We found 86 results that contain "grow"
Posted on: #iteachmsu
Peer-Educator Dialogues & Learning Session Observation
This is a collection of resources aimed at helping educators engage in a process of observation and feedback with fellow educators. This certainly isn't the only way of engaging in a peer-educator dialogue, but aims to be a start point for folks just getting started. There may be additional resources provided by your unit, so be sure to check there as well.
NOTE: these materials are intended to serve as a foundation for providing feedback, engaging in dialogue, and ultimately promoting lifelong learning and growth in educator practice. Any documentation of a peer-educator dialogue should be provided directly to [only] the instructor-educator.
Photo by Antenna on Unsplash
NOTE: these materials are intended to serve as a foundation for providing feedback, engaging in dialogue, and ultimately promoting lifelong learning and growth in educator practice. Any documentation of a peer-educator dialogue should be provided directly to [only] the instructor-educator.
Photo by Antenna on Unsplash
PEDAGOGICAL DESIGN
Posted on: MSU Academic Advising
Professional Development for Academic Advisors
The Professional Development for Academic Advisors Playlist comprises a comprehensive repository of articles and resources designed to foster the career advancement and growth of MSU advisors.
DISCIPLINARY CONTENT
Posted on: #iteachmsu
Instruction, Feedback, Assessments & Centering Students in Remote Environments
This playlist is a growing collection of content aimed at supporting educators as they traverse ongoing shifts in teaching environment, procedures related to grading, and other uncertainties that results from ongoing pandemics... all the while keeping student success at the core of their work.
ASSESSING LEARNING
Posted on: PREP Matrix
Simple Ways To Keep Your Network From Growing Cold
This article offers strategies for maintaining your networking relationships, including detailed logistical suggestions like a spreadsheet template.
Posted by: Admin
Navigating Context
Posted on: The MSU Graduate Le...
Using Leadership to Grow the Physiology Graduate Student Council (PSL GSC) Group 2016-2017
Hillary's project sought to develop a peer mentoring system for students in the Department of Physiology.
"I would like the Physiology Graduate Student Council (PSL GSC) to build a sense of community between Physiology grad students and faculty in by addressing student needs and providing opportunities for students to engage with each other." -Hillary Woodworth
Presentation: https://iteach.msu.edu/posts/preview_attachments?post_id=1475
"I would like the Physiology Graduate Student Council (PSL GSC) to build a sense of community between Physiology grad students and faculty in by addressing student needs and providing opportunities for students to engage with each other." -Hillary Woodworth
Presentation: https://iteach.msu.edu/posts/preview_attachments?post_id=1475
Authored by: Hillary Woodworth
Navigating Context
Posted on: #iteachmsu
Action planning with data: Build a playlist
The #iteachmsu Commons is an ever-growing collection of people, ideas, and resources. One way this space was built to support educators in their ongoing growth and development. MSU is a learning institution, and while we aim to prepare learners to “contribute fully to society as globally engaged citizen leaders” through their ongoing postsecondary experience, we also aim to support you - MSU’s educators - in your life long learning journey.
Throughout iteach.msu.edu, there are a wide variety of resources shared primarily as posts and articles. You can read individual articles to gain insights into any topic related to pedagogy, integrating technologies, assessing learning, disciplinary content, and navigating MSU’s context.
If you find an article or post you think is really helpful or you see a title you want to revisit later, you can save it by clicking the star icon in the upper right hand corner of each item’s card. To see all the items you’ve saved, you can click “saved” in the left menu (indicated with a star icon). In addition to saving articles, you can curate your own playlist.
The name playlist was inspired by compilations of music. Imagine you’re about to head outside for a run. You have all your gear ready and have put in one of your earbuds to listen to some tunes. You’ve built a list of songs (or saved a list built by someone else) that helps keep you motivated to keep moving. The idea is similar on this site. From your saved items, you can build a collection of posts and articles around topics or themes that are relevant to you.
Do you have data that has sparked some additional questions for you?
Are there some areas you have flagged as wanting to know more but not sure where to start?
Have you set some goals for improving your practice for the rest of the semester?
Start by exploring more iteach.msu.edu and build yourself a playlist(s)! For step-by-step instructions on building a playlist, check out this Creating a Playlist article in our Getting Started resources.
Throughout iteach.msu.edu, there are a wide variety of resources shared primarily as posts and articles. You can read individual articles to gain insights into any topic related to pedagogy, integrating technologies, assessing learning, disciplinary content, and navigating MSU’s context.
If you find an article or post you think is really helpful or you see a title you want to revisit later, you can save it by clicking the star icon in the upper right hand corner of each item’s card. To see all the items you’ve saved, you can click “saved” in the left menu (indicated with a star icon). In addition to saving articles, you can curate your own playlist.
The name playlist was inspired by compilations of music. Imagine you’re about to head outside for a run. You have all your gear ready and have put in one of your earbuds to listen to some tunes. You’ve built a list of songs (or saved a list built by someone else) that helps keep you motivated to keep moving. The idea is similar on this site. From your saved items, you can build a collection of posts and articles around topics or themes that are relevant to you.
Do you have data that has sparked some additional questions for you?
Are there some areas you have flagged as wanting to know more but not sure where to start?
Have you set some goals for improving your practice for the rest of the semester?
Start by exploring more iteach.msu.edu and build yourself a playlist(s)! For step-by-step instructions on building a playlist, check out this Creating a Playlist article in our Getting Started resources.
Authored by: Makena Neal
Assessing Learning
Posted on: #iteachmsu
My Spartan Story - Spring 2022 Workshops & Submission Deadline
The My Spartan Story Team looks forward to working with you to support continued growth of My Spartan Story, MSU’s co-curricular record. Below, you will find helpful information and links to register for our Spring 2022 workshops.
What qualifies as an out-of-classroom or co-curricular learning experience for My Spartan Story?
My Spartan Story defines co-curricular as “an intentional learning activity not bearing academic credit, where the experience has learning goals measured by an assessment strategy.”
Experiences can include but are not limited to:
Community engagement
Committee service
Internships
Leadership roles
On-campus jobs
Student organizations
Undergraduate research
I advise and/or supervise a co-curricular experience listed above. How can it be added to the co-curricular record?
Experiences are submitted for inclusion in the record by MSU faculty and staff (we do welcome and encourage students to be a part of the process with you).
When should experiences be submitted by for the Spring 2022 term?
The preferred deadline is April 1, 2022. (This allows the Advisory Committee time to review and to ensure experiences will display on a student’s Spartan Experience Record by commencement).
I would like to learn more about My Spartan Story. What are ways I can do so?
We have two workshop types this semester for faculty and staff:
My Spartan Story Introductory Workshop
If you are looking to learn about My Spartan Story, our Introductory Workshop is a great place to start. Our workshop will help familiarize you to the record, benefits for students, your college/division and MSU, as well as to the submission and approval process to add your co-curricular experience(s). Register HERE.
Friday, January 21, 2 - 3 p.m.
Friday, January 28, 11 a.m. - noon
Thursday, February 10, 3 - 4 p.m.
Tuesday, February 22, 4 - 5 p.m.
Monday, March 14, 2 - 3 p.m.
Wednesday, March 30, 12:30 - 1:30 p.m.
My Spartan Story Sprint Workshop
If you are familiar with the record and are ready to submit an experience, register for our Sprint Workshop. This session walks you through the submission process and will help you draft at least one submission during the session. Our team will discuss key elements including learning outcomes and learning outcomes assessment. Register HERE.
Wednesday, February 16, 3 - 4 p.m. (virtual)
Tuesday, March 8, 11 a.m. - noon (virtual)
Wednesday, March 9, 1 - 2 p.m. (in person - tentative)
We look forward to connecting with you this semester and welcome you to share these opportunities with your colleagues. If you have any questions, please visit the My Spartan Story site or contact Sarah Schultz, Director of My Spartan Story.
What qualifies as an out-of-classroom or co-curricular learning experience for My Spartan Story?
My Spartan Story defines co-curricular as “an intentional learning activity not bearing academic credit, where the experience has learning goals measured by an assessment strategy.”
