We found 25 results that contain "gta"
Posted on: #iteachmsu
The Great British-U.S. Teach Off: Collaborative Teaching Lessons and a New GTA Pilot Training Model
Topic Area: Online Teaching & Learning
Presented by: Lucy Thompson, Jonathan Weaver, Nathan Baker, Jessica Tschida
Abstract:
Good collaborations are vital in higher education. They promote professional development and, when supported by the institution, help to sustain quality faculty members. However, these collaborations are usually framed around research goals and not undergraduate teaching goals. During the Spring 2021 semester Drs. Thompson (The Great Brit) and Weaver (her U.S. mate) collaborated on a new way of structuring and teaching their two separate and large online Introductory Psychology courses. Additionally, they worked closely with two of their Graduate Teaching Assistants - Nathan Baker and Jessica Tschida - in the preparation and eventual presentation of one week's worth of material to the students in both courses. This information session discusses the approaches, support systems, and co-teaching models that were undertaken to implement "The Great British-U.S. Teach Off" in the Spring Semester of 2021. Drs. Thompson and Weaver will also share the lessons they learned while teaching collaboratively, and how their collaborative teaching efforts supported a quality online undergraduate learning environment for their 750+ students combined across the two courses. Additionally, they will discuss their efforts to integrate and pilot a training model for the promotion and growth of graduate teaching assistants through this collaborative teaching model. Finally, Drs. Thompson and Weaver will offer suggestions for how MSU, and other institutions, can support, assess, and benefit from collaborative and co-teaching models of instruction in higher education.
Session Resources:
Great British-US Teach Off (PDF)
Presented by: Lucy Thompson, Jonathan Weaver, Nathan Baker, Jessica Tschida
Abstract:
Good collaborations are vital in higher education. They promote professional development and, when supported by the institution, help to sustain quality faculty members. However, these collaborations are usually framed around research goals and not undergraduate teaching goals. During the Spring 2021 semester Drs. Thompson (The Great Brit) and Weaver (her U.S. mate) collaborated on a new way of structuring and teaching their two separate and large online Introductory Psychology courses. Additionally, they worked closely with two of their Graduate Teaching Assistants - Nathan Baker and Jessica Tschida - in the preparation and eventual presentation of one week's worth of material to the students in both courses. This information session discusses the approaches, support systems, and co-teaching models that were undertaken to implement "The Great British-U.S. Teach Off" in the Spring Semester of 2021. Drs. Thompson and Weaver will also share the lessons they learned while teaching collaboratively, and how their collaborative teaching efforts supported a quality online undergraduate learning environment for their 750+ students combined across the two courses. Additionally, they will discuss their efforts to integrate and pilot a training model for the promotion and growth of graduate teaching assistants through this collaborative teaching model. Finally, Drs. Thompson and Weaver will offer suggestions for how MSU, and other institutions, can support, assess, and benefit from collaborative and co-teaching models of instruction in higher education.
Session Resources:
Great British-US Teach Off (PDF)
Authored by: Lucy Thompson, Jonathan Weaver, Nathan Baker, Jessica Tschida
Pedagogical Design
Posted on: Graduate Teaching A...
Assessment of Student Learning: Best Practices and Techniques
In this workshop GTAs learn about assessment strategies for their courses based on best practices. A strong focus is given to assessment tools and gradebook functions of D2L. We also use a template to create a simple rubric structure for any assignment.
Upon completing this session, GTAs will be able to:
Articulate the difference between summative and formative assessment.
Identify multiple assessment strategies based on best practices.
Effectively use the gradebook functions on D2L.
Use a template to develop a simple rubric structure for any assignment.
Upon completing this session, GTAs will be able to:
Articulate the difference between summative and formative assessment.
Identify multiple assessment strategies based on best practices.
Effectively use the gradebook functions on D2L.
Use a template to develop a simple rubric structure for any assignment.
Posted by: Kenneth Gene Herrema
Pedagogical Design
Posted on: Graduate Teaching A...
Tips and Tools for Motivating Students in All Learning Environments
This workshop guides GTAs in developing strategies for supporting student motivation in any modality and apply motivation theory to support student success in any learning environment. In addition, workshop participants will identify potential barriers to student motivation and use tools to address these.
By the end of this session, GTAs will be able to:
Develop strategies for supporting student motivation in their role and modality
Apply motivation theory to support student success in a variety of modalities (e.g., face-to-face, hybrid, online asynchronous) and subject areas
Identify and troubleshoot potential barriers to supporting student motivation
By the end of this session, GTAs will be able to:
Develop strategies for supporting student motivation in their role and modality
Apply motivation theory to support student success in a variety of modalities (e.g., face-to-face, hybrid, online asynchronous) and subject areas
Identify and troubleshoot potential barriers to supporting student motivation
Authored by: Ken Herrema, Stefanie Baier, GTA Teaching Learning Community
Pedagogical Design
Posted on: #iteachmsu
TLC During a Pandemic: Graduate TAs Build a Community Through Sharing Teaching Practices
Topic Area: Pandemic Pivot
Presented by: Stefanie Baier, Hima Rawal, Seth Hunt and Rosanne Renauer
Abstract:
When the pandemic hit unexpectedly, it disrupted some of our personal and professional connections, and the unexpected transition to remote teaching and learning changed some of our learning environments. However, not having to convene in certain physical locations offered new opportunities to establish and cultivate connections on an expansive level through a myriad of virtual spaces.
In this presentation, we share one such virtual community, the GTA TLC (Teaching Learning Community), which has afforded GTAs the opportunity to connect across disciplines and physical distance to share best practices, tools, technologies, methods, and ways of effective teaching. The GTA TLC has formed a community that meets bi-weekly and opens the door to whoever wants to connect with their fellow GTAs and any teaching enthusiasts to share, discuss, and reflect on innovative ideas around instruction. Not only has this space leveraged knowledge building but also created friendships across time zones, spaces, disciplines, and diverse backgrounds. The emphasis has been placed on the co-construction of knowledge while enhancing student engagement and student success in different settings from the lens of multiple GTA roles
In this information session, we will showcase excerpts of the best attended sessions including culturally responsive pedagogy, accessibility and technology tools for student engagement, feedback data from participants, and testimonials about the impact and growth of this community. All of these goals have been nested within our overarching theme of well-being that nurtures our GTA TLC, thereby elevating their awareness of students’ needs and holistic well-being.
