ADVISING MOVEMENT TAKES SHAPE
The movement to create a academic advising program of excellence for our students continues to move forward. A good number of our colleagues gathered on Tuesday, April 29 to discuss a number of issues that included the need for a guidebook, academic progress checklists, a database on student advising, selection of an appropriate advising model, and the creation of a discussion board. Two ad-hoc committees were created to handle the main issues. The Academic Advising Handbook ad-hoc committee is being co-chaired by Science Department Chair Laura Younger and Nursing and Allied Health Academic Advisor Martha Sealey and includes the following members: Dr. Mary Boudreaux (STEM Division), Gery Frie (Construction Management), Dr. Sandra Harris (Title 3), Leigh Potts, (Title 3), Jeanne Stacy (Academic Learning Center), Leroy Waguespack (Computer Information Systems), and Rebecca Wesley (Veterinary Technology). The Student Advising Records ad-hoc committee is being co-chaired by Business and Social Sciences Department Chair Amy Pinero and Business and Social Sciences Division Academic Advisor Eric Whitfield and includes the following members: Nisha Aroskar (Business), Vinetta Frie (CSSK) Peter Klubek (Library), Marla Kameny (Business), and Krista Schmitt (Business). If you would like to be involved in either ad-hoc committee, please contact one of the co-chairs.
MEASURING TEACHING EFFECTIVENESS
Faculty Focus presents us with a timely article on an issue that we are currently wrestling with; namely student ratings of faculty. She writes, "When we talk about teaching effectiveness, it’s usually in the context of
evaluation. Student ratings are frequently described as measures of
teaching effectiveness, and that makes our understanding of the term
important. Researcher Leslie Layne wondered whether students and
teachers define the term similarly. If they don’t, Layne writes that
understanding the differences “is crucial to faculty and administrators
when interpreting student survey results.”
WHERE DO THE LIBERAL ARTS FIT
Dr. William Durden has written a very provocative opinion piece on the current state of affairs concerning liberal art degrees. He writes, "Americans don’t like cheaters. When it comes to how we learn and what
we’re able to do with our acquired knowledge, a game has been going on.
And many will find themselves systematically locked out of opportunity. This is not about students cheating on tests or principals
downplaying ineffective teaching strategies. Nor is it about the latest
argument concerning higher education — that college is too expensive and
there’s no guarantee of gainful employment. It a national reckoning of
how much we’re willing to tolerate regarding class, status and the
suppression of economic mobility. This issue demands that we take
responsibility for the way that our educational decisions play out in
our lives and throughout our communities. Until we take ownership of
these things, we will continue to play a fool’s game of winners and
losers."
Showing posts with label faculty evaluation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label faculty evaluation. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 8, 2014
HEALTHY LIVING CREATES BRAINS FOR LEARNING
One of the many topics we teach in the College Success Skills course offered at BRCC is the benefits of being healthy. The discussion centers on how your lifestyle really impacts your ability to learn. Part of the lesson is about diet and how foods affect your brain. Another aspect discussed is the benefits of exercise. I like to use some of the examples from Dr. Terry Doyle's book Learner-Centered Teaching. Doyle surveyed faculty members at different institutions to find out how they got their students moving rather than just having them sit and talk. One method he discovered is the "moving discussion" which allows student to walk for 15 to 20 minutes with a partner or a group and discuss various topics which are assigned by the instructor. When they return, they are asked to share their conclusions with the class. An even simpler method he shared allows students time to stand and stretch when needed during class. It provides a respite from boredom and allows you to recapture your student's attention. Research shows that having built in breaks during your class, will improve learning as it battles short attention spans and encourages deeper thinking about the subject at hand.
ASK FOR FEEDBACK REGULARLY
With all this talk about flipping, here is an idea about how you can increase the participation rate of your students on the end-of-the-semester ratings they are asked to complete. Ask your students to complete their student ratings on your teaching effectiveness based on their learning and explain to them that you plan to use their feedback to update and improve your approach based on their feedback. Ask them to give you specific comments on the things that helped them learn. Also, ask them to give you some examples of things they think would have helped them learn better in your classes. This is a continuation of the Stop-Start-Keep Doing periodic method that I have been encouraging you to use throughout the semester, so it ties in nicely if you have utilized this process. In addition, you might want to spend some time throughout the semester talking about the specific things that the student ratings are meant to capture. Sometimes students don't complete the ratings because they aren't really sure what we are asking of them. The flip in all of this is to move away from a mandate and towards a request for help.