Experiences can include but are not limited to:
Community engagement
Committee service
Internships
Leadership roles
On-campus jobs
Student organizations
Undergraduate research
I advise and/or supervise a co-curricular experience listed above. How can it be added to the co-curricular record?
Experiences are submitted for inclusion in the record by MSU faculty and staff (we do welcome and encourage students to be a part of the process with you).
When should experiences be submitted by for the Spring 2022 term?
The preferred deadline is April 1, 2022. (This allows the Advisory Committee time to review and to ensure experiences will display on a student’s Spartan Experience Record by commencement).
I would like to learn more about My Spartan Story. What are ways I can do so?
We have two workshop types this semester for faculty and staff:
My Spartan Story Introductory Workshop
If you are looking to learn about My Spartan Story, our Introductory Workshop is a great place to start. Our workshop will help familiarize you to the record, benefits for students, your college/division and MSU, as well as to the submission and approval process to add your co-curricular experience(s). Register HERE.
Friday, January 21, 2 - 3 p.m.
Friday, January 28, 11 a.m. - noon
Thursday, February 10, 3 - 4 p.m.
Tuesday, February 22, 4 - 5 p.m.
Monday, March 14, 2 - 3 p.m.
Wednesday, March 30, 12:30 - 1:30 p.m.
My Spartan Story Sprint Workshop
If you are familiar with the record and are ready to submit an experience, register for our Sprint Workshop. This session walks you through the submission process and will help you draft at least one submission during the session. Our team will discuss key elements including learning outcomes and learning outcomes assessment. Register HERE.
Wednesday, February 16, 3 - 4 p.m. (virtual)
Tuesday, March 8, 11 a.m. - noon (virtual)
Wednesday, March 9, 1 - 2 p.m. (in person - tentative)
We look forward to connecting with you this semester and welcome you to share these opportunities with your colleagues. If you have any questions, please visit the My Spartan Story site or contact Sarah Schultz, Director of My Spartan Story.
Authored by: Sarah Schultz
Navigating Context
Posted on: Center for Teaching...
Educator of Impact: Alicia Jenner
Alicia Jenner:
Within the landscape of higher education, Alicia Jenner stands out as a beacon of innovation and empathy. As a key member of Michigan State University’s Center for Teaching and Learning Innovation [CTLI], Alicia is dedicated to making education more accessible and equitable for all learners.
Alicia’s path to educational leadership wasn’t linear. Growing up in Marquette and graduating from Northern Michigan University, she initially aspired to become a speech pathologist. However, a conversation with a former professor at Northern Michigan University introduced her to the field of instructional design.
“I knew I liked working with people and making connections,” Alicia reflects. This insight, combined with her extensive knowledge of educational practices, directed her towards her current career path.
After earning her master’s degree in Curriculum and Instructional Technology, Alicia’s career took her to Iowa State University. There, she played an essential role in preparing engineering faculty to teach online and to embrace online education, an experience that broadened her understanding of the ‘scale of ability’ with technology among faculty and students alike.
Now at CTLI, Alicia leads projects that are reshaping the landscape of online and continuing education. As the project lead for online.msu.edu, she’s at the forefront of building digital infrastructure that serves both for-credit and non-credit programming. .
“In everything we do at the CTLI, it’s a team effort,” Alicia emphasizes. “We all bring our own areas of expertise to advance initiatives.” Her work spans from analyzing enrollment and financial data to tackling retention and recruitment challenges, all with the goal of making online education at MSU more equitable. She has built and rebuilt online.msu.edu twice and is currently working on its third update, focusing on community engagement and developing a centralized registration system for non-credit programs to make lifelong learning more accessible.
Alicia’s commitment to equity extends beyond the university walls. Her involvement with UPCEA [the Online and Professional Education Association] allows her to collaborate with professionals across multiple regions in North America, discussing emerging trends and challenges in the field.
True to her passion for education, Alicia is currently pursuing a Doctorate of Education in Leadership for Education Equity in Higher Education from the University of Colorado Denver. Balancing her studies with her full-time work at CTLI, Alicia embodies the spirit of lifelong learning that she champions for others.
“If I have an opportunity to get out of my little bubble, I will always take it,” Alicia says, reflecting on her constant desire to learn and grow.
As Alicia continues her journey in educational leadership, her focus remains clear: to create more accessible learning opportunities for all. Her work aligns closely with the MSU 2030 Strategic Plan, particularly in recruiting and supporting the success of a more diverse student body in Graduate and Professional programs.
Through her dedication, empathy, and innovative spirit, Alicia Jenner truly embodies what it means to be an Educator of Impact, continuously working to break down barriers and open doors in the world of higher education.
Within the landscape of higher education, Alicia Jenner stands out as a beacon of innovation and empathy. As a key member of Michigan State University’s Center for Teaching and Learning Innovation [CTLI], Alicia is dedicated to making education more accessible and equitable for all learners.
Alicia’s path to educational leadership wasn’t linear. Growing up in Marquette and graduating from Northern Michigan University, she initially aspired to become a speech pathologist. However, a conversation with a former professor at Northern Michigan University introduced her to the field of instructional design.
“I knew I liked working with people and making connections,” Alicia reflects. This insight, combined with her extensive knowledge of educational practices, directed her towards her current career path.
After earning her master’s degree in Curriculum and Instructional Technology, Alicia’s career took her to Iowa State University. There, she played an essential role in preparing engineering faculty to teach online and to embrace online education, an experience that broadened her understanding of the ‘scale of ability’ with technology among faculty and students alike.
Now at CTLI, Alicia leads projects that are reshaping the landscape of online and continuing education. As the project lead for online.msu.edu, she’s at the forefront of building digital infrastructure that serves both for-credit and non-credit programming. .
“In everything we do at the CTLI, it’s a team effort,” Alicia emphasizes. “We all bring our own areas of expertise to advance initiatives.” Her work spans from analyzing enrollment and financial data to tackling retention and recruitment challenges, all with the goal of making online education at MSU more equitable. She has built and rebuilt online.msu.edu twice and is currently working on its third update, focusing on community engagement and developing a centralized registration system for non-credit programs to make lifelong learning more accessible.
Alicia’s commitment to equity extends beyond the university walls. Her involvement with UPCEA [the Online and Professional Education Association] allows her to collaborate with professionals across multiple regions in North America, discussing emerging trends and challenges in the field.
True to her passion for education, Alicia is currently pursuing a Doctorate of Education in Leadership for Education Equity in Higher Education from the University of Colorado Denver. Balancing her studies with her full-time work at CTLI, Alicia embodies the spirit of lifelong learning that she champions for others.
“If I have an opportunity to get out of my little bubble, I will always take it,” Alicia says, reflecting on her constant desire to learn and grow.
As Alicia continues her journey in educational leadership, her focus remains clear: to create more accessible learning opportunities for all. Her work aligns closely with the MSU 2030 Strategic Plan, particularly in recruiting and supporting the success of a more diverse student body in Graduate and Professional programs.
Through her dedication, empathy, and innovative spirit, Alicia Jenner truly embodies what it means to be an Educator of Impact, continuously working to break down barriers and open doors in the world of higher education.
Authored by: Cara Mack
Navigating Context
Posted on: #iteachmsu
Feedback Fun
Feedback Fun
April is national poetry month (https://poets.org/national-poetry-month), and you want to have some fun with AI. Consider the written feedback that you often provide your students. At times it can seem very sterile and institutional. Even when you offer valuable insights and points, it often gets overlooked because it does not seem genuine or sincere. Enter AI – You could take your typical feedback text and see if AI can make it more ‘memorable’. Here is an example based on a suggestion from Chrissi Nerantzi from the University of Leeds (As presented in: Nerantzi, C., Abegglen, S., Karatsiori, M. and Martinez-Arboleda, A. (Eds.) (2023). 101 Creative ideas to use AI in education. A collection curated by #creativeHE. Graphic Design by Bushra Hashim. CC-BY-NC-SA 4.0.)
