator Tom Pilecki to bring you: details of brain research connecting STEM and the arts; teacher-tested techniques for fitting the arts into STEM classrooms; sample lesson plans across K-12; a worksheet template for designing your own arts-integrated STEM lessons; tips for managing time and collaborating; real-life examples and anecdotes; and strategies for involving the whole school community in STEAM initiatives. The main objective of both art and science is discovery. Help your students make that connection and STEAM on to academic success.
How Learning Works: Seven Research-Based Principles for Smart Teaching by
Praise for How Learning Works "How Learning Works is the perfect title for this excellent book. Drawing upon new research in psychology, education, and cognitive science, the authors have demystified a complex topic into clear explanations of seven powerful learning principles. Full of great ideas and practical suggestions, all based on solid research evidence, this book is essential reading for instructors at all levels who wish to improve their students' learning." --Barbara Gross Davis, assistant vice chancellor for educational development, University of California, Berkeley, and author, Tools for Teaching "This book is a must-read for every instructor, new or experienced. Although I have been teaching for almost thirty years, as I read this book I found myself resonating with many of its ideas, and I discovered new ways of thinking about teaching." --Eugenia T. Paulus, professor of chemistry, North Hennepin Community College, and 2008 U.S. Community Colleges Professor of the Year from The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and the Council for Advancement and Support of Education "Thank you Carnegie Mellon for making accessible what has previously been inaccessible to those of us who are not learning scientists. Your focus on the essence of learning combined with concrete examples of the daily challenges of teaching and clear tactical strategies for faculty to consider is a welcome work. I will recommend this book to all my colleagues." --Catherine M. Casserly, senior partner, The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching "As you read about each of the seven basic learning principles in this book, you will find advice that is grounded in learning theory, based on research evidence, relevant to college teaching, and easy to understand. The authors have extensive knowledge and experience in applying the science of learning to college teaching, and they graciously share it with you in this organized and readable book." --From the Foreword by Richard E. Mayer, professor of psychology, University of California, Santa Barbara; coauthor, e-Learning and the Science of Instruction; and author, Multimedia Learning
How to Teach Adults: Plan Your Class, Teach Your Students, Change the World by
Your hands-on guide to teaching adults. . . no matter what the subject In this expanded edition of How to Teach Adults, Dan Spalding offers practical teaching and classroom management suggestions that are designed for anyone who works with adult learners, particularly new faculty, adjuncts, those in community colleges, ESL teachers, and graduate students. This reader-friendly resource covers all phases of the teaching process from planning what to teach, to managing a classroom, to growing as a professional in the field. How to Teach Adults can guide new instructors who are trying to get up to speed on their own or can help teacher trainers cover what their students need to know before they get in front of a class. It is filled with down-to-earth tips and checklists on such topics as connecting with adult students, facilitating discussions, and writing tests, plus everything you need to remember to put into your syllabus and how to choose the right textbook. Dan Spalding reveals what it takes to teach all students the skills they need to learn, no matter what the topic or subject matter. Full of vivid examples from real-world classrooms, this edition: Shows how to get started and tips for designing your course Includes information for creating a solid lesson plan Gives suggestions for developing your teacher persona How to Teach Adults offers the framework, ideas, and tools needed to conduct your class or workshop with confidence.