Session Resources:
TLC During a Pandemic_Stefanie Baier.pdf
Presented by: Stefanie Baier, Hima Rawal, Seth Hunt and Rosanne Renauer
Abstract:
When the pandemic hit unexpectedly, it disrupted some of our personal and professional connections, and the unexpected transition to remote teaching and learning changed some of our learning environments. However, not having to convene in certain physical locations offered new opportunities to establish and cultivate connections on an expansive level through a myriad of virtual spaces.
In this presentation, we share one such virtual community, the GTA TLC (Teaching Learning Community), which has afforded GTAs the opportunity to connect across disciplines and physical distance to share best practices, tools, technologies, methods, and ways of effective teaching. The GTA TLC has formed a community that meets bi-weekly and opens the door to whoever wants to connect with their fellow GTAs and any teaching enthusiasts to share, discuss, and reflect on innovative ideas around instruction. Not only has this space leveraged knowledge building but also created friendships across time zones, spaces, disciplines, and diverse backgrounds. The emphasis has been placed on the co-construction of knowledge while enhancing student engagement and student success in different settings from the lens of multiple GTA roles
In this information session, we will showcase excerpts of the best attended sessions including culturally responsive pedagogy, accessibility and technology tools for student engagement, feedback data from participants, and testimonials about the impact and growth of this community. All of these goals have been nested within our overarching theme of well-being that nurtures our GTA TLC, thereby elevating their awareness of students’ needs and holistic well-being.
Session Resources:
TLC During a Pandemic_Stefanie Baier.pdf
Authored by: Stefanie Baier, Hima Rawal, Seth Hunt, Rosanne Renauer
Navigating Context
Posted on: #iteachmsu
Conflict Management for Instructor: Centering and Maintaining Student Relationships
The ideal learning expereince fosters thoughtful discussions between educators and students. These collaborative conversations, dialogues, and even debates can empower students to develop and grow their ideas and perspectives. It is important to remember that conflict is normal, and there are effective [healthy] ways to navigate difficult conversations with your students. By adopting an open and proactive approach to conflicts, you can reduce the frequency with which conflicts arise and their impact. Here are some strategies to help you both prevent and manage conflicts in your teaching:
Preventing conflicts
Be credible. Credibility is built from the first day of class and is continually judged throughout the term. On the first day, establish your credibility by providing some background information about your experience with the subject matter, your experience as a student, your research, etc. Show that you are focused and prepared. Keep this up throughout the term by coming to lectures prepared and sharing your lecture goals with your students. Organization, enthusiasm, solid knowledge of the content, and fairness all help to build and maintain credibility. Finally, you do not need to be perfect to be credible. If you make a mistake or don’t know the answer to a question, acknowledge the situation and focus on ensuring that the students get access to the required information as soon as possible. Defensive reactions tend to build conflict instead of preventing it.
Set clear expectations. Provide expectations from the start, both by writing them in your course outline and stating them in class. You can describe the goals of the course and outline roles for you and your students. You can also clearly emphasize your expectations for student behaviour and the consequences for prohibited behaviour, stressing mutual respect as a rationale for any ground rules. You can also include University policies towards certain behaviours (e.g., plagiarism) in your course outline. What this looks like in practice:
Listing expectations in your course syllabus.
Discussing the expectations in class at the beginning of the semester.
Reminding students of the expectations throughout the semester when teaching and during office hours.
Develop rapport and listen for understanding. Strengthening your relationships with students can help prevent conflict. Students work better when they feel that their instructors care about them; therefore, try to reduce anonymity and use students’ names whenever possible (e.g., in lectures and when grading assignments or papers). Be present a few minutes before and after class to answer questions and chat with the students informally. If students feel comfortable sharing their concerns with educators, every effort should be made to take those opportunities to listen. Employ these tips for productive conversations:
Enter conversations with an open mind.
Recognize that there may be something going on in the student’s life outside of academics that is impacting them.
Express empathy for how a student’s life experiences can impact their behavior. The student’s reaction may differ from your interpretation of the conflict.
Acknowledge and validate the student's feelings by listening fully without judgment.
Help the student feel heard and valued by asking questions to clarify what they are trying to say.
Use a dynamic teaching style. Good presentation and facilitation skills as well as enthusiasm for your teaching are assets that will keep students’ attention focused and help prevent distracting classroom behaviour such as lateness, talking, sleeping, etc. Using interactive teaching methods also helps to prevent distracting behaviours by involving students in the lecture.
Responding to conflict situations
Not all conflicts can be avoided with proactive measures. The following six steps describe a flexible response to many conflict situations. To practice implementing these steps, remember a conflict you have experienced and think about how these steps could be adapted to help you respond to that situation.
Don’t take it personally (but reflect on your impact). Conflict situations can make the participants feel upset, threatened, frustrated, and/or angry. These emotional reactions are unpleasant and they can interfere with your ability to respond constructively. Educators are in a position of authority when dealing with students and how you react/respond matters. Be aware of the power dynamic and take responsibility for initiating the conflict resolution process. Help to control your emotional responses to challenging situations by changing your perceptions of them. Due to this power imbalance, there may be times when your intentions do not align with your impact. Take steps to evaluate your actions and rectify the situation. What this looks like in practice:
Reframe your reaction...think to yourself, “That student is really upset – I wonder what the problem is?”, or “This is a distraction that needs to be addressed.”
Consider the impact of your words and actions on students.
Ask yourself if your message or delivery was disproportionately demanding or hurtful.
Take responsibility for the harm caused and discuss actions you will take in the future to ensure it does not happen again. You can serve as a role model by showing students a positive example of taking ownership of your impact and working to repair harm.
Ask yourself if you are the best person to discuss the situation with the student. Would other faculty, staff or students be better suited to respond? Sometimes asking for help to initiate a difficult conversation can be beneficial.