Original Feedback Text
Below is an example of feedback given to a student found on the internet:
I’m impressed with your ability to write concisely. Not only did you fulfill the assignment, you also wrote a long-ish intro and answered questions that went beyond the prompt. Doing so within the word limit and doing it well deserves recognition. One result is that outside of the opening paragraph the entire essay is focused exclusively on the arguments –there’s no excess fat in this essay. Given the nature of the assignment, that’s great. As noted throughout, however, some of your specific arguments need developed –your paper would’ve been better served had you eliminated one of the arguments in order to better develop the others along the lines mentioned in my comments above. Overall, it’s clear that you understand each of the philosophers you address and you present interesting ideas.
(Feedback example retrieved from - https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/jco34/sample-assignments/examples-of-feedback-on-student-writing/).
Using the above text with a generative AI tool (perplexity.ai) the following prompts were given, and the resultant outputs were received:
AI Prompt: Compose the above feedback in the form of a poem.
Feedback Poem
Your concision impresses, a skill so refined,Not just the task fulfilled, but more you did find.An intro that's lengthy, yet focused throughout,No excess, just arguments, that's what it's about. For an assignment like this, that's exactly what's needed,Your understanding shines, your ideas are well-seeded.But some arguments lack the development they need,Eliminating one could make the others succeed. As noted before, your grasp of each thinker is clear,The ideas you present, they're certainly sincere.Yet honing those points, refining with care,Could elevate this work, make it beyond compare. So take this feedback, let it guide your next steps,Refine and expand, reach new intellectual depths.Your potential is evident, your skills are so strong,Keep pushing forward, and you can't go wrong.
AI Prompt: Compose the above feedback in the form of a limerick
Limerick Feedback
There once was a writer so clever,Whose arguments were quite the endeavor.They built in objections, then hit 'em back strong,But clarity sometimes went wrong.With the writing center's help, they'd do even better. The opening needed more clarity upfront,Revealing the main point, no need to be coy.And Sen's comments on comparing without an ideal,Were points that the writer should not have concealed.Overall the ideas were a true joy. So take this feedback, don't let it annoy,Use it to sharpen, refine, and deployAn essay that's tighter, more focused, more clear.The potential is there, have no fear!Keep working, keep growing, your skills to employ.
AI Prompt – Compose in the form of rap lyrics.
AI Prompt: Produce the feedback as rap lyrics
Rap Lyrics Feedback
Yo, listen up, I got some words for you,
Your writing's on point, but there's more to do.
You built in those objections, hit 'em back with your might,
But the clarity's lacking, gotta shine that light.
Second language, I know it ain't easy,
But hit up that writing center, make your skills feel breezy.
That opening, it needs to be more clear,
Don't hold back the main point, let it ring loud and near.
And yo, you missed Sen's comments, that's a big deal,
Comparing without an ideal, that's how you seal.
But overall, the ideas, they're a true joy to behold,
Gotta tighten it up, make that story unfold.
So take this feedback, don't let it annoy,
Use it to sharpen, refine, and deploy
An essay that's tight, focused, and oh so clear,
The potential is there, have no fear!
Keep working, keep growing, your skills to employ.
Note: The above examples do not violate privacy as there are no identifiers for the recipient and no grade associated with the feedback.
April is national poetry month (https://poets.org/national-poetry-month), and you want to have some fun with AI. Consider the written feedback that you often provide your students. At times it can seem very sterile and institutional. Even when you offer valuable insights and points, it often gets overlooked because it does not seem genuine or sincere. Enter AI – You could take your typical feedback text and see if AI can make it more ‘memorable’. Here is an example based on a suggestion from Chrissi Nerantzi from the University of Leeds (As presented in: Nerantzi, C., Abegglen, S., Karatsiori, M. and Martinez-Arboleda, A. (Eds.) (2023). 101 Creative ideas to use AI in education. A collection curated by #creativeHE. Graphic Design by Bushra Hashim. CC-BY-NC-SA 4.0.)
Original Feedback Text
Below is an example of feedback given to a student found on the internet:
I’m impressed with your ability to write concisely. Not only did you fulfill the assignment, you also wrote a long-ish intro and answered questions that went beyond the prompt. Doing so within the word limit and doing it well deserves recognition. One result is that outside of the opening paragraph the entire essay is focused exclusively on the arguments –there’s no excess fat in this essay. Given the nature of the assignment, that’s great. As noted throughout, however, some of your specific arguments need developed –your paper would’ve been better served had you eliminated one of the arguments in order to better develop the others along the lines mentioned in my comments above. Overall, it’s clear that you understand each of the philosophers you address and you present interesting ideas.
(Feedback example retrieved from - https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/jco34/sample-assignments/examples-of-feedback-on-student-writing/).
Using the above text with a generative AI tool (perplexity.ai) the following prompts were given, and the resultant outputs were received:
AI Prompt: Compose the above feedback in the form of a poem.
Feedback Poem
Your concision impresses, a skill so refined,Not just the task fulfilled, but more you did find.An intro that's lengthy, yet focused throughout,No excess, just arguments, that's what it's about. For an assignment like this, that's exactly what's needed,Your understanding shines, your ideas are well-seeded.But some arguments lack the development they need,Eliminating one could make the others succeed. As noted before, your grasp of each thinker is clear,The ideas you present, they're certainly sincere.Yet honing those points, refining with care,Could elevate this work, make it beyond compare. So take this feedback, let it guide your next steps,Refine and expand, reach new intellectual depths.Your potential is evident, your skills are so strong,Keep pushing forward, and you can't go wrong.
AI Prompt: Compose the above feedback in the form of a limerick
Limerick Feedback
There once was a writer so clever,Whose arguments were quite the endeavor.They built in objections, then hit 'em back strong,But clarity sometimes went wrong.With the writing center's help, they'd do even better. The opening needed more clarity upfront,Revealing the main point, no need to be coy.And Sen's comments on comparing without an ideal,Were points that the writer should not have concealed.Overall the ideas were a true joy. So take this feedback, don't let it annoy,Use it to sharpen, refine, and deployAn essay that's tighter, more focused, more clear.The potential is there, have no fear!Keep working, keep growing, your skills to employ.
AI Prompt – Compose in the form of rap lyrics.
AI Prompt: Produce the feedback as rap lyrics
Rap Lyrics Feedback
Yo, listen up, I got some words for you,
Your writing's on point, but there's more to do.
You built in those objections, hit 'em back with your might,
But the clarity's lacking, gotta shine that light.
Second language, I know it ain't easy,
But hit up that writing center, make your skills feel breezy.
That opening, it needs to be more clear,
Don't hold back the main point, let it ring loud and near.
And yo, you missed Sen's comments, that's a big deal,
Comparing without an ideal, that's how you seal.
But overall, the ideas, they're a true joy to behold,
Gotta tighten it up, make that story unfold.
So take this feedback, don't let it annoy,
Use it to sharpen, refine, and deploy
An essay that's tight, focused, and oh so clear,
The potential is there, have no fear!
Keep working, keep growing, your skills to employ.
Note: The above examples do not violate privacy as there are no identifiers for the recipient and no grade associated with the feedback.
Authored by: Jay Loftus
Assessing Learning
Posted on: Teaching Toolkit Ta...
(Re)defining Student Engagement in Your Course
Photo by Mikael Kristenson on Unsplash
Defining Engagement
“Student engagement” is a popular term for describing optimal responses from students to their experiences in higher education: participating in class, using campus support services, and ultimately staying in school to finish a college degree. That’s why, for example, the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) looks at a spectrum of “educationally purposeful activities” inside and outside of the classroom as they assess levels of student engagement across higher ed. Since we are most focused on what student engagement looks like in a classroom, we’ll dive in here, but also acknowledge that other forms of student engagement are important and very much connected to one another along a spectrum.
For the sake of our work in the classroom, we’ve found Great School Partnership’s Edglossary definition of student engagement most helpful: “the degree of attention, curiosity, interest, optimism, and passion that students show when they are learning or being taught, which extends to the level of motivation they have to learn and progress in their education.” Here we get a picture of students wanting to learn what is important in our disciplines and classes, successfully completing our course, and eventually completing a degree. But, as you can imagine, this classroom engagement looks different based upon your discipline, class, and overall learning outcomes. It also hinges on the relationships you build with students, between students, and in how you facilitate authentic opportunities for all of you to engage with the questions and challenges that actually drive your discipline.
