The Spring 2021 Teaching and Learning Innovation Series
The Teaching and Learning Innovation (TLI) Series* features presentations and workshops aimed at providing practical takeaways, to enhance the academic repertoire of faculty and teaching staff, in support of teaching, learning, and scholarship.
Goals include:
- offering new methods and ways of thinking about classroom and academic instruction;
- presenting creative ways to engage students in their own learning experience;
- providing ideas for small teaching changes that have a big impact fostering opportunities for dialogue between peers, focused on teaching, learning, & scholarship.
New TLI Sessions are still being added...please check back to see the new additions!
*In accordance with COVID-19 safety guidelines, spring 2021 programs will be offered remotely in real time via Zoom, and available for access after the session via video, along with slides and resources referenced during the session. Instructions for logging into the session will be provided directly to registrants in advance. Faculty are encouraged to participate in the live session when possible, and PD transcript confirmation will be offered to those participating in the live version of the session. Please contact us at noelstudio@eku.edu with any questions or for more information.
January
Getting off to a Good Start: Building Connections with your Students in the First Few Weeks
Starr Wentzel, Deanna Johnson, Madison Haley, and Dr. Travis Martin
January 14, 2021; 2:00pm - 3:00pm
Learn to break down barriers to learning by building rapport with students and helping them establish interpersonal connections in traditional, hybrid, and online environments. This session will feature lessons learned from First-Year Courses instructors and an exceptional peer-mentor who found ways to reach students whose first semester took place during the COVID-19 pandemic. Topics to be covered: empathy, communication, trends among incoming students, transparent design, academic recovery, and cultivating intrinsic motivation. Expect to walk away with practical approaches and adaptable lesson plans. Examples of instructional videos, group assignments, and recovery workshops will be shared. You are encouraged to bring your own best practices to share during the follow-up discussion.
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Communicating Routinely with your Students in Blackboard
Jonathan Sikora & Victoria Sikora
January 25, 2021; 11:15am - 12:05pm
Students often name clear and frequent communication as the most important thing faculty can do to help them succeed in class. In this session, the presenters will discuss best practices for communicating regularly with students, as well as how to accomplish this efficiently in Blackboard.
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Developing Critical Readers Through Metacognitive Strategies
Dr. Jill Parrott
January 26, 2021; 9:30am - 10:45am
Instructors often report that their students can't or don't read assigned texts in their classes. In this hands on workshop, participants will think about the role of reading for learning in their courses and practice metacognitive strategies that can help students read with purpose and develop as critical readers.
*This session will be offered again on March 31, 2021.
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Transparency Series #1: Transparent Approaches for Encouraging Learning in the First Weeks of Your Course
Dr. Russell Carpenter, Dr. Travis Martin, Dr. Heather Fox, Dr. Clint Pinion, & Dr. Susan Skees-Hermes
January 27, 2021; 2:30pm - 3:20pm
This session will help participants adapt the Transparency in Learning & Teaching (TILT) frameworks to design early semester approaches for orienting and supporting students. Strategies shared will be applicable to on-ground, hybrid/flexible, and online courses. Faculty panelists will share their suggestions, along with samples and resources used in their own courses.
After participating in this session, faculty will . . .
- Compare transparent approaches for use in different early semester contexts
- Implement transparent approaches to encourage student learning in the first weeks of class
February
Encouraging Student Discussion in the Time of COVID
Dr. Beth Polin
February 2, 2021; 9:30am - 10:45am
COVID has pushed us all to embrace online learning environments. Online environments offer flexibility and new opportunity, but this is only helpful if they simultaneously help us to be more efficient in our evaluation of students. In this session, participants will learn a new method of encouraging, facilitating, and evaluating online class discussion. It is a twist on the traditional discussion board that has proven to engage students more and encourage deeper critical thinking through peer accountability.
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Multicultural Reading of Texts: Reflection for Practice
Dr. Emily Zuccaro
February 4, 2021; 10:30am - 11:15am
Multicultural readings are a research-driven culturally responsive practice and a tool for examining the voices and perspectives included in the curriculum. In this session, the presenters will introduce a framework for reflecting on texts in our curriculum. Make sure to bring a text or two from your courses for this interactive session!
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Supporting Critical Reading in General Education Courses
Dr. Erin Presley
February 8, 2021; 9:00am - 9:55am
In this session, we will discuss the most recent assessment data related to critical reading in General Education classes. Based on this data, we will identify effective strategies to support critical reading in the GE classroom and implementation of best practices. We will also consider balancing content and skill development by developing a framework that argues critical reading and writing are inextricably linked to student success in General Education courses.