Inclusive College Classrooms by
"Inclusive College Classrooms provides instructors with research-based practices and tools to create an effective and inclusive classroom environment. This important book responds to the current obstacles facing higher education institutions by filling a visible gap in pedagogical training books, as well as in graduate pedagogy courses and new faculty pedagogy orientations, to help instructors improve the methods they are already using, identify new methods that could enhance their courses, and become more confident overall as they develop a discourse for talking about teaching. The authors intersectional approach to teaching, which is informed by both critical and inclusive pedagogy, explains the systemic practices and attitudes in education that exclude oppressed groups and creates an accessible and equitable classroom, where students from historically marginalized groups can feel heard and represented. This timely volume is packed full of example lessons for across a range of disciplines, tips for moving classes online, questions to stimulate thinking about various methods, and appendices on lesson planning. With this book in hand, all instructors, even those who have been teaching for decades, can adapt their current pedagogy to be more inclusive and accessible"--
Interactive Lecturing by
Tips and techniques to build interactive learning into lecture classes Have you ever looked out across your students only to find them staring at their computers or smartphones rather than listening attentively to you? Have you ever wondered what you could do to encourage students to resist distractions and focus on the information you are presenting? Have you ever wished you could help students become active learners as they listen to you lecture? Interactive Lecturing is designed to help faculty members more effectively lecture. This practical resource addresses such pertinent questions as, "How can lecture presentations be more engaging?" "How can we help students learn actively during lecture instead of just sitting and passively listening the entire time?" Renowned authors Elizabeth F. Barkley and Claire H. Major provide practical tips on creating and delivering engaging lectures as well as concrete techniques to help teachers ensure students are active and fully engaged participants in the learning process before, during, and after lecture presentations. Research shows that most college faculty still rely predominantly on traditional lectures as their preferred teaching technique. However, research also underscores the fact that more students fail lecture-based courses than classes with active learning components. Interactive Lecturing combines engaging presentation tips with active learning techniques specifically chosen to help students learn as they listen to a lecture. It is a proven teaching and learning strategy that can be readily incorporated into every teacher's methods. In addition to providing a synthesis of relevant, contemporary research and theory on lecturing as it relates to teaching and learning, this book features 53 tips on how to deliver engaging presentations and 32 techniques you can assign students to do to support their learning during your lecture. The tips and techniques can be used across instructional methods and academic disciplines both onsite (including small lectures and large lecture halls) as well as in online courses. This book is a focused, up-to-date resource that draws on collective wisdom from scholarship and practice. It will become a well-used and welcome addition for everyone dedicated to effective teaching in higher education.
The Missing Course by
Professors know a lot, but they are rarely taught how to teach. The author of the Chronicle of Higher Education's popular "Pedagogy Unbound" column explains everything you need to know to be a successful college instructor. College is changing, but the way we train academics is not. Most professors are still trained to be researchers first and teachers a distant second, even as scholars are increasingly expected to excel in the classroom. There has been a revolution in teaching and learning over the past generation, and we now have a whole new understanding of how the brain works and how students learn. But most academics have neither the time nor the resources to catch up to the latest research or train themselves to be excellent teachers. The Missing Course offers scholars at all levels a field guide to the state of the art in teaching and learning and is packed with invaluable insights to help students learn in any discipline. Wary of the folk wisdom of the faculty lounge, David Gooblar builds his lessons on the newest findings and years of experience. From active-learning strategies to course design to getting students talking, The Missing Course walks you through the fundamentals of the student-centered classroom, one in which the measure of success is not how well you lecture but how much students learn. Along the way, readers will find ideas and tips they can use in their classrooms right away.
On My Own by
On My Own: The Challenge and Promise of Building Equitable STEM Transfer Pathways is the first book of its kind to provide a detailed, on-the-ground examination of the difficult paths--curricular, interpersonal, and institutional--that students must chart through community college. The book follows 1,670 two-year college students over four years as they begin STEM programs in the Midwest and documents their educational and life experiences as they moved toward, or away, from the prospect of transfer to a four-year institution. Their stories reveal that they were on their own, left to navigate the pathways to transfer without meaningful institutional support. The students pursued one of four pathways, or momentum trajectories: linear upward, detoured, deferred, or taking a break. The preexisting and lasting disparities in their access to education and financial resources, their experiences with teaching and advising, and the conundrum between support from and for family, among others, propelled them onto different trajectories in their quest for transfer. As this book makes painfully clear, the current state of transfer acts as a mechanism that perpetuates and worsens inequities in educational outcomes. As Xueli Wang argues, to cultivate an equitable STEM transfer pathway, culturally relevant and responsive supports that are accessible, welcoming, and validating must be put in place at the institutional level and appeal to the talent, motivation, and unique needs of historically marginalized students. In doing so, postsecondary institutions will be better positioned to fulfill their promise as an equitable pathway to bachelor's degrees and beyond.