(Re)defining Engagement in Your Class
Since we teach and learn across a variety of disciplines, with a variety of learning outcomes and discipline-driving questions, student engagement can take many forms. While there may be some similarities, engagement in an English class may look different than in a Science class, since our disciplines use different lens on the world and value making claims and meaning in different ways. We assess learning differently too. To begin the process of thinking about what student engagement does or could look like in your class, here are some questions to consider:
What are the key questions and challenges driving you and the work in your discipline? Why/how might students care about these questions and challenges with you?
What does a student, fully engaged in what matters in your discipline, and on their way to meeting the learning outcomes in your course, look like? What do they know? What do they do? How do you hope they’ll get there?
What multiple form(s) does/could “attention, curiosity, interest, optimism, and passion” take in relation to what matters to students and your discipline? How could learning activities best facilitate this engagement? How will you know if these learning activities are facilitating this engagement?
Overall, how do you already teach in ways that support optimal student engagement with your discipline and class? In what areas do you want to grow?
These questions are starting points for you in beginning to identify key aspects of student engagement. These questions also begin to help you recognize what you’re already doing towards optimal student engagement as well as areas where you may want to grow. Hopefully, these questions raise awareness that leads to the student engagement you hope for towards your learning outcomes and overall success for students in and beyond your course.
Defining Engagement
“Student engagement” is a popular term for describing optimal responses from students to their experiences in higher education: participating in class, using campus support services, and ultimately staying in school to finish a college degree. That’s why, for example, the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) looks at a spectrum of “educationally purposeful activities” inside and outside of the classroom as they assess levels of student engagement across higher ed. Since we are most focused on what student engagement looks like in a classroom, we’ll dive in here, but also acknowledge that other forms of student engagement are important and very much connected to one another along a spectrum.
For the sake of our work in the classroom, we’ve found Great School Partnership’s Edglossary definition of student engagement most helpful: “the degree of attention, curiosity, interest, optimism, and passion that students show when they are learning or being taught, which extends to the level of motivation they have to learn and progress in their education.” Here we get a picture of students wanting to learn what is important in our disciplines and classes, successfully completing our course, and eventually completing a degree. But, as you can imagine, this classroom engagement looks different based upon your discipline, class, and overall learning outcomes. It also hinges on the relationships you build with students, between students, and in how you facilitate authentic opportunities for all of you to engage with the questions and challenges that actually drive your discipline.
(Re)defining Engagement in Your Class
Since we teach and learn across a variety of disciplines, with a variety of learning outcomes and discipline-driving questions, student engagement can take many forms. While there may be some similarities, engagement in an English class may look different than in a Science class, since our disciplines use different lens on the world and value making claims and meaning in different ways. We assess learning differently too. To begin the process of thinking about what student engagement does or could look like in your class, here are some questions to consider:
What are the key questions and challenges driving you and the work in your discipline? Why/how might students care about these questions and challenges with you?
What does a student, fully engaged in what matters in your discipline, and on their way to meeting the learning outcomes in your course, look like? What do they know? What do they do? How do you hope they’ll get there?
What multiple form(s) does/could “attention, curiosity, interest, optimism, and passion” take in relation to what matters to students and your discipline? How could learning activities best facilitate this engagement? How will you know if these learning activities are facilitating this engagement?
Overall, how do you already teach in ways that support optimal student engagement with your discipline and class? In what areas do you want to grow?
These questions are starting points for you in beginning to identify key aspects of student engagement. These questions also begin to help you recognize what you’re already doing towards optimal student engagement as well as areas where you may want to grow. Hopefully, these questions raise awareness that leads to the student engagement you hope for towards your learning outcomes and overall success for students in and beyond your course.
Authored by: Erik Skogsberg
Pedagogical Design
Posted on: Educator Stories
Stephen Thomas // [Educator Story]
This week, we are featuring Dr. Stephen Thomas who wears many hats here at MSU. He is the Digital Curriculum Coordinator in the College of Natural Science, the Assistant Dean for STEM Education, Teaching and Learning, and he is also the Associate Director for the Center for Integrative Studies in General Science. Stephen was recognized via iteach.msu.edu's Thank and Educator Initiative! We encourage MSU community members to nominate high-impact Spartan educators (via our Thank an Educator initiative) regularly!
I’m Dave Goodrich and I help design engaging learning experiences with educators like Stephen here at MSU. I’ve had the privilege of getting to work and learn from Stephen over the years and was glad to get to be able to interview him for this series. This is a longer conversation than typical educator stories, but we could have talked even longer, I’m sure. In fact, from this conversation, I’d love to have follow-up conversations with Stephen on some of the things that came up here, but for now, read more about Stephen's perspectives and experiences below:
--
Dave
I thought we could begin our conversation by having you give a glimpse into how you became an educator and your path to becoming an educator. We also usually start this with a challenging question: In one word, what does being an educator mean to you?
Stephen
I would say I am really focused on connection. So usually I'm dealing with populations who are studying things that are unfamiliar to them. So usually I'm teaching non-majors or done some work and informal science education, and, you know, some work with majors. But I feel like in general, I'm usually talking to a naive or inexperienced population, and I'm trying to help them to see themselves in the content that they're studying. And then I think over time, I've realized that there's a large piece of having a connection with the individual in order to help them then make a connection with the content. And so you know, and sometimes it's even like, how are you connecting them to each other, in order to help support them, like peers and their fellow students? I think there's a lot of that element in how I go about probably in the educational endeavor. So it's a lot of like, how do we engage people and get them to see themselves in the content that they're working with?
Dave
Yeah, absolutely. So I love talking to educators, like you, who inspire me. It's educators like you who helped me decide to go into education, because of how they kind of poured themselves into it and really cared for their students like how you're describing. I'm curious, I don't know if I've ever, ever asked you before, was there a moment in your life where you were like, yes, this is what I want to do. How did you enter the world of education?
Stephen
So I come from a long line of educators and lawyers. I was never going to choose law. I find it fascinating, but it just wasn't for me. And it just seemed like a very natural fit. So I think what's interesting, though, is that the piece that I've really resonated with is not necessarily the teacher part, it's actually the curriculum part. To go to the law piece, you have trial lawyers, and then you have the lawyers who are like, in the background, like, you know, getting everything together. I really like the background piece. I like thinking about what you are trying to do and how does it play out? And what kind of challenges might you face? And what kind of background materials can you prepare someone with? And so I think over time, I've realized, it's not the actual performance piece that I enjoy, although sometimes that can be really nice. I actually just really enjoy the preparation and the thought exercise that's involved in it. Sometimes the production of curriculum, like I sometimes dip my toe into, like the artistic side of the world. I feel like curriculum development is like artwork where you produce something and it's like, here's the tangible evidence of my labor, as opposed to the kind of experiential part that goes on in the classroom.
Dave
Oh, man, you're speaking my language now. That's interesting to hear, because, I mean, I see you as being one of the most interesting educators in that regard. You really seem to be excellent at the delivery, the performance, and the curriculum design also. If your experience is like mine, it can be a challenge to work both those hats at the same time.
Stephen
Honestly, I find the performance piece difficult. So for me, it took a long time to resolve being like a gay man in front of a class. That identity piece was really hard, and I didn't want it involved at all in my teaching. There was a lot of mental effort about how I just portray myself as an individual that people would connect with, but also that they wouldn't necessarily have difficulty with me being gay. So, I feel like there was a lot of performance in that it made it an extra cognitive piece of how am I portraying myself. Simultaneously, I'm trying to make sure that they're learning, you know, the intermediate disturbance hypothesis, and it's just like, there's a lot going on in those two things that made it just not as pleasurable as some people find it. After like a decade of that tension is part of why I didn't necessarily go towards the performance piece of teaching as much.
Dave
That's fascinating. I'd love to talk to you more about that. That's interesting, like how identity I mean, shapes, obviously, who we are as an educator, but how different identities intersect with the role of an educator.
Stephen
Right, like, women and minorities. I feel like with mine, it could be like a hidden component, but we hear lots of studies looking at women and minorities in front of a classroom and the extra difficulties they face. I feel like that's just this unfortunate overlap with the fact that they have to deal with his added difficulties. At the same time, they're trying to manage student learning. We also talk about the benefit of having diverse audiences in front of students. I think those are, you know, some things that are kind of woven into the situation of having diverse faculty teaching or instructors teaching.