Choose when and where to deal with the situation. Responding immediately to student concerns, distress and inappropriate behaviour demonstrates that you are attentive to your students’ needs and reinforces your expectations for student behaviour. For example, if students are noisy in class you can respond immediately by pausing until you regain the students’ attention, making eye contact with the disruptive students, or asking if there is a problem you can help resolve. Some situations can not be fully addressed immediately. For example, addressing a serious disagreement in class can distract the students, undermine your authority and take time away from the planned learning activities. The best response can be to note that there is a situation that needs to be resolved and suggest when and where it might be further investigated. Try to be attentive to both your needs and the student’s situation when picking the time and place. If you sense that a student is intimidated by authority, you may want to meet in a neutral location, like a conference room, rather than in your office. By meeting at an appropriate time and place, you can facilitate open communication between yourself and the students.
Follow up, listen, and find common ground. When you meet with students, indicate that you are interested in hearing their perspectives by keeping a positive tone, and asking them open-ended questions, like “What part of the marking do you see as unfair?” When the students explain their situation, really listen: focus on their communication, don’t interrupt, and let them finish. Consider asking:
What outcomes do you and the student each hope come from the resolution?
How can you and the student work together to meet each other’s needs?
What steps can you and the student take to achieve these goals?
Check your perception. It’s very easy to misinterpret someone, especially if either of you are at all emotional. To ensure that you understand your students, you can check your perception of their accounts by describing your understanding and asking them to correct any misinterpretations or elaborate on anything that you find unclear. When describing your understanding, reframe their points as positive comments using non-blaming words. For example, “If my group members think they can do this to me again, they’re mistaken!” can be rephrased as “It’s important to you that your rights are respected.” Rephrasing the problem reassures the students that you are listening to them and it ensures that all the parties understand the problem. You can also ask lots of open-ended questions until you have enough information to understand the problem. Ideally, the feedback process would end when the students’ comments and body language confirm that they are sure that you have completely understood their message.
Select and explain your position. Now that you understand the students, you are in a good position to select a course of action. Be sure to choose an action that is in line with your teaching goals for the course. Tell the students what you have decided and give them your rationale for your decision. For example, when responding to a mark dispute, you might choose to review the assignment with the student by making reference to the marking criteria. In explaining your position, you might want to show an example of an assignment that better meets your expectations.
Discuss next steps and document your decision. When you have explained what you have decided to do, you can discuss possible next steps with the students. Finally, in many cases, you will want to document your decisions and, where appropriate, the information upon which you have based your decision.
If your plan of action requires follow-up on your part, you may want to briefly explain the process. For example, if you agree to review an assignment, you might want to indicate when they can expect to receive your comments.
You may want to direct students to other resources on campus, including counseling or health services, to get support and/or documentation.
If the students are not satisfied with your decision, it is good practice to direct them to an appropriate avenue for appeal (e.g., department chair).
Responding to highly emotional students
Schedule an appointment. If a student is too emotional to communicate his or her situation, it may help to schedule an appointment for a later time. This delay gives both parties a chance to calm down and to review the problem.
Open your door. This gives a chance for neutral, outside observers to witness the event. Leaving the door open protects both the student and the instructor.
Acknowledge behaviours and emotions. You may want to recognize the student’s emotional state at the beginning of your meeting. For example, you could say, “I can see that you are really upset. Can you tell me what you find especially frustrating?” If a student’s behaviour becomes inappropriate, point it out to the student.
Get assistance. If you don’t know how to approach a conflict situation, get assistance from a colleague or one of MSU's relevant offices (IDI, Ombudsperson, CTLI). If a student becomes very aggressive or threatening, contact the Michigan State Univesity police.
Keep others informed. If you are concerned that a difficult situation is developing, consider notifying others immediately. For example, if you are a teaching assistant, you could notify the instructor, the department chair, and the Graduate School GTA-Development staff.
Ineffective ways to deal with conflicts
Conquest. Trying to win an argument will turn a disagreement into a battle for dominance. Intimidation tactics can cause students to challenge you further and discourage their participation.
Avoidance. Ignoring problems does not make them go away.
Bargaining. Compromise can be a laudable way to resolve a conflict, but not when your teaching objectives get subverted by the resolution process. For example, asking a student to be less disruptive in class in exchange for a better grade on an assignment rewards unacceptable behaviour, harms your credibility, and is unfair to your other students. Make sure that your response to conflict situations is consistent with your teaching and assessment goals and is equitable to all in your course.
Quick fix. A band-aid solution, like changing a grade to get rid of a student, can not solve a conflict. This strategy also rewards unacceptable behaviour, harms your credibility, and is unfair to other students.
Thank you to colleagues in university educator development at the Center for Teaching Excellence at the University of Waterloo, the Division of Student Affairs at the University of Colorado Boulder and others for their materials that informed or were adapted into this resource. Photo by Kenny Eliason on Unsplash
Preventing conflicts
Be credible. Credibility is built from the first day of class and is continually judged throughout the term. On the first day, establish your credibility by providing some background information about your experience with the subject matter, your experience as a student, your research, etc. Show that you are focused and prepared. Keep this up throughout the term by coming to lectures prepared and sharing your lecture goals with your students. Organization, enthusiasm, solid knowledge of the content, and fairness all help to build and maintain credibility. Finally, you do not need to be perfect to be credible. If you make a mistake or don’t know the answer to a question, acknowledge the situation and focus on ensuring that the students get access to the required information as soon as possible. Defensive reactions tend to build conflict instead of preventing it.
Set clear expectations. Provide expectations from the start, both by writing them in your course outline and stating them in class. You can describe the goals of the course and outline roles for you and your students. You can also clearly emphasize your expectations for student behaviour and the consequences for prohibited behaviour, stressing mutual respect as a rationale for any ground rules. You can also include University policies towards certain behaviours (e.g., plagiarism) in your course outline. What this looks like in practice:
Listing expectations in your course syllabus.
Discussing the expectations in class at the beginning of the semester.
Reminding students of the expectations throughout the semester when teaching and during office hours.
Develop rapport and listen for understanding. Strengthening your relationships with students can help prevent conflict. Students work better when they feel that their instructors care about them; therefore, try to reduce anonymity and use students’ names whenever possible (e.g., in lectures and when grading assignments or papers). Be present a few minutes before and after class to answer questions and chat with the students informally. If students feel comfortable sharing their concerns with educators, every effort should be made to take those opportunities to listen. Employ these tips for productive conversations:
Enter conversations with an open mind.
