Let's Talk Teaching

You don’t need to be an English teacher to use collaborative writing to help your students learn. Claire (who happens to be an English teacher) and Jim (who happens to not be one) discuss how this style of group work translates across the disciplines. They explore how it can help students achieve deep and unique types of learning. Claire highlights different types of collaborative writing, their pros and cons, and what it takes from an instructor’s standpoint to encourage good group behavior. Plus, they dive into the mysteries of “Lamonica’s Law.”

We present our seventh in-depth look at the 7 Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education with a discussion about meeting the needs of diverse learners. Claire and Jim (and Jim's obnoxious summer cold) begin with the problem of categorizing students as "visual" or "auditory" learners-- tired old concepts with little utility. They explore alternatives, and look for ways to make at least some aspect of assignments multi-modal, to allow students to play to their strengths. Claire also explains the virtue of pushing students past their comfort zones.

We’re back for the new academic year with a conversation about course design. CTLT's Director, Dr. Claire Lamonica, is teaching a class of freshman for the first time in more than a decade. We discuss her expectations, her concerns, and how she’s building her unique course. We also explore the importance of “letting go” when we find ourselves using the need to cover course content as an excuse to avoid innovation.

Read the syllabus, get out early… right? Wrong! We challenge common assumptions (made by both faculty and students) about what should happen on the first day of class. Discover how to set expectations, establish the culture of your class, and lay the groundwork for an enthusiastic and productive semester. As the new academic year begins, we present a repeat our very first episode, with some timely advice for kicking off the school year. New episodes are in the works starting the week of Aug. 21. In the meantime, happy teaching!

By embracing a few best practices, you can make sure your online content is enhanced for use by all students. This week, we sit down with Jen Bethmann, Illinois State's new Web Accessibility Coordinator, to explore some simple techniques to format our online media with maximum accessibility. Find out what you should be doing to your web pages and online documents to make them readable by those using screen readers and other types of accessibility software. We also discuss why you may want to reexamine how you lay out web pages, and we uncover how even the choice of words on a web page can make a difference between confusion and clarity.

Most teachers will tell you that group work, done well, is important to student success. But just how do you pull it off? We're back after a brief break to kick off our summer season talking about cooperative learning. Claire and Jim explore the differences between cooperation and collaboration in the classroom. Claire shares her experience designing group-related learning activities, and she gives us her take on whether it's better to let students pick groups, pick groups for them, or leave it to random chance.

Spring has just about sprung its last. As we wrap up the end another semester, it's a great time to look forward to a summer of some meaningful "me" time. Claire and Jim discuss the benefits of summer professional development in general and some of the highlights of CTLT's Summer Institute in particular. Explore some of the philosophies behind course design, helping students write, and thriving despite the stress of life in the academy.

“Reflection” is one of those terms you read a lot about when it comes to teaching and learning. It’s also one of those concepts that sounds natural but can be surprisingly hard to apply in practice. Claire and Jim unearth examples of how it can be used, practically, in teaching, and how it can help students truly master course content. They discuss probing questions, exam wrappers, rubrics, and more-- and, of course, reflection isn’t just beneficial to students!

Culture, globalization, mentoring, and life-long learning: We talk this week with Dr. John Baldwin, a professor in the School of Communication and the 2016 Outstanding University Teaching Award winner for tenured faculty. John shares his insights on those topics and more, as he and Jim explore the link between students’ self-identities and learning. They also discuss the importance of modeling positive behavior in your class—even when the discussion gets difficult.

It's the episode we've put off doing for far, far too long! Claire and Jim explore the need to provide prompt feedback in our teaching... and why that's a challenge for many of us. These two confessed procrastinators highlight ways encourage students to provide meaningful feedback to their peers and themselves. Find out how study groups, rubrics, and self-evaluations all play a role in supporting this important teaching practice.

Hit the road with Meg Gregory, who just completed her Ph.D. while teaching at several institutions, including Illinois State, this semester. Meg shares her perspectives on the diverse students she encounters while teaching across Illinois and reflects on how she's had to adapt her teaching to meet the needs of these different populations.

ReggieNet, Illinois State University's customized learning management system, received a significant upgrade over the spring break of 2017. CTLT's Charles Bristow, one of the instructional designers who helps faculty use ReggieNet, joins us to talk about new features.

It’s mid-semester, and some students may be having an “ah-ha” (or an “uh-oh”) moment in regards to their grades. There’s help for struggling students through the Julia N. Visor Center, part of Illinois State’s University College. We talk with Pamm Ambrose, an associate director with the College, who highlights their foundational approach to helping students achieve. We also talk about some common misconceptions about the services the Center offers (the Visor Center is not about "advisement"), and the importance of coaching students to cultivate learning skills and move beyond ineffective study habits. We also showcase how faculty members can help students take advantage of the Visor Center’s many services.

We sit down with Tracy Mainieri, Asst. Professor in the School of Kinesiology and Recreation and recent Teaching Initiative Award winner. Tracy discusses her experience creating a teaching portfolio and the process changed her take on teaching. We also explore ways to encourage students to reach for that "wow" factor in their projects and how summer camp taught her valuable lessons about teaching.

Communicating high expectations to students requires both clarity and empathy. It can sometimes be a difficult juggling act. We explore ways to incorporate one of the Seven Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education into your teaching. Discover some of the pitfalls and the great promise in rethinking how you challenge students to excel in their learning. Claire and Jim also discuss ways to help students get back on track when they don’t meet your expectations.

We start off 2017 with a return to Claire's bookshelf. This time, Claire and Jim explore three "handbooks" that can help you plan for teaching and easily respond to new questions or challenges that may arise during the semester. These research-based perspectives can help you assess various aspects of your teaching, including how much students actually care about course content, and illustrate ways to keep them engaged in their learning. Claire and Jim also explore the merits... and the occasional frustrations... of "ice breaker" exercises as a way of building community.

It's that time of year, when students turn the proverbial tables on their instructors and evaluate us. But student evaluations of our teaching are neither something we should dread, nor something we should read too much into. How do you strike a balance that let's you use those end-of-term feedback surveys as a positive tool for reflection? Claire and Jim explore what you should and shouldn't worry about, the virtue of the "long view," and more.

Surveys show our students spend more time learning outside the classroom than we think… but it is enough? Explore the concept of “time on task” and how we can help our students engage with meaningful learning. We’ll look at the age-old vicious cycle of lecture and reading assignments, other ways to encourage students to come to class prepared, and how and why you might hold students accountable for their learning.

You might experience more hot moments—times when passionate class discussion flares into something ugly and undesirable—thanks to the political and social earthquake centered on the 2016 election. We build upon our last episode and explore more ways to structure your class so students feel safe when talking about controversial issues. CTLT’s Dana Karraker highlights strategies for dealing with hurtful speech when unexpected hot moments occur: what to say, how to move forward, and why doing something is almost always better than not reacting at all.

This political season, and particularly the race for the White House, has injected an unprecedented amount of uncivil language and behavior to the national discussion. No matter who wins the November elections, it is unlikely to change anytime soon. How do you encourage students to discuss such shocking incivility in a civil way? This week, we sit down with Dr. Steve Hunt, director of the School of Communication, to discuss strategies for exploring these important topics in class while avoiding hostility and ill will. We also explore how these discussions might impact your end-of-semester student feedback.