Planning with Purpose: A Handbook for New College Teachers by
New college instructors often are advised, coached, and mentored by department professors who may not have scheduled class time to meet regularly with their novice educators. This book meets many of the principles outlined in the position statements of the Conference on College Composition and Communications and the Council of Writing Program Administrators. The pedagogical stances on which PWP lessons here are based will support the work of the college supervisors. Graduate teaching assistants and new instructors may not know what questions to ask about lesson planning, grading, and classroom management. Some may be teaching in culturally and experientially diverse settings unfamiliar to them. This mentoring handbook describes, but not prescribes, methods, materials, and management strategies that can help maintain morale during that critical first year as a college instructor.
The Power of Making Thinking Visible: Practices to Engage and Empower All Learners by
Making thinking visible is the idea that learning is about making connections between topics, concepts, and activities rather than steps, assignments, and testing. The power of developing thinking routines is the positive impact they have on student engagement and learning. A thinking routine is the pattern by which we operate and go about the job of learning and working together in a classroom environment. A follow up to a best selling title. In the years since Making Thinking Visible (9780470915516; 204,000 units LTD) has published, the author has been working with colleagues at Project Zero, a research group founded within the Harvard Graduate School of Education, to develop and trial new thinking routines to facility student engagement and learning. The result of that research is a new book that focuses on the power that thinking routines can bring to learning.
Specifications Grading: Restoring Rigor, Motivating Students, and Saving Faculty Time by
In her latest book Linda Nilson puts forward an innovative but practical and tested approach to grading that can demonstrably raise academic standards, motivate students, tie their achievement of learning outcomes to their course grades, save faculty time and stress, and provide the reliable gauge of student learning that the public and employers are looking for. She argues that the grading system most commonly in use now is unwieldy, imprecise and unnecessarily complex, involving too many rating levels for too many individual assignments and tests, and based on a hairsplitting point structure that obscures the underlying criteria and encourages students to challenge their grades. This new specifications grading paradigm restructures assessments to streamline the grading process and greatly reduce grading time, empower students to choose the level of attainment they want to achieve, reduce antagonism between the evaluator and the evaluated, and increase student receptivity to meaningful feedback, thus facilitating the learning process - all while upholding rigor. In addition, specs grading increases students' motivation to do well by making expectations clear, lowering their stress and giving them agency in determining their course goals. Among the unique characteristics of the schema, all of which simplify faculty decision making, are the elimination of partial credit, the reliance on a one-level grading rubric and the "bundling" of assignments and tests around learning outcomes. Successfully completing more challenging bundles (or modules) earns a student a higher course grade. Specs grading works equally well in small and large class settings and encourages "authentic assessment." Used consistently over time, it can restore credibility to grades by demonstrating and making transparent to all stakeholders the learning outcomes that students achieve. This book features many examples of courses that faculty have adapted to spec grading and lays out the surprisingly simple transition process. It is intended for all members of higher education who teach, whatever the discipline and regardless of rank, as well as those who oversee, train, and advise those who teach. Specification grading promotes the following values and outcomes. It: 1. Upholds High Academic Standards 2. Reflects Student Attainment of Skills and Knowledge 3. Motivates Students to Learn and to Excel 4. Fosters Higher-Order Cognitive Development and Creativity 5. Discourages Cheating 6. Reduces Student Stress 7. Makes Students Feel Responsible for Their Grades 8. Minimizes Conflict Between Faculty and Students 9. Saves Faculty Time and Is Simple to Administer 10. Makes Expectations Clear and Simplifies Feedback for Improvement 11. Assesses Authentically 12. Achieves High Inter-Rater Agreement
Story Smart: Using the Science of Story to Persuade, Influence, Inspire, and Teach by