CELEBRATING LEARNING
We continue to celebrate learning at BRCC. One of our Engaged Scholars, Paul Guidry who teaches criminal justice, sent us the following pictures from some of his classes. All of the students pictured increased their exam scores by one or more letter grades from the last exam. That is quite an accomplishment and illustrates the importance of having your students think about their preparation regimen when they receive their graded material back. Research shows that by having your students journal about how they prepared for the current test, they can begin to alter their preparation approach for the next assessment. Another technique that has been proven to improve performance on assessment instruments (like exams or papers) is to have the student correct the errors they made on the original assignment. It reinforces the right answers or methods and prepares them for the next time they are asked to apply the same knowledge. As I have shared with you in a previous tweet, research by Dr. Daniel Schacter shows that it takes both repetition and elaboration over time to form long-term memories. Dr. Carol Dweck's research also informs us that it is important when students fail, to focus the feedback on having them increase their effort and use improved strategies.
One of the many topics we teach in the College Success Skills course offered at BRCC is the benefits of being healthy. The discussion centers on how your lifestyle really impacts your ability to learn. Part of the lesson is about diet and how foods affect your brain. Another aspect discussed is the benefits of exercise. I like to use some of the examples from Dr. Terry Doyle's book Learner-Centered Teaching. Doyle surveyed faculty members at different institutions to find out how they got their students moving rather than just having them sit and talk. One method he discovered is the "moving discussion" which allows student to walk for 15 to 20 minutes with a partner or a group and discuss various topics which are assigned by the instructor. When they return, they are asked to share their conclusions with the class. An even simpler method he shared allows students time to stand and stretch when needed during class. It provides a respite from boredom and allows you to recapture your student's attention. Research shows that having built in breaks during your class, will improve learning as it battles short attention spans and encourages deeper thinking about the subject at hand.
ASK FOR FEEDBACK REGULARLY
With all this talk about flipping, here is an idea about how you can increase the participation rate of your students on the end-of-the-semester ratings they are asked to complete. Ask your students to complete their student ratings on your teaching effectiveness based on their learning and explain to them that you plan to use their feedback to update and improve your approach based on their feedback. Ask them to give you specific comments on the things that helped them learn. Also, ask them to give you some examples of things they think would have helped them learn better in your classes. This is a continuation of the Stop-Start-Keep Doing periodic method that I have been encouraging you to use throughout the semester, so it ties in nicely if you have utilized this process. In addition, you might want to spend some time throughout the semester talking about the specific things that the student ratings are meant to capture. Sometimes students don't complete the ratings because they aren't really sure what we are asking of them. The flip in all of this is to move away from a mandate and towards a request for help.
CELEBRATING LEARNING
We continue to celebrate learning at BRCC. One of our Engaged Scholars, Paul Guidry who teaches criminal justice, sent us the following pictures from some of his classes. All of the students pictured increased their exam scores by one or more letter grades from the last exam. That is quite an accomplishment and illustrates the importance of having your students think about their preparation regimen when they receive their graded material back. Research shows that by having your students journal about how they prepared for the current test, they can begin to alter their preparation approach for the next assessment. Another technique that has been proven to improve performance on assessment instruments (like exams or papers) is to have the student correct the errors they made on the original assignment. It reinforces the right answers or methods and prepares them for the next time they are asked to apply the same knowledge. As I have shared with you in a previous tweet, research by Dr. Daniel Schacter shows that it takes both repetition and elaboration over time to form long-term memories. Dr. Carol Dweck's research also informs us that it is important when students fail, to focus the feedback on having them increase their effort and use improved strategies.
 | |
| Rosalind and Kiara with Mr. Guidry |
 | |
| Xiaotang, Tarlesha, Devin, William, Felicia, Corey, Gloria, Hannah, Brandon, and AJ with Mr. Guidry |
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| Terrance, Honore, Tyler, Ridge, Kiara, Maria, Juan-Guevara, Kimberly, and Guysthaino with Mr. Guidry |
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
WORKSHOP COUNTDOWN NOW AT 2 DAYS
Where will you be at 3:00 PM on Thursday, February 28? Hopefully you will be joining most of your fellow faculty members for Dr. Barbara Millis' workshop "A Learning-Centered Approach to Teaching that Fosters Retention." Registration is still open and although more than 80 people have registered the Bonne Sante Wellness Center gym provides us with room for the rest of you. Participation in the two hour workshop will provide you with two faculty development service points but more important is the knowledge you will gain. This workshop promises to expand your teaching toolkit and provide you with the confidence to explore new teaching techniques. This event is part of the Teaching+Learning Center's distinguished speaker’s series.
Where will you be at 3:00 PM on Thursday, February 28? Hopefully you will be joining most of your fellow faculty members for Dr. Barbara Millis' workshop "A Learning-Centered Approach to Teaching that Fosters Retention." Registration is still open and although more than 80 people have registered the Bonne Sante Wellness Center gym provides us with room for the rest of you. Participation in the two hour workshop will provide you with two faculty development service points but more important is the knowledge you will gain. This workshop promises to expand your teaching toolkit and provide you with the confidence to explore new teaching techniques. This event is part of the Teaching+Learning Center's distinguished speaker’s series.
