Center for Innovative Pedagogy

Useful framework for identifying "empirical generalizations", "theoretical statements", and "epistemic assumptions" when we look at the literature on learning, and thinking about how they might be more or less applicable to our work.

It may be a little late for this, but tomorrow it will be even later. Take a relaxed summer moment to jot down some reflections for your future self.

Interesting parallels as we think about learning spaces in the new buildings, and as we work on strategic planning for the CIP.

Some tips about managing feelings of isolation--even more important now that classes have ended. If you are interested in connecting with other faculty this summer, the CIP is hosting a Summer Writing Group as well as book clubs and workshops.

OSU hosts a free teaching with technology conference every spring. Lunch and light refreshments are provided, and the conference covers a number of emerging topics in higher education. If you are interested, you can register at this link by May 10.

Writing is a major component of many academic disciplines, but how can professors give feedback that will allow students of different backgrounds the opportunity to grow? Laurie McMillin, Professor of Rhetoric and Composition at Oberlin College, give some tips on getting the best writing from ESL and multilingual writers in the college classroom.

We spend a lot of time focusing on backward design, but that model presumes a great deal of knowledge of what the course is about and what students will get out of it. This professor lays out the questions you need to ask when designing a course for the first time, and the result is a kind of flexible forward design.

When people's feelings about a discussion topic boil over, how can you guide the conversation back into a zone where deep listening and learning are possible?

Interesting failure to replicate the 2014 study suggesting that longhand notetaking may be more effective than typing on a laptop. Perhaps we should expect our efficacy at using different writing tools to shift over time!

How can library research assignments help students learn to guard against accepting only the information which confirms their beliefs?

Concrete tips for making sure all students have equitable chances to participate in class, from Maha Bali and Steve Greenlaw

Great news about student resistance to active learning. Have the courage of your convictions!

"It is as though the "P" in Ph.D. stands for Postponement." Take care of yourself this weekend. Give yourself something you've been putting off.

I'm intrigued by the structural approach of "pattern teaching" as a method for designing individual class sessions. Certainly seems like a useful approach for those classes where you have trouble fitting everything in (or even deciding what everything is). At the same time I'm really uncomfortable with the article's tone, which verges on "teaching is that thing which gets in the way of research."

"Can "light-touch, targeted feedback" to students via email improve their perceptions of and performance in a class? New research says in some cases the answer is yes."

Interested in how you can get groups of students to work together? Explore some different models for student group work on the CIP website.

This is an interesting variation on contract grading that engages students directly with the concepts of risk, value, and probability.

Might be relevant to the "typed vs. handwritten notes" debate. Maybe students should be drawing a lot more pictures in their notebooks!

Gentle thoughts from James Lang as we head into the home stretch of the semester. "When you are faced with challenging questions about a relationship or a social problem in the world, just assume that the answer is always compassion. The same principle would serve us well in the college classroom."