Dave
Yeah, you mentioned “connection” as this key keyword for you in your teaching. Could you share what connection looks like for you in your practice?
Stephen
So one of the things in teaching science to non-scientists, I feel like one of the things I tackled earlier on was this idea of subject anxiety. And so I was getting a lot of feedback from students about when they were coming into the class that they were scared. They wouldn't say scared, they would say that they were anxious. Like, ‘science isn't my forte or that ‘I've never really done well in science courses.’ And so I feel like there's a potential barrier between the instructor and the students because they're anxious about how they're going to perform and whether or not they're capable of succeeding. That has been shown to impact their ability to succeed. I've always been asking how to reduce that kind of subject anxiety. I’ve looked at things like how do you incorporate comics as a way of softening the subject matter so that people are more engaged by it? I did a whole video series of me in weird places where it was all green screen. The idea is if your instructor is willing to do that, then surely it's not difficult to ask them questions, right? There's no barrier to them in that, ‘Oh, he's a scientist, and I'm going to look stupid in front of him.’ Instead, he's looking stupid in front of me. So like, I don't have to worry about it being something that I can't do. Right. So I've always tried to figure out, like, how do you make connections with people. It facilitates the ability to ask for help. And to take risks in trying to convey what you understand, right?
Because I feel that part of participating in the conversation is how you help grow as an intellectual, I would say, maybe that's one of my tendencies. Personally, when I'm learning something, I like to talk about it, get corrected, and then have a discussion and dialogue. And if you're afraid of showing your ignorance, then it's really difficult because it still remains hidden, right? And so to me, it is about how do you create an environment where they do feel connected, where they can feel connected with each other? When you confront that misconception, that's really where some significant learning can occur.
Dave
Yeah, absolutely. It almost sounds like you're talking a bit about modeling vulnerability as a posture toward learning itself.
Stephen
Right. I would say that I definitely did not have that terminology or that thought process at the time. But I feel like some of the conversations that have gone on with authors like Brene Brown, and, you know, thinking about allowing yourself to be vulnerable and connect to students has helped me to think about it maybe in similar terms.
Dave
Yeah. Vulnerability is probably not generally a scientist’s favorite word?
Stephen
Well, we have thought about having some workshops on that. But I think we sometimes talk about it with regards to how you have difficult conversations in the classroom, right? But it really does boil down to some of that being about vulnerability. That's also around kind of the intellectual components of being able to be wrong, and how you grow from that. So there are concepts of failing forward or failing fast or growth mindsets, right? And how do you help people to realize that it's not a condition of being either good in math or not good in math or good in science or not good at science? It's how do you grow what you have to be better?
Dave
Yeah, oh, that would be an interesting conversation to have around the scientific process itself. Some might argue this is based around an intellectual humility, of understanding that we don't understand and know that we don't know and constantly trying to engage the unknowing with things that we do know, to try, to build on that with solid evidence.
Stephen
There's an article that is basically on stupidity in science. It's a one-page description of regrets of a professional who was talking about his experience in grad school and realized that the ability to handle your own ignorance allows you to be successful in science. So it was talking about why some people make it and some people don't. And this was one of the aspects of the ability to be okay with realizing that you don't know the answer. Being willing to push that boundary is what allows you to be successful. So it's just, I think, an interesting take for students to realize that successful scientists recognize that they don't know and be okay with it.
Dave
How have your ideas about these things changed over time?
Stephen
Well, like what the identity piece, I feel like, there's definitely a component of feeling like it was just information, but they didn't really need to know me and to know aspects about who I am. And I feel like that's, you know, more especially in an online environment. I feel like there was a time when I wondered how you most interestingly convey this content, and you can totally do it divorced from identity and the connection piece is the part that helps to bridge those who are not already passionate about the topic. That's what's going to get them to connect with it. And so just figuring out how we humanize the digital experience is, that's been one progression, I would say.
One of the other ones I would say is my thinking about educator development because a lot of my work is working with faculty about how to improve their practice. I feel like that progression has been one of being rooted in a kind of best practice, or being very prescriptive, to actually having conversations with faculty about what it is that they value, and then figuring out how that ties into the primary literature or into and to various literature's, in general. There are times when you want to know just like, what are some of the things that people have learned that are best that have been shown in the literature with regards to having discussions in class. But it's really different. When thinking about life as an individual, I'm interested in having discussions with students, and identifying that as actually a pedagogical approach that you want to expand because that's what you're actually rooted in. That's what you're going to put the time in. That's what's going to define your actual classroom experience. So instead of someone coming in and being like, actually, you need to use whiteboards more. Yes, whiteboards can be effective, but you actually have to figure out what your identity is as an instructor, and then go from there. I just feel like that's so much more powerful.
Dave
That's really quite profound because they do seem to have eager tentativeness to “best practices.” It reminds me of one of my favorite authors, Parker Palmer, he has a book called “The Courage to Teach.” And he talks a lot about how a lot of and how we as educators, essentially, teach from who we are, as you're talking about that very thing, starting with the heart of the individual educator first and what their goals are and then building technological support.
Stephen
I totally remember having conversations with other educators, then pushing back on the best practices. And, like, I feel like this comes from a place of being in the sciences for, you know, so long of like, what, like, you measure things and we find out what is more effective. That's how we improve. And just disregarding this aspect of what would nurture a faculty member. I mean, like when we think about, like, how much time faculty spend on improving their teaching like they're balancing out research and service and all of these other components. And so like, in order for them to really grow, it has to be the thing that you're super passionate about. This is how I actually connect with people. And so I feel like the discussions or arguments we had about best practices and whether or not that's a valuable framework to go from is actually just moving in a different direction from this conversation of like, why would you just not focus on the thing that people are passionate about? Right? So it's not that it's incorrect, it's just not really looking at it from the same perspective. And so, it is, you know, sometimes a little painful to be like, oh, yeah, I think I said something like that. You know, like, a few years ago, and yeah, so it has been interesting.
Dave
Yeah, absolutely. And I certainly then, early on, in my work in instructional design, I was a strong proponent of best practices. I’m critical of that, lately, myself also. So, could you tell us a little bit more about your settings? I think when you were at first MSU, you were primarily teaching and an instructor and now you do a lot of educator development. I guess we could say, and you also do a lot of design and curricular work, and also some teaching, I believe, or
Stephen
…up until this last summer,
Dave
okay. Okay, gotcha. Okay. So could you tell us a little bit about your, your setting in which you're in, and then these different hats that you're wearing now?
Stephen
Part of my role is in the Center for Integrative Studies in general science. So that's the Gen Ed Science course for non-scientists. And a lot of my work in the last few years has been focused on curriculum reform. And I have to say, that's probably some of the most rewarding work that I've done. Because it's, I just love it. The idea of so thinking about, if you have a three-class sequence, like how do students progress between those classes? And then like, how do you resolve to have different faculty and their identity and their topic? And so it's just been, I feel fascinating about like, how do you first off physically map the curriculum? How do you get faculty buy-in for various curricular reforms? How do you build a community around curriculum, like, I'm interested in those, those ideas, and so that work has been really, really rewarding? And then I'd say in college, that setting is looking at how technology is a filter or a lever for impacting student learning. And so I get a lot of help from faculty to think about technology tools that they could use in order to facilitate things like discussions online. But a lot of that work has also been focused on accessibility.
I feel like that has been an incredible lens that also had a lot of unique challenges about how you get people to buy into doing extra labor for, for accessibility, for widening their impact on their curriculum. And so like, we had gone through many different lenses of like, oh, well, accessibility is about compliance, and then looking at how that impacted faculty buy-in. And, you know, how it was limiting their participation, because as a concept, it's not very engaging, and then, you know, shifting over to more of a social justice piece, or going even into an equity viability piece, I feel has really allowed people to, to think about that, and see how that is actually aligned with their beliefs, and how that type of work is important.