Recognize that there may be something going on in the student’s life outside of academics that is impacting them.
Express empathy for how a student’s life experiences can impact their behavior. The student’s reaction may differ from your interpretation of the conflict.
Acknowledge and validate the student's feelings by listening fully without judgment.
Help the student feel heard and valued by asking questions to clarify what they are trying to say.
Use a dynamic teaching style. Good presentation and facilitation skills as well as enthusiasm for your teaching are assets that will keep students’ attention focused and help prevent distracting classroom behaviour such as lateness, talking, sleeping, etc. Using interactive teaching methods also helps to prevent distracting behaviours by involving students in the lecture.
Responding to conflict situations
Not all conflicts can be avoided with proactive measures. The following six steps describe a flexible response to many conflict situations. To practice implementing these steps, remember a conflict you have experienced and think about how these steps could be adapted to help you respond to that situation.
Don’t take it personally (but reflect on your impact). Conflict situations can make the participants feel upset, threatened, frustrated, and/or angry. These emotional reactions are unpleasant and they can interfere with your ability to respond constructively. Educators are in a position of authority when dealing with students and how you react/respond matters. Be aware of the power dynamic and take responsibility for initiating the conflict resolution process. Help to control your emotional responses to challenging situations by changing your perceptions of them. Due to this power imbalance, there may be times when your intentions do not align with your impact. Take steps to evaluate your actions and rectify the situation. What this looks like in practice:
Reframe your reaction...think to yourself, “That student is really upset – I wonder what the problem is?”, or “This is a distraction that needs to be addressed.”
Consider the impact of your words and actions on students.
Ask yourself if your message or delivery was disproportionately demanding or hurtful.
Take responsibility for the harm caused and discuss actions you will take in the future to ensure it does not happen again. You can serve as a role model by showing students a positive example of taking ownership of your impact and working to repair harm.
Ask yourself if you are the best person to discuss the situation with the student. Would other faculty, staff or students be better suited to respond? Sometimes asking for help to initiate a difficult conversation can be beneficial.
Choose when and where to deal with the situation. Responding immediately to student concerns, distress and inappropriate behaviour demonstrates that you are attentive to your students’ needs and reinforces your expectations for student behaviour. For example, if students are noisy in class you can respond immediately by pausing until you regain the students’ attention, making eye contact with the disruptive students, or asking if there is a problem you can help resolve. Some situations can not be fully addressed immediately. For example, addressing a serious disagreement in class can distract the students, undermine your authority and take time away from the planned learning activities. The best response can be to note that there is a situation that needs to be resolved and suggest when and where it might be further investigated. Try to be attentive to both your needs and the student’s situation when picking the time and place. If you sense that a student is intimidated by authority, you may want to meet in a neutral location, like a conference room, rather than in your office. By meeting at an appropriate time and place, you can facilitate open communication between yourself and the students.
Follow up, listen, and find common ground. When you meet with students, indicate that you are interested in hearing their perspectives by keeping a positive tone, and asking them open-ended questions, like “What part of the marking do you see as unfair?” When the students explain their situation, really listen: focus on their communication, don’t interrupt, and let them finish. Consider asking:
What outcomes do you and the student each hope come from the resolution?
How can you and the student work together to meet each other’s needs?
What steps can you and the student take to achieve these goals?
Check your perception. It’s very easy to misinterpret someone, especially if either of you are at all emotional. To ensure that you understand your students, you can check your perception of their accounts by describing your understanding and asking them to correct any misinterpretations or elaborate on anything that you find unclear. When describing your understanding, reframe their points as positive comments using non-blaming words. For example, “If my group members think they can do this to me again, they’re mistaken!” can be rephrased as “It’s important to you that your rights are respected.” Rephrasing the problem reassures the students that you are listening to them and it ensures that all the parties understand the problem. You can also ask lots of open-ended questions until you have enough information to understand the problem. Ideally, the feedback process would end when the students’ comments and body language confirm that they are sure that you have completely understood their message.
Select and explain your position. Now that you understand the students, you are in a good position to select a course of action. Be sure to choose an action that is in line with your teaching goals for the course. Tell the students what you have decided and give them your rationale for your decision. For example, when responding to a mark dispute, you might choose to review the assignment with the student by making reference to the marking criteria. In explaining your position, you might want to show an example of an assignment that better meets your expectations.
Discuss next steps and document your decision. When you have explained what you have decided to do, you can discuss possible next steps with the students. Finally, in many cases, you will want to document your decisions and, where appropriate, the information upon which you have based your decision.
If your plan of action requires follow-up on your part, you may want to briefly explain the process. For example, if you agree to review an assignment, you might want to indicate when they can expect to receive your comments.
You may want to direct students to other resources on campus, including counseling or health services, to get support and/or documentation.
If the students are not satisfied with your decision, it is good practice to direct them to an appropriate avenue for appeal (e.g., department chair).
Responding to highly emotional students
Schedule an appointment. If a student is too emotional to communicate his or her situation, it may help to schedule an appointment for a later time. This delay gives both parties a chance to calm down and to review the problem.
Open your door. This gives a chance for neutral, outside observers to witness the event. Leaving the door open protects both the student and the instructor.
Acknowledge behaviours and emotions. You may want to recognize the student’s emotional state at the beginning of your meeting. For example, you could say, “I can see that you are really upset. Can you tell me what you find especially frustrating?” If a student’s behaviour becomes inappropriate, point it out to the student.
Get assistance. If you don’t know how to approach a conflict situation, get assistance from a colleague or one of MSU's relevant offices (IDI, Ombudsperson, CTLI). If a student becomes very aggressive or threatening, contact the Michigan State Univesity police.
Keep others informed. If you are concerned that a difficult situation is developing, consider notifying others immediately. For example, if you are a teaching assistant, you could notify the instructor, the department chair, and the Graduate School GTA-Development staff.
Ineffective ways to deal with conflicts
Conquest. Trying to win an argument will turn a disagreement into a battle for dominance. Intimidation tactics can cause students to challenge you further and discourage their participation.
Avoidance. Ignoring problems does not make them go away.
Bargaining. Compromise can be a laudable way to resolve a conflict, but not when your teaching objectives get subverted by the resolution process. For example, asking a student to be less disruptive in class in exchange for a better grade on an assignment rewards unacceptable behaviour, harms your credibility, and is unfair to your other students. Make sure that your response to conflict situations is consistent with your teaching and assessment goals and is equitable to all in your course.