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Motivating Students to Read
Dr. Jill Parrott
February 10, 2021; 1:25pm - 2:15pm
Faculty often lament their students’ lack of attention to course reading assignments and spend valuable class time summarizing key points from the reading. What if students came to class prepared to work with ideas from their course texts? This session will present classroom practices and assignments that encourage active, critical reading.
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Faculty Forum: Best Practices in Critical Reading Instruction - POSTPONED
Panel of Faculty Presenters
February 11, 2021; 11:00am - 12:15pm
Join EKU faculty and staff to discuss development of more intentional critical reading instruction. Instructors from across disciplines will describe active, metacognitive approaches they have implemented to improve students’ critical reading.
Ben Freed, Anthropology, Sociology, and Social Work: "Evolving from Critical Reading Assessment to Instruction"
Brian Simpkins, School of Safety, Security, and Emergency Management: “Reading about the Watchers: Critically Reading about the U.S. Intelligence Community”
Cindy Judd, EKU Libraries; Tricia Kelley, Communication; Travis Martin, First Year Courses: “Your Eastern Progress – An Arc Assignment to Encourage Critical Reading and Campus Engagement”
Melissa Dieckmann, Geosciences: “Might or Right? – Assessing Authority in Critical Science Reading”
Quentin Moore, Nursing: “Critical Reading in Nursing Research”
Lisa Bosley, English: “Building Vocabulary to Improve Critical Reading”
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Transparency Series #2: Sustaining Student Learning through Transparent Approaches
Dr. Russell Carpenter, Dr. Shirley O'Brien, Dr. Travis Martin, Dr. Clint Pinion, & Dr. Camille Skubik-Peplaski
February 24, 2021; 2:30pm - 3:20pm
This session will help participants adapt the Transparency in Learning & Teaching (TILT) frameworks to design learning experiences that sustain student success through midterms. A panel of EKU faculty will offer their strategies, resources, and samples, which will include approaches for mid-semester check-ins, mid-term preparation, and midterm follow-up that encourage learning among students and success.
After participating in this session, faculty will . . .
- Select transparent approaches for encouraging learning through and after midterms
- Integrate transparent approaches to support student learning in response to midterm feedback and performance
March 2021
Critically Reading the Screen
Dr. Jill Parrott
March 2, 2021; 12:30pm - 1:45pm
Multimodal texts, which have textual, visual and often audio elements, can be challenging for students to read critically and for us to teach with an eye toward metacognition. How does one annotate a blog post or read a YouTube video with purpose? This session will provide instructors with a brief background in multimodality and practical classroom approaches to help students practice metacognitive strategies to improve their critical reading of multimodal texts.
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Student Check-ins & Midterm Recovery Strategies
Dr. Molly Bradshaw
March 4, 2021; 12:30pm - 1:45pm
Often times, students are under the impression that there is no way to succeed in a class if they don't do well on their midterm exam. However, there are ways for them to focus on recovering their grade during the second half of the semester. In this session, the presenter will discuss how to check-in with students at midterm time, and will talk about strategies students can use to bring their grade up before finals.
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Identifying and Mentoring Students for Nationally Competitive Awards
Dr. Randi Polk
March 9, 2021; 9:30am - 10:45am
Most of us have heard the names - Fulbright Scholars, Rhodes Scholars, Truman Scholars, and the like. Many of our EKU students would be excellent applicants, but need support and guidance. This session aims to inform faculty about nationally competitive awards, so that you can inform and encourage potential applicants. Topics of discussion include:
- How to identify applicants;
- Who they should contact;
- Where to find resources;
- Recruiting and mentoring strategies.
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Getting Started with Qualtrics
Dr. Sara Incera
March 9, 2021; 2:30pm - 3:30pm
The “Getting Started with Qualtrics” workshop is a free activity open to everyone on campus. EKU has the university license for Qualtrics, so everyone can log in and create their own professionally looking survey by following a few simple steps. We recommend you come to the workshop with an idea for your survey because in this hands-on session you will be creating, editing, and “prettifying” your own survey. You will learn to write questions that follow best practices in the field and to export data so it can be properly analyzed. Those interested in creating professionally looking and powerful surveys are particularly encouraged to attend.
*All participants should come with their "licensed" version of Qualtrics (through EKU) established. Please click here for instructions on getting your account set up.
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Using Zotero to Collect, Manage, and Cite Your Research
Cindy Judd
March 10, 2021; 2:30pm - 3:20pm
Zotero is a free tool that you can use to more easily collect source information, manage those sources, and automate the citation process. In this session, we will discuss not only how you can use this for your own research but also how Zotero can benefit your students. This will be considered an introduction to Zotero and participants should download Zotero (www.zotero.org) prior to the session in order to maximize the benefits. The session will allow for time to demonstrate and practice using Zotero. After participating, you should be able to import a reference to your Zotero library, edit and organize sources in Zotero, and use Zotero in Word to create an in-text citation and reference list.