I feel like there's, you know so that accessibility work was like, how do we make sure that all the digital pieces that we're making are accessible to, so there ADA, so Americans with Disabilities Act, so it responds to that? But also, you know, what we've found is that those accommodations helped all students. And so, you know, it kind of broadened to this idea of going from an idea of compliance to really how do we impact a larger number of students. So that's kind of that work. And then my new role, as the assistant dean, it's focused on STEM teaching and learning. It's really focused on the STEM building, and then figuring out how a single location can bring faculty and disciplines from across the STEM disciplines and even outside of STEM, to talk with each other and to learn from each other, and to better use the physical spaces in their pedagogical approach.
So, you know, when you have small groups of people, how do you foster discussion in that and then build ways of reporting out to a larger community is the, you know, is what we're working on. And so the STEM building has lots of innovative approaches to their classroom design. And so figuring out how do we train faculty to do that is, you know, is, again, you can see a hopefully the parallel between what's going on in the center for, you know, building a community around curriculum, and then in the college about how do we as a community, figure out what are the standards for the curriculum that we're creating? And then the STEM building is how do we have conversations in typically siloed communities that can help us to improve our practice. So there's a lot about communication. And probably a parallel, you know, connection. Right?
How do we have connections between faculty members from diverse groups?
How do we connect it to the technologies that we use?
And how do we make better impacts with the students that we're serving?
--
Don't forget to celebrate individuals you see making a difference in teaching, learning, or student success at MSU with #iteachmsu's Thank an Educator initiative.
I’m Dave Goodrich and I help design engaging learning experiences with educators like Stephen here at MSU. I’ve had the privilege of getting to work and learn from Stephen over the years and was glad to get to be able to interview him for this series. This is a longer conversation than typical educator stories, but we could have talked even longer, I’m sure. In fact, from this conversation, I’d love to have follow-up conversations with Stephen on some of the things that came up here, but for now, read more about Stephen's perspectives and experiences below:
--
Dave
I thought we could begin our conversation by having you give a glimpse into how you became an educator and your path to becoming an educator. We also usually start this with a challenging question: In one word, what does being an educator mean to you?
Stephen
I would say I am really focused on connection. So usually I'm dealing with populations who are studying things that are unfamiliar to them. So usually I'm teaching non-majors or done some work and informal science education, and, you know, some work with majors. But I feel like in general, I'm usually talking to a naive or inexperienced population, and I'm trying to help them to see themselves in the content that they're studying. And then I think over time, I've realized that there's a large piece of having a connection with the individual in order to help them then make a connection with the content. And so you know, and sometimes it's even like, how are you connecting them to each other, in order to help support them, like peers and their fellow students? I think there's a lot of that element in how I go about probably in the educational endeavor. So it's a lot of like, how do we engage people and get them to see themselves in the content that they're working with?
Dave
Yeah, absolutely. So I love talking to educators, like you, who inspire me. It's educators like you who helped me decide to go into education, because of how they kind of poured themselves into it and really cared for their students like how you're describing. I'm curious, I don't know if I've ever, ever asked you before, was there a moment in your life where you were like, yes, this is what I want to do. How did you enter the world of education?
Stephen
So I come from a long line of educators and lawyers. I was never going to choose law. I find it fascinating, but it just wasn't for me. And it just seemed like a very natural fit. So I think what's interesting, though, is that the piece that I've really resonated with is not necessarily the teacher part, it's actually the curriculum part. To go to the law piece, you have trial lawyers, and then you have the lawyers who are like, in the background, like, you know, getting everything together. I really like the background piece. I like thinking about what you are trying to do and how does it play out? And what kind of challenges might you face? And what kind of background materials can you prepare someone with? And so I think over time, I've realized, it's not the actual performance piece that I enjoy, although sometimes that can be really nice. I actually just really enjoy the preparation and the thought exercise that's involved in it. Sometimes the production of curriculum, like I sometimes dip my toe into, like the artistic side of the world. I feel like curriculum development is like artwork where you produce something and it's like, here's the tangible evidence of my labor, as opposed to the kind of experiential part that goes on in the classroom.
Dave
Oh, man, you're speaking my language now. That's interesting to hear, because, I mean, I see you as being one of the most interesting educators in that regard. You really seem to be excellent at the delivery, the performance, and the curriculum design also. If your experience is like mine, it can be a challenge to work both those hats at the same time.
Stephen
Honestly, I find the performance piece difficult. So for me, it took a long time to resolve being like a gay man in front of a class. That identity piece was really hard, and I didn't want it involved at all in my teaching. There was a lot of mental effort about how I just portray myself as an individual that people would connect with, but also that they wouldn't necessarily have difficulty with me being gay. So, I feel like there was a lot of performance in that it made it an extra cognitive piece of how am I portraying myself. Simultaneously, I'm trying to make sure that they're learning, you know, the intermediate disturbance hypothesis, and it's just like, there's a lot going on in those two things that made it just not as pleasurable as some people find it. After like a decade of that tension is part of why I didn't necessarily go towards the performance piece of teaching as much.
Dave
That's fascinating. I'd love to talk to you more about that. That's interesting, like how identity I mean, shapes, obviously, who we are as an educator, but how different identities intersect with the role of an educator.
Stephen
Right, like, women and minorities. I feel like with mine, it could be like a hidden component, but we hear lots of studies looking at women and minorities in front of a classroom and the extra difficulties they face. I feel like that's just this unfortunate overlap with the fact that they have to deal with his added difficulties. At the same time, they're trying to manage student learning. We also talk about the benefit of having diverse audiences in front of students. I think those are, you know, some things that are kind of woven into the situation of having diverse faculty teaching or instructors teaching.
Dave
Yeah, you mentioned “connection” as this key keyword for you in your teaching. Could you share what connection looks like for you in your practice?
Stephen
So one of the things in teaching science to non-scientists, I feel like one of the things I tackled earlier on was this idea of subject anxiety. And so I was getting a lot of feedback from students about when they were coming into the class that they were scared. They wouldn't say scared, they would say that they were anxious. Like, ‘science isn't my forte or that ‘I've never really done well in science courses.’ And so I feel like there's a potential barrier between the instructor and the students because they're anxious about how they're going to perform and whether or not they're capable of succeeding. That has been shown to impact their ability to succeed. I've always been asking how to reduce that kind of subject anxiety. I’ve looked at things like how do you incorporate comics as a way of softening the subject matter so that people are more engaged by it? I did a whole video series of me in weird places where it was all green screen. The idea is if your instructor is willing to do that, then surely it's not difficult to ask them questions, right? There's no barrier to them in that, ‘Oh, he's a scientist, and I'm going to look stupid in front of him.’ Instead, he's looking stupid in front of me. So like, I don't have to worry about it being something that I can't do. Right. So I've always tried to figure out, like, how do you make connections with people. It facilitates the ability to ask for help. And to take risks in trying to convey what you understand, right?
Because I feel that part of participating in the conversation is how you help grow as an intellectual, I would say, maybe that's one of my tendencies. Personally, when I'm learning something, I like to talk about it, get corrected, and then have a discussion and dialogue. And if you're afraid of showing your ignorance, then it's really difficult because it still remains hidden, right? And so to me, it is about how do you create an environment where they do feel connected, where they can feel connected with each other? When you confront that misconception, that's really where some significant learning can occur.
Dave
Yeah, absolutely. It almost sounds like you're talking a bit about modeling vulnerability as a posture toward learning itself.
Stephen
Right. I would say that I definitely did not have that terminology or that thought process at the time. But I feel like some of the conversations that have gone on with authors like Brene Brown, and, you know, thinking about allowing yourself to be vulnerable and connect to students has helped me to think about it maybe in similar terms.
Dave
Yeah. Vulnerability is probably not generally a scientist’s favorite word?
Stephen
Well, we have thought about having some workshops on that. But I think we sometimes talk about it with regards to how you have difficult conversations in the classroom, right? But it really does boil down to some of that being about vulnerability. That's also around kind of the intellectual components of being able to be wrong, and how you grow from that. So there are concepts of failing forward or failing fast or growth mindsets, right? And how do you help people to realize that it's not a condition of being either good in math or not good in math or good in science or not good at science? It's how do you grow what you have to be better?
Dave
Yeah, oh, that would be an interesting conversation to have around the scientific process itself. Some might argue this is based around an intellectual humility, of understanding that we don't understand and know that we don't know and constantly trying to engage the unknowing with things that we do know, to try, to build on that with solid evidence.
