Learning From One Another

From the Classroom to the Scholarship of Teaching . . . and Back
Art Buikema, Jr., Alumni Distinguished Professor, Biological Sciences
Daniel Crawford, Associate Professor, Chemistry
Jim Dubinsky, Associate Professor, English
Friday, February 15, 1:30-3:30 pm, Hillcrest Dining Room

What really interests some faculty about student learning in their courses are questions
that cannot be answered simply by looking at graded work or class participation:
Are my students learning? What affected my students' learning? Will my students?
learning last? These are such compelling questions for some that more formal, rigorous
inquiry is pursued to both discover something about learning and improve professional practice.

Art Buikema, Jim Dubinsky, and Daniel Crawford are curious about learning and desire to study it. Th eir questions about the nature of learning and the impact of teaching upon it are quite similar, but they have different modes of engagement in their inquiries. And, they are at different points of entry in their scholarship. Their conversation, seeded with reflections and critiques of their experiences, promises to be interesting and informative. Please join it to hear about at least three very diff erent paths to the scholarship of teaching and learning--bumps and all.

Transforming Practice with Case Studies Teaching: Refl ections of Three Colleagues
Sarah Karpanty, Assistant Professor, Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences
Brian Murphy, Professor, Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences
Jim Parkhurst, Associate Professor, Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences
Wednesday, February 20, 2:30-4:30 pm, Yorktown (Squires)

While case study teaching has long been a dominant model in some fields (e.g., business,
law, and medicine), it offers a powerful new pedagogy for disciplines that have relied on more "traditional" teaching approaches. When used eff ectively, this teaching strategy can develop students' abilities to reason by requiring that they perform analysis, engage in exploratory discussion, and find "best possible" rather than "right/ wrong" solutions to real-life--sometimes contentious--problems.

Faculty members in the College of Natural Resources have been experimenting with case study teaching in a variety of courses for several years. In this Conversation, three CNR faculty will critique their experiments with diff erent models for case study use in the classroom, as well as their processes for creating and using case materials in a variety of class sizes, and with diff erent student populations. They will also describe the challenges they have faced in assessing student learning in this new environment and off er their recommendations. Please join this group to raise questions and imagine possibilities for this practice.

Venturing into Department-wide Curricular Reform: Tales of Two Journeys
Shannon Jarrott, Associate Professor, Human Development
Mary Leigh Wolfe, Professor, Biological Systems Engineering
Tuesday, April 8, 2:30-4:30 pm, Yorktown (Squires)

The Departments of Human Development and Biological Systems Engineering have been on parallel journeys to align their curricula to enhance student learning and better
support students' development of contemporary skills. The core faculty charged with initiating those reforms have been hard at work, integrating curricular design, learning theory, and pedagogical practice, as well as mobilizing colleagues to think beyond their unique disciplinary interests and responsibilities to what students across their departments experience cumulatively. In both cases, there have been challenges. This conversation is an opportunity to hear two of these departmental leaders reflect on those challenges, critique their teams' processes, and make recommendations for successful
process strategies. Come hear about their journeys and think together about how best to advance curriculum reform.

Guided Inquiry

Grading: Fair, Appropriate, and Defensible Practices
Peter Doolittle, Associate Professor, Education
Rescheduled for: Monday, April 7, 2:30-4:30 pm, Room TBD

We all give grades, yet we may not have had the opportunity to learn strategies that lead to valid and reliable approaches. In this workshop, Peter will introduce important concepts and practices, including criterion and norm-referenced grading, grading curves and distributions, rubrics and scantrons, points and percentage grading schemes, extra credit and participation grades, and grading plans that work. Th is will be a practical approach to grading, focused on solutions.

Diggs Teaching Scholar Workshop
Race and Resistance in the Classroom
Gena Chandler, Assistant Professor, English, and 2007 Diggs Teaching Scholar
Tuesday, January 29, 3:00-5:00 pm, 406 Wallace

In this workshop, Gena will guide faculty through the ways learners can bring critical assumptions to a course. Often, those assumptions reflect a network of personal and limited views about race and identity. Such limited views, in turn, can materialize as various acts of resistance to learning and instruction in the classroom. Gena will reflect on her own experiences of teaching ethnic literatures as a professor of color, and share interactive strategies she utilizes in her African American literature introductory and 3000-level classes. Workshop participants will also experience some of these interactive strategies for themselves, and consider their implications for teaching and learning.

CEUT and UWP welcome Siva Vaidhyanathan, Associate Professor of Media Studies and Law, University of Virginia, and Fellow at both the New York Institute for the Humanities and the Institute for the Future of the Book.