Quick fix. A band-aid solution, like changing a grade to get rid of a student, can not solve a conflict. This strategy also rewards unacceptable behaviour, harms your credibility, and is unfair to other students.
Thank you to colleagues in university educator development at the Center for Teaching Excellence at the University of Waterloo, the Division of Student Affairs at the University of Colorado Boulder and others for their materials that informed or were adapted into this resource. Photo by Kenny Eliason on Unsplash
Posted by: Makena Neal
Pedagogical Design
Posted on: #iteachmsu
Instructor Jumpstart
The CTLI offered two Instructor Jumpstart workshop sessions for MSU’s New Faculty and Academic Staff Orientation in patnership with the Office for Faculty and Academic Staff Development. These hybrid workshops were led by Ellie Louson and Teaching Center director Jeremy Van Hof. Jumpstart is a two-part introduction to high-level topics related to quality, inclusive teaching at Michigan State University and was part of our Semester Start-Up programming for MSU educators. We covered topics such as:
Setting the Tone from the Start
Syllabus Considerations
Engaging Students in the Classroom
Faculty Rights and Responsibilities
Collaborating w/ GTAs and ULAs
Inclusive Teaching and Pedagogy
Building a (personal) Teaching & Learning Network
MSU’s Early Warning System for Students (EASE)
Available Campus Resources
The takeaways from these sessions were:
There are actions you can take to intentionally build a learning environment & culture in your class.
Think about your syllabus as a learning tool and an agreement within your classroom community.
Actively engaging learners with simple practices can improve course outcomes and help support the tone you’ve set.
MSU educators enjoy both rights and responsibilities in their teaching, research, and outreach/creative activities
Think of your work with GTAs/ULAs as a partnership, be aware of power dynamics, and use the Graduate School for GTA guidance and the CTLI for ULA guidance.
There are benefits to students and instructors when courses are designed inclusively, and educators have specific responsibilities to create accessible courses and resources for students.
We recommend that educators new to MSU connect with colleagues and build their personal teaching & learning network
EASE reports are an early-warning system to help colleges identify absent or disengaged students for potential interventions and support early in the semester.
MSU has lots of resources available to help support you and your students.
You can access the single slide deck for both sessions of Jumpstart here [requires a MSU login]. The slides include links to many MSU resources for course instructors. We also heard from participants that the CTLI's new Classroom Scenarios Sample Responses could be valuable in the classroom to help respond to and/or de-escalate distracting or disruptive classroom situations.Feel free to reach out to Ellie Louson or Jeremy Van Hof if you have any questions about New Instructor Jumpstart or the topics described above.Photo by Stephanie Klepacki on Unsplash
Setting the Tone from the Start
Syllabus Considerations
Engaging Students in the Classroom
Faculty Rights and Responsibilities
Collaborating w/ GTAs and ULAs
Inclusive Teaching and Pedagogy
Building a (personal) Teaching & Learning Network
MSU’s Early Warning System for Students (EASE)
Available Campus Resources
The takeaways from these sessions were:
There are actions you can take to intentionally build a learning environment & culture in your class.
Think about your syllabus as a learning tool and an agreement within your classroom community.
Actively engaging learners with simple practices can improve course outcomes and help support the tone you’ve set.
MSU educators enjoy both rights and responsibilities in their teaching, research, and outreach/creative activities
Think of your work with GTAs/ULAs as a partnership, be aware of power dynamics, and use the Graduate School for GTA guidance and the CTLI for ULA guidance.
There are benefits to students and instructors when courses are designed inclusively, and educators have specific responsibilities to create accessible courses and resources for students.
We recommend that educators new to MSU connect with colleagues and build their personal teaching & learning network
EASE reports are an early-warning system to help colleges identify absent or disengaged students for potential interventions and support early in the semester.
MSU has lots of resources available to help support you and your students.
You can access the single slide deck for both sessions of Jumpstart here [requires a MSU login]. The slides include links to many MSU resources for course instructors. We also heard from participants that the CTLI's new Classroom Scenarios Sample Responses could be valuable in the classroom to help respond to and/or de-escalate distracting or disruptive classroom situations.Feel free to reach out to Ellie Louson or Jeremy Van Hof if you have any questions about New Instructor Jumpstart or the topics described above.Photo by Stephanie Klepacki on Unsplash
Authored by: Ellie Louson
Navigating Context
Posted on: #iteachmsu
Recognizing April Athnos: Graduate Student & Educator
It is Graduate Student Appreciation Week, and we would like to highlight the many roles of our graduate and professional students. This week we will recognize one outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistant/Educator every day on #iteachmsu.
GTA April Athnos chooses to be an “usher” rather than a “gatekeeper” to knowledge for students of Ecological Economics (EEM 255). She welcomes students to identify environmental challenges and uncover the economic factors underpinning them. Said one student, “April used a variety of teaching methods, to promote an inclusive learning experience for all different types of students.” April makes the time to tailor the course to individual student needs, so that another student, “had the opportunity to write a research paper on the topic of the Coronavirus outbreak and its impact on the U.S. economy for my Honors Project.”Thank you, April for being such an excellent educator!Twitter: @AprilAthnosDepartment: Agricultural, Food and Resource Economics #GPSAW (Graduate Student Appreciation Week)
GTA April Athnos chooses to be an “usher” rather than a “gatekeeper” to knowledge for students of Ecological Economics (EEM 255). She welcomes students to identify environmental challenges and uncover the economic factors underpinning them. Said one student, “April used a variety of teaching methods, to promote an inclusive learning experience for all different types of students.” April makes the time to tailor the course to individual student needs, so that another student, “had the opportunity to write a research paper on the topic of the Coronavirus outbreak and its impact on the U.S. economy for my Honors Project.”Thank you, April for being such an excellent educator!Twitter: @AprilAthnosDepartment: Agricultural, Food and Resource Economics #GPSAW (Graduate Student Appreciation Week)
Authored by: Scott Swinton, Ashleigh Booth, and the Graduate School
Pedagogical Design
Posted on: #iteachmsu Educator...