Stephen
There's an article that is basically on stupidity in science. It's a one-page description of regrets of a professional who was talking about his experience in grad school and realized that the ability to handle your own ignorance allows you to be successful in science. So it was talking about why some people make it and some people don't. And this was one of the aspects of the ability to be okay with realizing that you don't know the answer. Being willing to push that boundary is what allows you to be successful. So it's just, I think, an interesting take for students to realize that successful scientists recognize that they don't know and be okay with it.
Dave
How have your ideas about these things changed over time?
Stephen
Well, like what the identity piece, I feel like, there's definitely a component of feeling like it was just information, but they didn't really need to know me and to know aspects about who I am. And I feel like that's, you know, more especially in an online environment. I feel like there was a time when I wondered how you most interestingly convey this content, and you can totally do it divorced from identity and the connection piece is the part that helps to bridge those who are not already passionate about the topic. That's what's going to get them to connect with it. And so just figuring out how we humanize the digital experience is, that's been one progression, I would say.
One of the other ones I would say is my thinking about educator development because a lot of my work is working with faculty about how to improve their practice. I feel like that progression has been one of being rooted in a kind of best practice, or being very prescriptive, to actually having conversations with faculty about what it is that they value, and then figuring out how that ties into the primary literature or into and to various literature's, in general. There are times when you want to know just like, what are some of the things that people have learned that are best that have been shown in the literature with regards to having discussions in class. But it's really different. When thinking about life as an individual, I'm interested in having discussions with students, and identifying that as actually a pedagogical approach that you want to expand because that's what you're actually rooted in. That's what you're going to put the time in. That's what's going to define your actual classroom experience. So instead of someone coming in and being like, actually, you need to use whiteboards more. Yes, whiteboards can be effective, but you actually have to figure out what your identity is as an instructor, and then go from there. I just feel like that's so much more powerful.
Dave
That's really quite profound because they do seem to have eager tentativeness to “best practices.” It reminds me of one of my favorite authors, Parker Palmer, he has a book called “The Courage to Teach.” And he talks a lot about how a lot of and how we as educators, essentially, teach from who we are, as you're talking about that very thing, starting with the heart of the individual educator first and what their goals are and then building technological support.
Stephen
I totally remember having conversations with other educators, then pushing back on the best practices. And, like, I feel like this comes from a place of being in the sciences for, you know, so long of like, what, like, you measure things and we find out what is more effective. That's how we improve. And just disregarding this aspect of what would nurture a faculty member. I mean, like when we think about, like, how much time faculty spend on improving their teaching like they're balancing out research and service and all of these other components. And so like, in order for them to really grow, it has to be the thing that you're super passionate about. This is how I actually connect with people. And so I feel like the discussions or arguments we had about best practices and whether or not that's a valuable framework to go from is actually just moving in a different direction from this conversation of like, why would you just not focus on the thing that people are passionate about? Right? So it's not that it's incorrect, it's just not really looking at it from the same perspective. And so, it is, you know, sometimes a little painful to be like, oh, yeah, I think I said something like that. You know, like, a few years ago, and yeah, so it has been interesting.
Dave
Yeah, absolutely. And I certainly then, early on, in my work in instructional design, I was a strong proponent of best practices. I’m critical of that, lately, myself also. So, could you tell us a little bit more about your settings? I think when you were at first MSU, you were primarily teaching and an instructor and now you do a lot of educator development. I guess we could say, and you also do a lot of design and curricular work, and also some teaching, I believe, or
Stephen
…up until this last summer,
Dave
okay. Okay, gotcha. Okay. So could you tell us a little bit about your, your setting in which you're in, and then these different hats that you're wearing now?
Stephen
Part of my role is in the Center for Integrative Studies in general science. So that's the Gen Ed Science course for non-scientists. And a lot of my work in the last few years has been focused on curriculum reform. And I have to say, that's probably some of the most rewarding work that I've done. Because it's, I just love it. The idea of so thinking about, if you have a three-class sequence, like how do students progress between those classes? And then like, how do you resolve to have different faculty and their identity and their topic? And so it's just been, I feel fascinating about like, how do you first off physically map the curriculum? How do you get faculty buy-in for various curricular reforms? How do you build a community around curriculum, like, I'm interested in those, those ideas, and so that work has been really, really rewarding? And then I'd say in college, that setting is looking at how technology is a filter or a lever for impacting student learning. And so I get a lot of help from faculty to think about technology tools that they could use in order to facilitate things like discussions online. But a lot of that work has also been focused on accessibility.
I feel like that has been an incredible lens that also had a lot of unique challenges about how you get people to buy into doing extra labor for, for accessibility, for widening their impact on their curriculum. And so like, we had gone through many different lenses of like, oh, well, accessibility is about compliance, and then looking at how that impacted faculty buy-in. And, you know, how it was limiting their participation, because as a concept, it's not very engaging, and then, you know, shifting over to more of a social justice piece, or going even into an equity viability piece, I feel has really allowed people to, to think about that, and see how that is actually aligned with their beliefs, and how that type of work is important.
I feel like there's, you know so that accessibility work was like, how do we make sure that all the digital pieces that we're making are accessible to, so there ADA, so Americans with Disabilities Act, so it responds to that? But also, you know, what we've found is that those accommodations helped all students. And so, you know, it kind of broadened to this idea of going from an idea of compliance to really how do we impact a larger number of students. So that's kind of that work. And then my new role, as the assistant dean, it's focused on STEM teaching and learning. It's really focused on the STEM building, and then figuring out how a single location can bring faculty and disciplines from across the STEM disciplines and even outside of STEM, to talk with each other and to learn from each other, and to better use the physical spaces in their pedagogical approach.
So, you know, when you have small groups of people, how do you foster discussion in that and then build ways of reporting out to a larger community is the, you know, is what we're working on. And so the STEM building has lots of innovative approaches to their classroom design. And so figuring out how do we train faculty to do that is, you know, is, again, you can see a hopefully the parallel between what's going on in the center for, you know, building a community around curriculum, and then in the college about how do we as a community, figure out what are the standards for the curriculum that we're creating? And then the STEM building is how do we have conversations in typically siloed communities that can help us to improve our practice. So there's a lot about communication. And probably a parallel, you know, connection. Right?
How do we have connections between faculty members from diverse groups?
How do we connect it to the technologies that we use?
And how do we make better impacts with the students that we're serving?
--
Don't forget to celebrate individuals you see making a difference in teaching, learning, or student success at MSU with #iteachmsu's Thank an Educator initiative.
Authored by: Dave Goodrich
Pedagogical Design
Posted on: #iteachmsu
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Posted by: David V. Howe
Navigating Context
Posted on: Teaching Toolkit Ta...
Strategies for Growing Your Online Presence
This tipsheet raises several things to consider when creating and building your online presence and offers ways to get started.
This tipsheet raises several things to consider when creating and building your online presence and offers ways to get started.
Posted by: Kristen Mapes
Posted on: #iteachmsu
Using Leadership to Grow the Physiology Graduate Student Council (PSL GSC) Group 2016-2017
Posted by: Emma Dodd
Navigating Context
Posted on: The MSU Graduate Le...
Professional Growth Workshops Presentation
Posted by: Emma Dodd
Navigating Context
Posted on: #iteachmsu
The Academic Advancement Network (AAN) works with all faculty, academic staff, and academic administrators at Michigan State University as they join the university, establish professional trajectories, and move through various stages of review, promotion, and growth. AAN offers many opportunities for Educators to grow in their professional development and meet one another. Check out more information here: https://aan.msu.edu/events/
Posted by: Makena Neal
Navigating Context
Posted on: #iteachmsu
Research shows that diversity makes us smarter. Designing an inclusive classroom that allows students to share differing opinions in a brave space where people are treated with dignity can result in good learning outcomes for all. Conflict is a natural part of learning, and differences of opinion expressed in appropriate ways allow everyone to grow. An inclusive classroom allows the instructor to manage conflict in a way that harnesses differences so that they serve as learning opportunities for all.
Click the attachment below for some key elements to consider when designing an inclusive classroom.