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Ungrading Tests Your Deepest Teaching Convictions (If You Dare)
Dr. Matthew Winslow
March 12, 2021; 9:00am - 9:55am
In this session, Dr. Matthew Winslow, Professor in the Department of Psychology, will discuss a different approach to working with students. If you believe in the value of your courses, why are you using obedience to force students to obtain that value? Do you want to teach your students to play the game of school or do you want your students to appreciate the beauty and benefits of your discipline? Do you trust your ability to convince students of the benefits of your course, and do you trust students to work to obtain those benefits? Perhaps your approach to teaching is all wrong. Mine was, but no longer.
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Developing Synchronous Opportunities in Online Classes
Dr. Heather Fox & Dr. Susan Skees-Hermes
March 15, 2021; 2:30pm - 3:20pm
Connecting with students (and connecting students with each other) in online or hybrid format classes can be challenging. Building in opportunities for synchronous meetings may help foster student engagement and connections. Join us as the facilitators discuss ways to use synchronous meetings to enhance your online instruction.
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Supporting Graduate Students In and Out of the Classroom
Dr. Jim Fatzinger, Dr. Casey Humphrey, & Panel of Faculty Presenters
March 23, 2021; 11:00am - 12:15pm
In this session, a panel representing graduate faculty, graduate students, the Office of Academic & Career Services, and the EKU Counseling Center will highlight how campus partners collaborate with academic areas to offer EKU ​graduate students a rich array of services. By the end of the session you will be able to describe these services, know how to refer students, and connect with points-of-contact eager to partner with you.
Creating Critical Reading Instructional Videos: Faculty Panel
Panel of Faculty Presenters
March 24, 2021; 2:30pm - 3:30pm
Join faculty from across the university who have created instructional videos that introduce students to disciplinary ways of critical reading. Each will share clips from their video, describe the tools used to create the video, and discuss related assignments and student responses to the video. A staff member from EKU’s Instructional Design Center will also be on hand to share tips and answer questions about video design.
Sara Incera, Psychology: Active Reading in Cognitive Psychology
Jill Parrott, English: Asking Questions for Critical Reading
Ryan Baggett, Homeland Security: The Importance of Critical Reading in Homeland Security
Maggie Frozena, English: Dealing with Difficult Texts
Cindy Hayden, Occupational Sciences and Occupational Therapy: How to Critically Read an Article for Evidence-Based Practice
Sam Williamson, EKU Instructional Design Center: Q and A: Creating Instructional Videos
Course-Based Research Experiences
Dr. Judy Jenkins
March 31, 2021; 11:15am - 12:05pm
Description TBD
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Developing Critical Readers Through Metacognitive Strategies
Dr. Jill Parrott
March 31, 2021; 1:25pm - 2:15pm
Instructors often report that their students can't or don't read assigned texts in their classes. In this hands on workshop, participants will think about the role of reading for learning in their courses and practice metacognitive strategies that can help students read with purpose and develop as critical readers.
*This is a repeat of the January 26 session.
April 2021
Designing the Data Science Classroom: Two-part Workshop
Facilitator: Dr. Mine Çetinkaya-Rundel
April 2, 2021; 8:45am - 11:45am and
April 9, 2021; 1:30 - 4:30pm
Success in data science and statistics is dependent on the development of both analytical and computational skills, and the demand for educators who are proficient at teaching both these skills is growing. The goal of this workshop is to equip educators with concrete information on content, workflows, and infrastructure for painlessly introducing modern computation with R and RStudio within a data science curriculum.
In addition to gaining technical knowledge, participants will engage in discussion around the decisions that go into developing a data science curriculum and choosing workflows and infrastructure that best support the curriculum and allow for scalability. Workshop attendees will work through several exercises from existing courses and get first-hand experience with using relevant tool-chains and techniques, including running a course on RStudio Cloud, and literate programming with R Markdown, automated feedback with learnr, and workflows for version control and collaboration.
Basic knowledge of R is assumed.
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Transparency Series #3: Transparent Approaches for Ensuring Learning in the Final Weeks of Spring
Dr. Russell Carpenter, Dr. Shirley O'Brien, Dr. Travis Martin, & Dr. Clint Pinion
April 14, 2021; 2:30pm - 3:20pm
This panel of EKU faculty will offer transparent approaches focused on preparing students and encouraging learning for late in the semester. Approaches shared will demonstrate ways to encourage learning and engagement (even amid late-semester fatigue).
After participating in this session, faculty will . . .
- Determine transparent approaches to best motivate students amid late-semester challenges
- Create transparent approaches to support student learning and engagement through the end of the term