College of Agriculture and Natural Resources 2021 #iteachmsu Educator Award Recipients
The following is a list of the educators receiving the #iteachmsu Educator Award from the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources. For more information on these awards, check out the article entitled "#iteachmsu Educator Awards".
Jenifer Fenton: Jenifer is a fantastic mentor and constantly seeks out new pedagogical information to pass on to others. Her knowledge and direction really helped me improve my summer asynchronous online courses, and current and upcoming synchronous online courses. Additionally, she was fundamental in the redesign of our Nutritional Sciences major.
Tatiana Thomas: In a very challenging semester, Tati committed to helping me with ANS 300E, animal welfare judging. She served as both a ULA, an assistant coach for the judging team, and in both roles was a huge help to me. She came to each class with a positive attitude, always encouraging and ready to support the students and instructor. In her role as a ULA, Tati created a mock welfare scenario for the students and monitored their fact sheet submissions providing valuable practice and important feedback to the students. With such a trying semester for me, the quality of this course would have suffered had it not been for Tati. A million times over, thank you.
Jessica Kiesling: Jessica seems to be an endless well of patience, positivity, and productivity. She gives students meaningful assignments, path-plowing networking opportunities, and much-needed grace as we stumble our way into the professional world. I am so grateful to have Jessica as advisor and instructor, and the animal science community is so lucky to have her! Thank you, Jessica!
Scott Winterstein: I would like to give a huge shoutout to Dr. Winterstein for being the most exemplary mentor for the past 3 years and for his unparalleled dedication to excellence in teaching that I have witnessed the past 2 years as his Undergraduate Learning Assistant (ULA).
I met Dr. Winterstein when I was a freshman psychology major in his ISB202 course. Dr. Winterstein’s ISB202 course and our discussions after class strengthened my passion for environmental protection and showed me that I could turn my passion into a career. Near the end of the course, I changed my major to Environmental Studies and Sustainability. Now a graduating senior, Dr. Winterstein has been an amazing mentor to me and has completely shaped my career goals and introduced me to all the amazing opportunities the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (CANR) has to offer.
I have had the pleasure of working as his ULA for the last 4 semesters. In this role, I have seen him consistently go above and beyond for his students. He is incredibly committed to spreading his love of environmental science and supporting every one of his students. Dr. Winterstein’s work ethic and devotion to creating the best academic experience for his students is unparalleled. Especially during the COVID-19 pandemic and transition to online learning, I have seen many classes decline in quality and effort. For his ISB202 sections, I have only seen Dr. Winterstein dedicate more time and effort to perfecting his course. Moreover, he seriously takes into consideration the end of the semester surveys every time. Although he already has recorded lectures from the last two semesters online he could easily use, he re-records them every week adding new information and slight changes he makes based on survey results and careful analysis. He is extremely understanding of student difficulties, organized, and well-read. Additionally, I have seen many professors throughout my years at MSU change office hours to by appointment only, understandably, due to a lack of participation. When students would not show up to office hours due to zoom exhaustion, Dr. Winterstein opened up an extra office hour day in hopes of fitting student’s schedules better. He is always open to talking to his students about questions, related or unrelated to the course. And, many students have shared how fascinating and inspirational his memories about the history of the environmental movement and his own research is. While reading feedback he received from students on how to improve the course, a common trend I found was a deep appreciation of how enjoyable he made the science lectures through his humor and clear passion. He teaches in a way that is easily digestible to non-science major students and stimulating enough to convince me and many others to switch to science majors.
As a mentor, Dr. Winterstein has changed my life for the better. Always more than happy to help, I have asked Dr. Winterstein for endless letter of recommendation requests and his references has helped me secure over $8,000 in scholarships. Not to mention, he always forwards workshops/conferences he finds relating to environmental protection and my goals that he thinks may be of interest to me. Moreover, this year Dr. Winterstein offered to serve as the faculty advisor for my personal gap year project, a clean drinking water initiative in Mfangano Island, Kenya. Since, he has helped me apply to grants that could fund clean drinking water for 700+ residents and helped me secure an amazing summer internship.
Professor Winterstein is clearly in the top 1% of professors I have encountered at MSU based on both his dedication to his subject matter and unwavering passion in helping his students succeed. Personally, he helped me tremendously in growing from a confused freshman to a passionate and experienced professional with a clear career goal and life purpose. To be frank, MSU was not my top choice, but now I am graduating with an overwhelming sense of belonging within the CANR and forever proud to be a Spartan. His passion in helping his students inspired me to be a student mentor to a handful of CANR students and to pitch a mentorship program to the CANR Alumni Association which they will be pursuing. Thank you Dr. Winterstein for all that you do. I know the trajectory of my entire life has been significantly improved thanks to your course and mentorship. It is educators like you that make the world go round!
Aakanksha Melkani: Aakanksha is an amazing peer: she is a skillful, thoughtful woman who is as much fun to work with as she is to eat a meal or chat with! Aakanksha helps address the concerns of graduate students in her role as AFRE Graduate Student Organization Vice President. Her research work focuses on understanding marketing decisions in Zambia and trade of agricultural inputs. Aakanksha really represents excellence in all its forms :)
April Athnos: GTA April Athnos chooses to be an “usher” rather than a “gatekeeper” to knowledge for students of Ecological Economics (EEM 255). She welcomes students to identify environmental challenges and uncover the economic factors underpinning them. Said one student, “April used a variety of teaching methods, to promote an inclusive learning experience for all different types of students.” April makes the time to tailor the course to individual student needs, so that another student, “had the opportunity to write a research paper on the topic of the Coronavirus outbreak and its impact on the U.S. economy for my Honors Project.”
Ankita Bhattacharya: Ankita, is the true example of a graduate student. She started in the department as a Masters student and just recently transferred into the PhD program. Several semesters she has held the position as a TA for FSC 430, with the instructor giving her rave reviews. Ankita, is a kind student that always has a smile on her face.
Sihan Bu:
Sihan is a fantastic teaching assistant. She was instrumental in the process of converting a course from in-class to synchronous online, even though she had never assisted with the course prior. The course has a lot of "moving parts", and I was very impressed with her ability to adapt and provide input. Sihan completed every task bestowed upon her, and readily took the initiative when needed. Additionally, she has been a reference for me in using R for a course I am teaching this spring. I had never used R before, and I would often reach out to her inquiring about specific codes.