This one-of-a-kind book reveals the secrets of a story's power to persuade, inspire, influence, and to teach. * Shows how to use the power of story to get your message across in any medium or venue * Explores the convergence of the neural science of story with the art of communication to reveal the power of words * Provides tips, techniques, and strategies for structuring your stories for the most impact * Reveals the common communication pitfalls to avoid
Teaching Naked by
You've heard about "flipping your classroom"--now find out howto do it! Introducing a new way to think about higher education,learning, and technology that prioritizes the benefits of the humandimension. José Bowen recognizes that technology is profoundlychanging education and that if students are going to continue topay enormous sums for campus classes, colleges will need to providemore than what can be found online and maximize "naked"face-to-face contact with faculty. Here, he illustrates howtechnology is most powerfully used outside the classroom, and, whenused effectively, how it can ensure that students arrive to classmore prepared for meaningful interaction with faculty. Bowen offerspractical advice for faculty and administrators on how to engagestudents with new technology while restructuring classes into moreactive learning environments.
Ungrading: Why Rating Students Undermines Learning (and What to Do Instead) by
The moment is right for critical reflection on what has been assumed to be a core part of schooling. In Ungrading, fifteen educators write about their diverse experiences going gradeless. Some contributors are new to the practice and some have been engaging in it for decades. Some are in humanities and social sciences, some in STEM fields. Some are in higher education, but some are the K-12 pioneers who led the way. Based on rigorous and replicated research, this is the first book to show why and how faculty who wish to focus on learning, rather than sorting or judging, might proceed. It includes honest reflection on what makes ungrading challenging, and testimonials about what makes it transformative. CONTRIBUTORS: Aaron Blackwelder Susan D. Blum Arthur Chiaravalli Gary Chu Cathy N. Davidson Laura Gibbs Christina Katopodis Joy Kirr Alfie Kohn Christopher Riesbeck Starr Sackstein Marcus Schultz-Bergin Clarissa Sorensen-Unruh Jesse Stommel John Warner
What Inclusive Instructors Do by
Inclusive instruction is teaching that recognizes and affirms a student's social identity as an important influence on teaching and learning processes, and that works to create an environment in which students are able to learn from the course, their peers, and the teacher while still being their authentic selves. It works to disrupt traditional notions of whosucceeds in the classroom and the systemic inequities inherent in traditional educational practices.--Full-time Academic Professional, Doctorate-granting University, Education This book uniquely offers the distilled wisdom of scores of instructors across ranks, disciplines and institution types, whose contributions are organized into a thematic framework that progressively introduces the reader to the key dispositions, principles and practices for creating the inclusive classroom environments (in person and online) that will help their students succeed. The authors asked the hundreds of instructors whom they surveyed as part of a national study to define what inclusive teaching meant to them and what inclusive teaching approaches they implemented in their courses. The instructors' voices ring loudly as the authors draw on their responses, building on their experiences and expertise to frame the conversation about what inclusive teachers do. The authors in addition describe their own insights and practices, integrating and discussing current literature relevant to inclusive teaching to ensure a research-supported approach. Inclusive teaching is no longer an option but a vital teaching competency as our classrooms fill with racially diverse, first generation, and low income and working class students who need a sense of belonging and recognition to thrive and contribute to the construction of knowledge. The book unfolds as an informal journey that allows the reader to see into other teachers' practices. With questions for reflection embedded throughout the book, the authors provide the reader with an inviting and thoughtful guide to develop their own inclusive teaching practices. By utilizing the concepts and principles in this book readers will be able to take steps to transform their courses into spaces that are equitable and welcoming, and adopt practical strategies to address the various inclusion issues that can arise. The book will also appeal to educational developers and staff who support instructors in their inclusive teaching efforts. It should find a place in reflective workshops, book clubs and learning communities exploring this important topic.