SOURCE: MSU Office for Inclusion and Intercultural Initiatives
Click the attachment below for some key elements to consider when designing an inclusive classroom.
SOURCE: MSU Office for Inclusion and Intercultural Initiatives
Posted by: Makena Neal
Pedagogical Design
Posted on: #iteachmsu
MSU is a big place
Student success is number one-
teaching and learning
we must prioritize!
Educators are rock stars,
helping with this mission,
They need a place to share their work, and connect with their colleagues!
Share and grow, share and grow
Share, connect, and grow!
O' how great to have a site, for us to do all three!
Wishing you peaceful holidays and a happy new year from #iteachmsu!
Student success is number one-
teaching and learning
we must prioritize!
Educators are rock stars,
helping with this mission,
They need a place to share their work, and connect with their colleagues!
Share and grow, share and grow
Share, connect, and grow!
O' how great to have a site, for us to do all three!
Wishing you peaceful holidays and a happy new year from #iteachmsu!
Posted by: Makena Neal
Disciplinary Content
Posted on: GenAI & Education
AI Commons Bulletin 2/3/2025
Human-curated news about generative AI for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education.
👀 Get an Inside Look at How Students Use a Course Tutor
Social Science educators at Eötvös Loránd University (Hungary) found their simple chatbot for learning statistics boosted critical thinking and active learning for some students, who strongly supported its use.
Learn More: https://www.ksh.hu/statszemle_archive/en/2024/2024_02/2024_02_003.pdf
🔮 The Use of AI Isn’t Enough on Its Own to Predict Student Performance
AI’s impact on learning sparks both hype and warnings, with evidence supporting both views. This balance is likely to persist through the next academic year.
Learn More: https://journals.sta.uwi.edu/ojs/index.php/qef/article/view/9338
🎓 DOE’s AI Recommendations for Postsecondary Education
Establish transparent policies
Create/expand infrastructure to support AI
Rigorously test and evaluate AI-driven tools, supports, and services
Forge partnerships with industry, nonprofit, and other HE institutions
Review and update program offerings to address the growing impact of AI on future careers
Learn More: https://tech.ed.gov/ai-postsecondary/
👀 Soon Students Can Let ChatGPT “See” Their Screen
Expect this to have a big impact on teaching and learning practices. Some of the possible ways an AI could assist a student:
- Walk through a multi-step assignment
- Tutor how to use a software application
- Provide feedback as the student sketches out an answer
- Craft an answer to an instructor's question during a synchronous online course
Learn More: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIQDnWlwYyQ
Bulletin items compiled by MJ Jackson and Sarah Freye with production assistance from Lisa Batchelder. Get the AI-Commons Bulletin on our Microsoft Teams channel, at aicommons.commons.msu.edu, or by email (send an email to aicommons@msu.edu with the word “subscribe”).
Human-curated news about generative AI for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education.
👀 Get an Inside Look at How Students Use a Course Tutor
Social Science educators at Eötvös Loránd University (Hungary) found their simple chatbot for learning statistics boosted critical thinking and active learning for some students, who strongly supported its use.
Learn More: https://www.ksh.hu/statszemle_archive/en/2024/2024_02/2024_02_003.pdf
🔮 The Use of AI Isn’t Enough on Its Own to Predict Student Performance
AI’s impact on learning sparks both hype and warnings, with evidence supporting both views. This balance is likely to persist through the next academic year.
Learn More: https://journals.sta.uwi.edu/ojs/index.php/qef/article/view/9338
🎓 DOE’s AI Recommendations for Postsecondary Education
Establish transparent policies
Create/expand infrastructure to support AI
Rigorously test and evaluate AI-driven tools, supports, and services
Forge partnerships with industry, nonprofit, and other HE institutions
Review and update program offerings to address the growing impact of AI on future careers
Learn More: https://tech.ed.gov/ai-postsecondary/
👀 Soon Students Can Let ChatGPT “See” Their Screen
Expect this to have a big impact on teaching and learning practices. Some of the possible ways an AI could assist a student:
- Walk through a multi-step assignment
- Tutor how to use a software application
- Provide feedback as the student sketches out an answer
- Craft an answer to an instructor's question during a synchronous online course
Learn More: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIQDnWlwYyQ
Bulletin items compiled by MJ Jackson and Sarah Freye with production assistance from Lisa Batchelder. Get the AI-Commons Bulletin on our Microsoft Teams channel, at aicommons.commons.msu.edu, or by email (send an email to aicommons@msu.edu with the word “subscribe”).
Posted by: Sarah Freye
Host: CTLI
Make It Count: High-Impact Assessment Feedback in Less Time
This workshop explores strategies for providing feedback that enhances student learning while helping you manage grading time. Participants will learn how to deliver intentional, elaborative feedback and how to prioritize higher-order concerns in written assignments. The session will also introduce educational technology tools and assessment strategies designed to streamline the feedback process. By the end, attendees will walk away with practical techniques to support student growth without increasing workload.
Upon completion of this learning experience, participants will be able to:
describe the role of feedback in promoting student learning
explain the benefits of providing students with intentional, elaborative feedback on multiple-choice questions (MCQs)
differentiate between higher-order and lower-order concerns in feedback on assignments
identify assessment strategies and educational technology tools that assist in time management when providing feedback.
Navigating Context
EXPIRED
Host: CTLI
The Educator Exchange Learning Community
The Educator Exchange is intentionally designed to provide protected time and space for meaningful connections about our work and paths as educators. We believe that the best [lifelong] learning occurs when we connect in spaces that affirm our experiences and celebrate our unique perspectives! Our aim is to be a community of practice where you can openly share when things don’t go as expected and brainstorm solutions to challenges, explore teaching practices in different ways, talk through the challenges of educator roles in myriad situations, and cultivate joy in the celebration of each other’s successes. Join The Educator Exchange and rediscover the joy of being part of a caring community dedicated to uplifting one another and making a positive impact in our classrooms, labs, and beyond. This offering is facilitated in collaboration with the Office for Faculty and Academic Staff Development. Check out their website more about MSU's formal Learning Communities [hyperlink: https://ofasd.msu.edu/teaching-learning/learning-communities/]
Upon completion of this learning experience, participants will be able to:
Build connections and foster a supportive community among MSU educators by sharing experiences, challenges, and successes
Exchange innovative teaching strategies and best practices to improve instructional effectiveness
Encourage peer-to-peer learning and reflection to promote professional growth, student engagement, and educator well-being.
Navigating Context
EXPIRED
Host: CTLI
Educators as Researchers: The SoTL Approach to Innovative Teaching
Curious about conducting research in your classroom as a means to improve student outcomes? Join us for an informative workshop that introduces the fundamentals of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL), which involves the systematic study of teaching and learning in higher education to improve student success. In this session, you'll discover how SoTL can transform your teaching and contribute to your professional growth. We'll guide you through the key steps of a SoTL inquiry, from formulating research questions to sharing your findings. Plus, you'll explore examples of impactful SoTL projects and learn about resources available to help you get started. Whether you're new to SoTL or looking to refine your approach, this session offers valuable insights into the research-based approach to improving student learning.
Upon completion of this learning experience, participants will be able to:
define SoTL and describe its core principles
explain the importance of SoTL in enhancing student learning and improving teaching practices
identify differences between SOTL and traditional research in higher education
describe how SoTL can contribute to professional development, tenure, and promotion in higher education
outline the key steps involved in a SoTL inquiry, from formulating a question to dissemination
explore examples of SoTL projects in various disciplines
identify institutional and external resources available for faculty interested in SoTL (funding, mentorship, workshops)
describe ethical considerations when conducting SoTL research, including the use of student data, informed consent, IRB, etc.
Navigating Context
EXPIRED
Host: CTLI
Educator Drop-in Coffee Talk
Join educators from around MSU's network for an informal hour of comradery, community, and coffee (or whatever at home beverage you're so inclined to sip). Hosted virtually on the first Wednesday of each month, this is a moment for you to protect time and engage with others sharing your role/passions.
Upon completion of this learning experience, participants will be able to:
Build connections and foster community among MSU educators
Create a supportive space for sharing experiences, challenges, and successes
Encourage informal exchange of ideas to inspire professional growth and well-being.
Navigating Context
EXPIRED