Sihan is such a kind person and always has a smile. She received her MS at MSU and is continuing on with her PhD. She has contributed to several different studies within the department and with a previous FSHN student at Wayne State University.
Rick Jorgensen: Rick, is one of the most delightful, enjoyable students to be around. He has continued to keep a 4.0 GPA, His first project was to establish a IgE-Western blot method for studying wheat allergenicity. He has presented at the AAI meeting. Is a co-author on an abstract, a co-author on 2 peer-reviewed papers, the list continues on. He is also the student representative for FSHN GAC, all this while being a TA for the fall and spring semesters.
Srishti LNU: From the time Srishti entered the MS program she has had a smile on her face. Almost everyday she would stop by my desk to just say Hi and have a short conversation. This is her last semester as she will be graduating, while I am so excited for her and her future, it is sad to see her go.
Chia-Lun Yang: Chia-Lun is planning on graduating summer semester. Her career goal is to become a nutrition scientist, delivering knowledge to the general public. We have no doubt that she will meet and exceed her expectations. Chia was/is a great addition to FSHN, always kind, always smiling and always helpful.
Lucas Krusinski: Lucas is in his second year and has maintained a 4.0 GPA. He is overseeing projects and training other student in techniques and completed work on two funded grants. He also presented his research findings at the annual meeting of the American Association of Animal Science, his abstract was published in their journal. FSHN is lucky to have Lucas as a Grad student.
Alyssa Harben: Alyssa Harben has engaged opportunities across the mission (teaching, research and service) more deeply than any other student that I have had the privilege to mentor. She is critical player in our research, collecting and analyzing data as well as mentoring students and actively engaging community partners. She is an excellent teacher former FAST fellow, who has engaged in critical inquiry related to teaching and learning. All of this has led to the creation of new knowledge and new scientists. Her enthusiasm is as endless as her energy and it has been to my benefit to have known her.
Anyone can recognize a fellow Spartan for their contributions to MSU's teaching and learning mission or for how they made a lasting impression on your experience. All you have to do is click "Thank an Educator" in the left panel of iteach.msu.edu. From there you'll see a short form where you can enter the name, netID, and a short story of the educator you'd like to recognize
Jenifer Fenton: Jenifer is a fantastic mentor and constantly seeks out new pedagogical information to pass on to others. Her knowledge and direction really helped me improve my summer asynchronous online courses, and current and upcoming synchronous online courses. Additionally, she was fundamental in the redesign of our Nutritional Sciences major.
Tatiana Thomas: In a very challenging semester, Tati committed to helping me with ANS 300E, animal welfare judging. She served as both a ULA, an assistant coach for the judging team, and in both roles was a huge help to me. She came to each class with a positive attitude, always encouraging and ready to support the students and instructor. In her role as a ULA, Tati created a mock welfare scenario for the students and monitored their fact sheet submissions providing valuable practice and important feedback to the students. With such a trying semester for me, the quality of this course would have suffered had it not been for Tati. A million times over, thank you.
Jessica Kiesling: Jessica seems to be an endless well of patience, positivity, and productivity. She gives students meaningful assignments, path-plowing networking opportunities, and much-needed grace as we stumble our way into the professional world. I am so grateful to have Jessica as advisor and instructor, and the animal science community is so lucky to have her! Thank you, Jessica!
Scott Winterstein: I would like to give a huge shoutout to Dr. Winterstein for being the most exemplary mentor for the past 3 years and for his unparalleled dedication to excellence in teaching that I have witnessed the past 2 years as his Undergraduate Learning Assistant (ULA).
I met Dr. Winterstein when I was a freshman psychology major in his ISB202 course. Dr. Winterstein’s ISB202 course and our discussions after class strengthened my passion for environmental protection and showed me that I could turn my passion into a career. Near the end of the course, I changed my major to Environmental Studies and Sustainability. Now a graduating senior, Dr. Winterstein has been an amazing mentor to me and has completely shaped my career goals and introduced me to all the amazing opportunities the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (CANR) has to offer.
I have had the pleasure of working as his ULA for the last 4 semesters. In this role, I have seen him consistently go above and beyond for his students. He is incredibly committed to spreading his love of environmental science and supporting every one of his students. Dr. Winterstein’s work ethic and devotion to creating the best academic experience for his students is unparalleled. Especially during the COVID-19 pandemic and transition to online learning, I have seen many classes decline in quality and effort. For his ISB202 sections, I have only seen Dr. Winterstein dedicate more time and effort to perfecting his course. Moreover, he seriously takes into consideration the end of the semester surveys every time. Although he already has recorded lectures from the last two semesters online he could easily use, he re-records them every week adding new information and slight changes he makes based on survey results and careful analysis. He is extremely understanding of student difficulties, organized, and well-read. Additionally, I have seen many professors throughout my years at MSU change office hours to by appointment only, understandably, due to a lack of participation. When students would not show up to office hours due to zoom exhaustion, Dr. Winterstein opened up an extra office hour day in hopes of fitting student’s schedules better. He is always open to talking to his students about questions, related or unrelated to the course. And, many students have shared how fascinating and inspirational his memories about the history of the environmental movement and his own research is. While reading feedback he received from students on how to improve the course, a common trend I found was a deep appreciation of how enjoyable he made the science lectures through his humor and clear passion. He teaches in a way that is easily digestible to non-science major students and stimulating enough to convince me and many others to switch to science majors.
As a mentor, Dr. Winterstein has changed my life for the better. Always more than happy to help, I have asked Dr. Winterstein for endless letter of recommendation requests and his references has helped me secure over $8,000 in scholarships. Not to mention, he always forwards workshops/conferences he finds relating to environmental protection and my goals that he thinks may be of interest to me. Moreover, this year Dr. Winterstein offered to serve as the faculty advisor for my personal gap year project, a clean drinking water initiative in Mfangano Island, Kenya. Since, he has helped me apply to grants that could fund clean drinking water for 700+ residents and helped me secure an amazing summer internship.
