Pew Faculty Teaching & Learning Center
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Director's Note
Space and Time. What is the point of a classroom? I have been thinking a lot of about the why and how of physical spaces as I prepare the next iteration of our Teaching in an Active Learning Classroom Workshop. If you are not able to attend on January 3rd, I invite you to peruse our Classroom Design for Active Learning webpage. A great deal of research and writing addresses the intentional use of classroom spaces; our classrooms are definitely not neutral and convey many implicit and explicit messages about what can and should happen there.
Syllabus Language, AI and Reflection.
When your attention turns to next semester's new beginnings, I offer the following:
1. Words Matter. Some of the resources we have been using in our Strong Start Teaching Institute address growth mindset terminology and ways of conveying a developmental, "not yet" approach to learning. For example, I urge you to review the powerful set of recommendations around Establishing Expectations with ideas for the syllabus, assignments, and the early weeks of a course.
2. No one right path forward. With respect to AI syllabus policies and assignment language, no single recommendation will fit everyone's needs. Well, okay: do some reading and be intentional in your approach with students. Quite possibly, there is both a generic syllabus statement that fits with your course objectives AND more tailored guidance that could accompany certain assignments. From the many articles and websites that have crossed my inbox in the last few months, my favorites are as follows:
3. Reflect and Connect. Carve out time in the first week of class for written reflections on the syllabus. Even if you don't collect them, having students write about the ways in which the course topics and activities relate to what they learned previously, to their academic or professional goals, and to their present lives is an extremely powerful exercise. It may be one that you want to come back to throughout the semester.
Declarative Knowledge. While not a part of my regular vocabulary, this term's frequent appearance in articles about Generative AI has me thinking about WHAT (and HOW) we teach. Specifically, with regards to the role of content, source materials, assessments, etc. What I keep coming back to are my values as an educator and the value-add, if you will, of a liberal education: critical thinking, problem-solving, application, and integration. Do these values/skills/pursuits resonate with you? If so, how might a deep reflection on your/our values and roles help inform your plans for your courses next semester and beyond? And help you interrogate the how and when of declarative knowledge acquisition?
I am happy to continue this conversation in the new year—by email, over coffee, or on a campus walk. In the meantime, I wish you warmth and restorative pursuits in the coming weeks—
—Christine Rener
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Apply for a Teaching Innovation Grant!
Deadline of January 1, 2024
Have something new you'd like to try in your classroom? Need some funding to help get this innovation off the ground? Check out our Teaching Innovation Grant—a grant specifically designed to encourage and launch NEW teaching and learning ideas!
Our Teaching Innovation Grant (TIG) is intended to support faculty in pursing innovative projects that enhance teaching and learning. These projects range from cutting-edge, research-based teaching and learning innovations to innovations that are new to one's field, to innovations that are new to YOU (the individual faculty member). "Innovation" is considered in the context of the applicants experience.
Funding ranges from $500–$9000 depending on the number of faculty collaborators and scope of the project. All faculty are eligible to apply!
Learn more and apply online by visiting our Teaching Innovation Grant webpage. All applications are due by midnight on January 1, 2024. The next round of applications will be due on April 1, 2024 so there's time to nurture an idea for several months before applying.
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Upcoming Sponsored Teaching and Learning Event Grant Opportunities
Did you know we set aside funding to send groups of GVSU faculty to certain conferences, workshops, and events centered on teaching and learning?
Our Sponsored Teaching and Learning Event (STLE) Grant is designed to support faculty in attending a predefined list of teaching and learning related conferences, events, and workshops. The list of STLEs for each year changes allowing us to highlight some of the leading practices in teaching and learning pedagogy. Below are some STLEs that are currently open and accepting applications! Learn more about these opportunities and others by visiting our Upcoming Sponsored Teaching and Learning Events webpage. Apply online via our grants system.
In a pervasive post-truth media culture, false narratives about higher education quickly gain traction and shape public perception. These narratives simultaneously fuel and are fed by burgeoning efforts to bring higher education under the control of partisan politics. How can we break through to defend academic freedom, demonstrate the value of a liberal education, or recover the understanding of higher education as a public good?
Join colleagues and thought leaders from across the global higher education landscape to shape and share solutions to these and other challenges facing colleges and universities.
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Winter 2024 Learning Communities are OPEN!
Looking for a way to connect with others this coming semester? Searching for community perhaps outside of your department? Interested in a restorative and fun way to engage in trending topics related to higher education, teaching and learning? Consider joining one of our Learning Communities! Open to faculty and staff!
Learning Communities (LCs) bring faculty and staff together to foster a 1–2 semester-long conversation on a topic of mutual interest and encourages an application of the new knowledge gained. Each LC consists of a facilitator and a group of at least four faculty or staff. Past participants consistently report this experience to be reenergizing, supportive, and just plain fun! Below are just a few of the Learning Communities that are currently open and accepting new members. You can view the complete list of open LCs by visiting our Current Learning Communities webpage.
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