The STS Frontiers Lecture (sponsored by STS, University Libraries, CEUT, Center for Digital Discourse and Culture, and Phi Beta Kappa)

The STS Frontiers Lecture
The Googlization of Everything: Life in an Algorithmic Age
Visit www.ceut.vt.edu for lecture details and www.sivacracy.net for more about Siva.
Friday, February 1, 4:00-5:30, Squires 342
(Registration not required)

Explore case study pedagogy with nationally renown educator Kipp Herreid, Distinguished Teaching Professor, Biological Sciences, University of Buffalo and Director, National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science, in three special workshop opportunities ?

Introduction to Case Study Pedagogy
Kipp Herreid, National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science, University of Buffalo
Thursday, February 7, 8:30-11:45 am, Duck Pond Room (The Inn)
8:30 Coffee
9:00-11:45 Workshop

Discover the potential of case study pedagogy!

What is a case? How are cases best used in teaching and learning? In this session, Kipp will introduce participants to case studies, and their effective (and ineffective!) uses in case study teaching. Learn about the essential elements of cases, some basic case study formats, and fundamental pedagogical techniques, including the Classical Discussion Method.

Case Study Types and Teaching Methods that Reach your Learning Goals
Kipp Herreid, National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science, University of Buffalo
Thursday, February 7, 1:30-4:45 pm,Duck Pond Room (The Inn)
1:30 Coffee
2:00-4:45 Workshop

Types of case studies abound. Which type do you choose? What methods do you use to teach with them? Ultimately, the decisions that you make will depend on what kind of learning you want to promote with the case. In this workshop, Kipp will introduce
participants to some of the many varieties of cases, and to different methods for teaching with case studies. More importantly, he will help participants to have a clear view of what they wish to accomplish with the case, and then design the case study experience to
promote that learning.

Writing Case Studies and Case Teaching Notes                       
Kipp Herreid, National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science, University of Buffalo
Friday, February 8, 8:30-4:00, Old Dominion Room (Squires)
8:30 Coffee
9:00-11:45
12:00 Lunch
1:00-4:00

Finding a topic for a case isn't difficult. Cases can be used to teach almost any topic, from mitosis to nuclear fission. The challenge is how to craft a case study so that it achieves your teaching objectives while providing students with a compelling story that is relevant and thought provoking. In this session we will provide you with a recipe for writing successful cases. Spend a day with Kipp and your colleagues, and leave the workshop with a rough draft of a case for one of your courses!

Informal Speaking Activities that Enhance Learning
Marlene Preston, Assistant Professor, Communication
Wednesday, February 13, 2:30-4:30 pm, Squires 302

How can you meet the needs of today's college students, capitalize on learning theory, and build mastery of your course materials? Provide "speaking to learn" opportunities in classes of any size! In this workshop, we'll consider possibilities for student speaking that
will bring more activity to your classes and help students process the concepts you're teaching. Th is ungraded and informal oral communication allows students to participate in their learning as they share their understanding of your course content.

Supporting Student Writers in Undergraduate Research Environments
Cary Moskovitz, Duke University
Rescheduled for: Monday, February 25, 10:00 am-12:00 pm, GLC Room B

Undergraduate research is not only valuable for helping students learn about knowledge production in their majors. It also offers a rich opportunity for students to develop as writers. This session will suggest ways to capitalize on the extended and focused work in
capstone courses, senior theses and other extended research projects in STEM courses. Topics will include staging student writing, planning for eff ective feedback, and anticipating incomplete or failed experiments.

Alternatives to the "Lab Report": Designing Scientifically Engaging Laboratory Experiences for Undergraduates
Cary Moskovitz, Duke University
Rescheduled for: Monday, February 25, 2:30-4:30 pm, GLC Room B

The science lab has been a mainstay of undergraduate science curricula for decades. Unfortunately, traditional approaches to lab work and writing rarely take the best pedagogical advantage of these rich contexts. In this session, we will discuss possible goals for student learning in science labs, and consider a new model that has the potential to engage students in meaningful scientific experimentation and scientific writing.

Teaching Strategies that Engage Students
Brett Jones, Assistant Professor, Education
Tuesday, March 11, 2:30-4:30 pm, 1810 Litton Reaves

Faculty members expect students to learn something during classes. Yet, it can be diffcult to truly engage students in meaningful learning during a class. The purpose of this session is to explore teaching strategies that effectively engage students in ways that also foster
learning. Bret will model and lead a discussion about several teaching strategies that can be used to increase the types of active participation known to produce the outcomes we want from our courses. This workshop is designed for any faculty member who wants to see
his or her students become more engaged in the learning process.