Professor Winterstein is clearly in the top 1% of professors I have encountered at MSU based on both his dedication to his subject matter and unwavering passion in helping his students succeed. Personally, he helped me tremendously in growing from a confused freshman to a passionate and experienced professional with a clear career goal and life purpose. To be frank, MSU was not my top choice, but now I am graduating with an overwhelming sense of belonging within the CANR and forever proud to be a Spartan. His passion in helping his students inspired me to be a student mentor to a handful of CANR students and to pitch a mentorship program to the CANR Alumni Association which they will be pursuing. Thank you Dr. Winterstein for all that you do. I know the trajectory of my entire life has been significantly improved thanks to your course and mentorship. It is educators like you that make the world go round!
Aakanksha Melkani: Aakanksha is an amazing peer: she is a skillful, thoughtful woman who is as much fun to work with as she is to eat a meal or chat with! Aakanksha helps address the concerns of graduate students in her role as AFRE Graduate Student Organization Vice President. Her research work focuses on understanding marketing decisions in Zambia and trade of agricultural inputs. Aakanksha really represents excellence in all its forms :)
April Athnos: GTA April Athnos chooses to be an “usher” rather than a “gatekeeper” to knowledge for students of Ecological Economics (EEM 255). She welcomes students to identify environmental challenges and uncover the economic factors underpinning them. Said one student, “April used a variety of teaching methods, to promote an inclusive learning experience for all different types of students.” April makes the time to tailor the course to individual student needs, so that another student, “had the opportunity to write a research paper on the topic of the Coronavirus outbreak and its impact on the U.S. economy for my Honors Project.”
Ankita Bhattacharya: Ankita, is the true example of a graduate student. She started in the department as a Masters student and just recently transferred into the PhD program. Several semesters she has held the position as a TA for FSC 430, with the instructor giving her rave reviews. Ankita, is a kind student that always has a smile on her face.
Sihan Bu:
Sihan is a fantastic teaching assistant. She was instrumental in the process of converting a course from in-class to synchronous online, even though she had never assisted with the course prior. The course has a lot of "moving parts", and I was very impressed with her ability to adapt and provide input. Sihan completed every task bestowed upon her, and readily took the initiative when needed. Additionally, she has been a reference for me in using R for a course I am teaching this spring. I had never used R before, and I would often reach out to her inquiring about specific codes.
Sihan is such a kind person and always has a smile. She received her MS at MSU and is continuing on with her PhD. She has contributed to several different studies within the department and with a previous FSHN student at Wayne State University.
Rick Jorgensen: Rick, is one of the most delightful, enjoyable students to be around. He has continued to keep a 4.0 GPA, His first project was to establish a IgE-Western blot method for studying wheat allergenicity. He has presented at the AAI meeting. Is a co-author on an abstract, a co-author on 2 peer-reviewed papers, the list continues on. He is also the student representative for FSHN GAC, all this while being a TA for the fall and spring semesters.
Srishti LNU: From the time Srishti entered the MS program she has had a smile on her face. Almost everyday she would stop by my desk to just say Hi and have a short conversation. This is her last semester as she will be graduating, while I am so excited for her and her future, it is sad to see her go.
Chia-Lun Yang: Chia-Lun is planning on graduating summer semester. Her career goal is to become a nutrition scientist, delivering knowledge to the general public. We have no doubt that she will meet and exceed her expectations. Chia was/is a great addition to FSHN, always kind, always smiling and always helpful.
Lucas Krusinski: Lucas is in his second year and has maintained a 4.0 GPA. He is overseeing projects and training other student in techniques and completed work on two funded grants. He also presented his research findings at the annual meeting of the American Association of Animal Science, his abstract was published in their journal. FSHN is lucky to have Lucas as a Grad student.
Alyssa Harben: Alyssa Harben has engaged opportunities across the mission (teaching, research and service) more deeply than any other student that I have had the privilege to mentor. She is critical player in our research, collecting and analyzing data as well as mentoring students and actively engaging community partners. She is an excellent teacher former FAST fellow, who has engaged in critical inquiry related to teaching and learning. All of this has led to the creation of new knowledge and new scientists. Her enthusiasm is as endless as her energy and it has been to my benefit to have known her.
Anyone can recognize a fellow Spartan for their contributions to MSU's teaching and learning mission or for how they made a lasting impression on your experience. All you have to do is click "Thank an Educator" in the left panel of iteach.msu.edu. From there you'll see a short form where you can enter the name, netID, and a short story of the educator you'd like to recognize
Posted by: Makena Neal
Pedagogical Design
Posted on: Graduate Teaching A...
I wanted to share one of the best papers I've ever read as a grad student and GTA. Don't let the title fool you, the contents apply to everyone in higher education, not just scientists.
When I'm feeling overwhelmed or the imposter syndrome creeps in, I go back and re-read this article.
https://journals.biologists.com/jcs/article/121/11/1771/30038/The-importance-of-stupidity-in-scientific-research
Martin A. Schwartz; The importance of stupidity in scientific research. J Cell Sci 1 June 2008; 121 (11): 1771. doi: https://doi.org/10.1242/jcs.033340
When I'm feeling overwhelmed or the imposter syndrome creeps in, I go back and re-read this article.
https://journals.biologists.com/jcs/article/121/11/1771/30038/The-importance-of-stupidity-in-scientific-research
Martin A. Schwartz; The importance of stupidity in scientific research. J Cell Sci 1 June 2008; 121 (11): 1771. doi: https://doi.org/10.1242/jcs.033340
Posted by: Josh Winowiecki
Navigating Context
Host: CTLI
Navigating D2L Functions as GTAs: Q&A
On behalf of the GREAT office at The Graduate School, check out Navigating D2L Functions as GTAs: Q&A
Date: Thursday, August 28, 2025 - 1:00pm to 2:00pm
Location: Zoom
Audience: Current Graduate Students & Postdocs
You are in a new Graduate Teaching Assistant role and have started working with D2L, and as you do so, questions about various functions and use of these arise. This workshop is a Q & A session with MSU IT experts on D2L, Gradebook, Accessibility Checker, Checklists, etc. Join us if you have any questions and need assistance as you navigate the Learning Management System as GTA.
Facilitators: Cui Cheng (Instructional Designer, MSU IT Educational Technology) and Jennie Wagner (Instructional Designer, MSU IT Educational Technology)
Zoom link will be sent closer to the workshop date.
Register Here
Navigating Context
EXPIRED