High-Impact Practices in Online Education by
This volume offers the first comprehensive guide to how high-impact practices (HIPs) are being implemented in online environments and how they can be adjusted to meet the needs of online learners. This multi-disciplinary approach will assist faculty and administrators to effectively implement HIPs in distance education courses and online programs. With a chapter devoted to each of the eleven HIPs, this collection offers guidance that takes into account the differences between e-learners and traditional on-campus students. A primary goal of High-Impact Practices Onlineis to share the ways in which HIPs may need to be amended to meet the needs of online learners. Through specific examples and practical suggestions in each chapter, readers are introduced to concrete strategies for transitioning HIPs to the online environment that can be utilized across a range of disciplines and institution types. Each chapter of High-Impact Practices Onlinealso references the most recent and relevant literature on each HIP so that readers are brought up to date on what makes online HIPs successful. The book provides guidance on how best to implement HIPs to increase retention and completion for online learners.
Becoming a Student-Ready College: A New Culture of Leadership for Student Success by
Boost student success by reversing your perspective on college readiness The national conversation asking "Are students college-ready?" concentrates on numerous factors that are beyond higher education's control. Becoming a Student-Ready College flips the college readiness conversation to provide a new perspective on creating institutional value and facilitating student success. Instead of focusing on student preparedness for college (or lack thereof), this book asks the more pragmatic question of what are colleges and universities doing to prepare for the students who are entering their institutions? What must change in an institution's policies, practices, and culture in order to be student-ready? Clear and concise, this book is packed with insightful discussion and practical strategies for achieving your ambitious student success goals. These ideas for redesigning practices and policies provide more than food for thought--they offer a real-world framework for real institutional change. You'll learn: How educators can acknowledge their own biases and assumptions about underserved students in order to allow for change New ways to advance student learning and success How to develop and value student assets and social capital Strategies and approaches for creating a new student-focused culture of leadership at every level To truly become student-ready, educators must make difficult decisions, face the pressures of accountability, and address their preconceived notions about student success head-on. Becoming a Student-Ready College provides a reality check based on today's higher education environment.
Beyond the Americans with Disabilities Act by
Beyond the Americans with Disabilities Act is a primer and quick reference guide for higher education professionals who work with students with disabilities, both apparent and hidden. Written for administrators, faculty, and staff, the book provides transferable information that is applicable to any campus. Since the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) was enacted, there have been clarifications on the interpretation of the law, as well as a reauthorization act. In particular, the rules governing who is an individual with a disability and what forms of accommodation should be provided to these individuals have undergone profound updates.
Disability As Diversity in Higher Education: Policies and Practices to Enhance Student Success by
Addressing disability not as a form of student impairment--as it is typically perceived at the postsecondary level--but rather as an important dimension of student diversity and identity, this book explores how disability can be more effectively incorporated into college environments. Chapters propose new perspectives, empirical research, and case studies to provide the necessary foundation for understanding the role of disability within campus climate and integrating students with disabilities into academic and social settings. Contextualizing disability through the lens of intersectionality, Disability as Diversity in Higher Education illustrates how higher education institutions can use policies and practices to enhance inclusion and student success.
Grit in the Classroom: Building Perseverance for Excellence in Today's Students by
The combination of sustained hard work and resiliency, grit is the difference between those who give up and those who don't. Grit in the Classroom: Building Perseverance for Excellence in Today's Studentsassists educators in creating a learning environment that fosters grit development for all students, regardless of ability.
MLA Guide to Digital Literacy by
Students face challenges assessing, responding to, and producing information in today's fast-paced, complex digital landscape. This guide helps students understand why digital literacy is a critically important skill: their education, future careers, and participation in democratic processes rely on it. Hands-on, structured activities give students strategies for evaluating the credibility of sources, detecting fake news, understanding bias, and more. Readings and writing prompts support specific concepts, including how to craft a research question and effectively conduct searches. An appendix contains three sample lesson plans.
