Group items tagged

What do you do in teaching or advising to help students understand that the key to success in college is not "what you did in high school, but more of it"?

Some interesting ideas for first day of class activities here. I was particularly taken by the "syllabus scavenger hunt" in which students are asked to list their big questions about the course and find the answers in the syllabus (or start a conversation about why they aren't there).

How can the CIP help protect time for "quiet conversation and stillness of mind" without adding yet another darn thing to the calendar of events? (The success of this year's writing groups suggests one way...)

Special issue of the International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education focusing on trans* issues in higher education settings. Includes some good articles about access to education and success in college for trans* students.

Good points about successful strategies for writing-intensive classes, from the president of the National Council of Teachers of English.

"Assessing assessment" seems painfully meta, but we spend enough energy on our departmental reviews that we should ensure the process is useful. This article asks 14 questions in order to help guide thinking about whether an assessment plan is currently successful. The questions asked focus more on the students' learning outcomes rather than indirect measures of institutional efficiency.

"Assessing assessment" seems painfully meta, but we spend enough energy on our departmental reviews that we should ensure the process is useful. This article asks 14 questions in order to help guide thinking about whether an assessment plan is currently successful. The questions asked focus more on the students' learning outcomes rather than indirect measures of institutional efficiency.

It's a common complaint that our students aren't comfortable taking risks, and don't deal well with setbacks. This article provides a set of classroom techniques, from showing your own struggles with disciplinary material to celebrating success when it finally comes, which will help students get used to "fail more, fail better."

This course redesign "formula" may not work for all courses, but perhaps it can work for you. The article describes what amounts to a course redesign that results in a blended classroom, using the technology available through the text publisher as the source of outside data. The six guidelines they propose can be boiled down to: (1) guide students in active learning; (2) enforce deadlines to keep students on task; (3) reward students for real effort, which translates into real learning; (4) provide regular assessment (immediate feedback via technology, if possible); (5) accommodate varied learning styles; and (6) keep on students to do their work (again, technology can help with this).

Many institutions are finding that the analysis of data about student behavior allows them to identify at-risk students earlier and offer interventions which improve academic success. Most of the case studies are being done at larger institutions with lower graduation rates than Kenyon, but the possibilities and risks involved in the process are worth keeping an eye on.

Rick Detweiler, president of the GLCA, presented data on the outcomes of a liberal arts education at the recent meeting of AAC&U.

Interesting list of starting points for considering our own intercultural competence and developing strategies for creating effective multinational classrooms.

Terrific, concrete tips from Flower Darby about strategies which will make your discussion boards more successful.

How is "recreational fear" in a haunted house similar to the intellectual challenge in a successful classroom?

Richard Detweiler's study correlates students' classroom experiences with their lifelong achievement of mission goals of liberal arts colleges.

Students tend to hate group work, and I've come to believe it's because we have an unrealistically high expectation of students' skills at working in a group. Walking the students through the skills which the group task requires, and accurate assessment of their abilities and team composition, seems like a good step in teaching students what group work will be like in the working world (as well as positioning the students for success at the course work).

The way you state policies and practices on a syllabus communicates quite a bit about the classroom environment you're trying to shape. In this column, Mark Sample talks about revising his accessibility statement to best communicate his goals of academic success and inclusion.

A list of calendars, videos, and tips on how to manage your time.

"In my view, the way to defend the value of college is to defend the importance of intellectual virtues and then show that the education that colleges provide is successful at cultivating those virtues." Swarthmore psychologist Barry Schwartz gives an interesting list of the habits of mind which are the components of "critical thinking."

A literature review on team teaching, including different approaches, benefits and requirements, and tips for success.

Great introduction to the guiding principles of Universal Design for Learning, as well as no-tech, low-tech, and high-tech tips for providing learners with multiple means of engagement so that we can make sure every learner has the opportunity to demonstrate their expertise and use their unique strengths to be successful.