Faculty as Skillful Presenters
Margaret Hable, CEUT Consultant
Tuesday, March 18, 2:30-5:00 pm, 1810 Litton Reaves

Research tells us that the impact on learners in any instructional setting is heavily dependent on the manner in which the communication occurs -- the way the presenter behaves. Included in this session is information about awareness of audience, body
language, voice tone and inflection, presentation structure, learning environment, questioning techniques, audiovisual materials, and processing activities.

Cooperative Learning
Margaret Hable, CEUT Consultant
Wednesday, March 19, 9:00 am-12:00 pm, Hillcrest Dining Room

A research-based strategy for enhancing student achievement, cooperative learning is a flexible teaching method. This strategy honors what is known about how people learn, and can positively impact student motivation and the classroom environment. Participants will review the basic components of cooperative learning as they experience cooperative learning structures (including Think-Pair-Share, Jigsaw, Numbered Heads Together,
Roundtable, Three-Step Interview, Learning Pairs, and Base Groups). Classroom applications will be explored.

Case Study Teaching: Where Do I Start?
Brian Murphy, Professor, Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences, and 2007 Diggs Teaching Scholar
Monday, March 24, 2:30-4:30 pm, 406 Wallace

A Case study teaching is a discussion pedagogy that can be extraordinarily effective when the learning objectives are complex. For instance, students are more likely to develop interpersonal skills, the ability to apply knowledge to specifc situations, and sensitivity to multiple perspectives via case study teaching than with many other teaching methods. But it is a challenging process. This workshop will explore how to create cases and use them in the classroom, and how to evaluate students' learning under this approach.

Active Teaching, Active Learning: Practical Strategies for Teaching and Learning
Peter Doolittle, Associate Professor, Education
Monday, March 31, 2:30-4:30 pm, Hillcrest Dining Room

Instructional strategies are tools for the task of teaching. As with any task, it is important to have the right tools. This presentation will introduce, demonstrate, and explain a series of instructional strategies designed to foster student learning. These instructional strategies will be appropriate for both small and large classes and include strategies for gaining and focusing students' attention, tapping the prior knowledge of students, motivating participation and interaction in classes, engaging students in critical thinking,
and fostering self-regulation of learning within students. These types of instructional strategies provide for increased student learning, increased student participation, and increased student motivation. If you want strategies, we got strategies!. 

Rubrics for Teaching and Learning
Monique Dufour, CEUT/UWP
Friday, March 28, 10:00 am-12:00 pm, GLC, Room F

Rubrics can be powerful tools for giving feedback, setting outcomes and levels of achievement, promoting learning, and refining instruction. And, they can expedite
responding to and grading student work. In this hands-on workshop, participants will learn to identify different types of rubrics, name their key elements and functions, and analyze
their strengths and limitations. They will also construct different types of rubrics that are suitable for many teaching and learning moments, and that promote a range of learning outcomes, including higherorder outcomes such as meta-cognition and learning-to-learn. 

Motivating Students in Your Classroom
Brett Jones, Assistant Professor, Education
Wednesday, April 2, 2:30-4:30 pm, Hillcrest Dining Room

What can we do to better motivate our students? In this session Brett explores with participants the research related to student motivation, and helps us apply it to standard classroom practices. Participants will leave with a better understanding of why students
are motivated, and with specific strategies to use in courses. 

Strategies for Responding to Student Writing that Promote Learning and Save Time
Monique Dufour, CEUT/UWP
Thursday, April 10, 10:00 am-12:00 pm, 406 Wallace

Student writing promotes learning and deep thinking in disciplines. However, many faculty members shy away from using writing in their courses because responding to student writing becomes just too much work. Student writing need not be an arduous burden for
faculty. In this workshop, faculty will learn specific strategies about when and how to respond to student writing. Take back the power of writing in your courses--join us and learn ways to make it practical and possible for you through these eff ective and eff cient strategies.

Good Mornings!
Friday Morning Coffees!

We're holding Friday morning coffees!
Please join a group of faculty in conversation about about the scholarship of teaching and learning (SOTL). Plans call for a mix of shared readings on the nature and development of SOTL, faculty scholarship updates, and support for the pursuit of personal scholarship. Registration is not required; however, registration is requested so that select readings
may be distributed to participants in advance of sessions, and for planning purposes. For further information, contact Nancy, npolk@vt.edu

Friday, February 1, 9:00-10:30 am, Hillcrest Dining Room
Friday, March 14, 9:00-10:30 am, 406 Wallace
Friday, April 18, 9:00-10:30 am, 406 Wallace