The New Education: How to Revolutionize the University to Prepare Students for a World in Flux by
A leading educational thinker argues that the American university is stuck in the past--and shows how we can revolutionize it for our era of constant change Our current system of higher education dates to the period from 1865 to 1925, when the nation's new universities created grades and departments, majors and minors, in an attempt to prepare young people for a world transformed by the telegraph and the Model T. As Cathy N. Davidson argues in The New Education, this approach to education is wholly unsuited to the era of the gig economy. From the Ivy League to community colleges, she introduces us to innovators who are remaking college for our own time by emphasizing student-centered learning that values creativity in the face of change above all. The New Education ultimately shows how we can teach students not only to survive but to thrive amid the challenges to come.
Research Literacy: A Primer for Understanding and Using Research by
Preparing students to become informed, critical consumers of research, this accessible text builds essential skills for understanding research reports, evaluating the implications for evidence-based practice, and communicating findings to different audiences. It demystifies qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods designs and provides step-by-step procedures for judging the strengths and limitations of any study. Excerpts from real research reports are used as opportunities to develop methodological knowledge and practice analytic skills. Based on sound pedagogic principles, the text is structured for diverse learning styles: visual learners (concept maps, icons), active learners (building-block exercises and templates for writing), and story learners (examples, reading guides, and reflections). Pedagogical Features *Rubrics, checklists of steps to take, and reading guides that walk students through analyzing different types of research articles. *Journal abstracts with questions that home in on key aspects of a study. *Exemplars of each type of study, with descriptions of methodological and design choices. *End-of-chapter skills-building exercises that lead up to writing a research review essay. *Chapter appendices featuring sample responses to the exercises.
Rowman & Littlefield Guide for Peer Tutors by 
Student Success in the Community College by 
Supporting College and University Students with Invisible Disabilities by
With increasing numbers of students with invisible disabilities attending college and university, faculty and staff find themselves faced with new challenges. This practical handbook provides lecturers, tutors, disability services, and administrative staff with an overview of the invisible disabilities they may encounter, dispelling common myths and offering practical advice to support the needs of these students. Students with invisible disabilities are often academically talented but struggle with certain aspects of higher education such as keeping track of appointments or maintaining concentration in lecture halls. By providing detailed information on a range of disabilities including autism, AD/HD, dyslexia, OCD, and affective disorders, this book facilitates a better understanding of the unique needs of these students and what their strengths and limitations may be. With ideas for adapting teaching methods, offering suitable accommodations, and improving institutional policy, this is vital reading for all university faculty and staff.
Teaching Unprepared Students: Strategies for Promoting Success and Retention in Higher Education by
As societal expectations about attending college have grown, professors report increasing numbers of students who are unprepared for the rigors of postsecondary education not just more students with learning disabilities (whose numbers have more than tripled), but students (with and without special admission status) who are academically at-risk because of inadequate reading, writing and study skills. This book provides professors and their graduate teaching assistants those at the front line of interactions with students with techniques and approaches they can use in class to help at-risk students raise their skills so that they can successfully complete their studies.The author shares proven practices that will not only engage all students in a class, but also create the conditions while maintaining high standards and high expectations to enable at-risk and under-prepared students to develop academically, and graduate with good grades. The author also explains how to work effectively with academic support units on campus. Within the framework of identifying those students who need help, establishing a rapport with them, adopting inclusive teaching strategies, and offering appropriate guidance, the book presents the theory teachers will need, and effective classroom strategies. The author covers teaching philosophy and goals; issues of discipline and behavior; motivation and making expectations explicit; classroom climate and learning styles; developing time management and study skills; as well as the application of universal design strategies.The ideas presented here that the author has successfully employed over many years can be easily integratedinto any class.