HOW DO YOU LEARN?
Empathy is a good quality to have if you want to be an effective and influential teacher. Our passion for helping others learn may become dimmed by the many challenges we face in our classrooms (whether in buildings or virtually). That is where the learning styles perspective can play a part. While the debate continues over the need for more empirical research, the fact remains that students do tend to learn better when the experience ignites their brain. That ignition is often caused by triggers that help them connect to previous learning and stored knowledge. Lynne Celli Sarasin tells us in Learning Style Perspectives: Impact in the Classroom (LB1060.S27) that "before instructors try to understand and accommodate their students learning styles, they need to understand their own learning style. Because we naturally tend to teach in ways that are consistent with how we learn or may even emulate a favorite teacher, we do have specific techniques that allow us to process information." Sarasin offers a number of short exercises to help you identify your preferences.
Empathy is a good quality to have if you want to be an effective and influential teacher. Our passion for helping others learn may become dimmed by the many challenges we face in our classrooms (whether in buildings or virtually). That is where the learning styles perspective can play a part. While the debate continues over the need for more empirical research, the fact remains that students do tend to learn better when the experience ignites their brain. That ignition is often caused by triggers that help them connect to previous learning and stored knowledge. Lynne Celli Sarasin tells us in Learning Style Perspectives: Impact in the Classroom (LB1060.S27) that "before instructors try to understand and accommodate their students learning styles, they need to understand their own learning style. Because we naturally tend to teach in ways that are consistent with how we learn or may even emulate a favorite teacher, we do have specific techniques that allow us to process information." Sarasin offers a number of short exercises to help you identify your preferences.
TEACHING AS SCHOLARSHIP
Ken Bain, in his book What the Best College Teachers Do (LB2331.B34), says that "teaching must be judged using a learning perspective. Institutions must rate the quality of teaching, both so they can help people improve and ultimately so they can keep the best teachers." He reminds us that "an evaluation is an informed attempt to answer important questions that require difficult decisions and can't be reduced to a formula." He states that the "quality of learning objectives" are important and the teachers "contribution to student learning" is what matters. He urges us to think about teaching "as a serious intellectual act, a kind of scholarship, a creation, complete with evidence" that the teacher is "fostering achievement and learning."
Ken Bain, in his book What the Best College Teachers Do (LB2331.B34), says that "teaching must be judged using a learning perspective. Institutions must rate the quality of teaching, both so they can help people improve and ultimately so they can keep the best teachers." He reminds us that "an evaluation is an informed attempt to answer important questions that require difficult decisions and can't be reduced to a formula." He states that the "quality of learning objectives" are important and the teachers "contribution to student learning" is what matters. He urges us to think about teaching "as a serious intellectual act, a kind of scholarship, a creation, complete with evidence" that the teacher is "fostering achievement and learning."
FOOD FOR LEARNING
Edward Nuhfer, Director of Faculty Development at California State University at Channel Islands, tells us that tryptophan is an important brain amino acid that is converted into useful brain chemicals such as melatonin. A deficiency of tryptophan reduces the chemicals that aid with restful sound sleep. As age reduces the body's ability to produce melatonin, tryptophan's role becomes increasingly important. Fowl is a source of tryptophan, so a chicken or turkey sandwich for lunch may cause drowsiness in afternoon classes. Because tryptophan is a nutrient that aids in sound sleep, sources of it are best taken at day's end. Tryptophan taken in before classes or before quiet study can cause problems for many of us and that is useful information you can share with your students. In addition, he notes that many students who are watching their budget tend to gravitate towards less expensive choices like breads or processed cereal. He says, "Such breakfasts, largely devoid of important nutrients tyrosine & choline, won't provide the boost for thinking and learning that good protein sources, such as eggs and meat provide. Creatine found in meats is known to benefit working memory and intelligence."
Edward Nuhfer, Director of Faculty Development at California State University at Channel Islands, tells us that tryptophan is an important brain amino acid that is converted into useful brain chemicals such as melatonin. A deficiency of tryptophan reduces the chemicals that aid with restful sound sleep. As age reduces the body's ability to produce melatonin, tryptophan's role becomes increasingly important. Fowl is a source of tryptophan, so a chicken or turkey sandwich for lunch may cause drowsiness in afternoon classes. Because tryptophan is a nutrient that aids in sound sleep, sources of it are best taken at day's end. Tryptophan taken in before classes or before quiet study can cause problems for many of us and that is useful information you can share with your students. In addition, he notes that many students who are watching their budget tend to gravitate towards less expensive choices like breads or processed cereal. He says, "Such breakfasts, largely devoid of important nutrients tyrosine & choline, won't provide the boost for thinking and learning that good protein sources, such as eggs and meat provide. Creatine found in meats is known to benefit working memory and intelligence."
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