The posts below are from the CfLT newsletter which includes curated, research-based digital resources to support ongoing faculty development and pedagogical engagement. As of August 2025, CfLT Director Karen Spierling oversees the content. Posts from July 2020-May 2025 were compiled by previous Director Lew Ludwig.
In the wake of a contentious election, our classrooms might reflect the polarized dynamics of our society. Should we retreat to avoid offending or creating tension? Instead our friend Mays Imad suggests adopting a pedagogy of discomfort, as she describes in her piece “Teaching and Learning through Discomfort.” This approach offers a framework for addressing classroom tensions by encouraging vulnerability, critical reflection, and engagement with opposing viewpoints.
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| Spring semester is around the corner, and we have two important recommendations to help your Canvas life run smoothly:
First, we strongly recommend that you download your courses so that you have your own copy. We especially recommend that you download your entire gradebook as a .csv file (see image below). Having a folder with past gradebooks can be helpful in writing recommendation letters, especially in the case of Alumni. |
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| Imagine it’s the beginning of the second semester, and you’re teaching the next course in a series. You mention the topic covered just last fall- a topic you yourself taught these very students- and they stare at you blankly. How could they forget so soon, you wonder?!
It turns out, the brain is a very efficient machine. |
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Missed our recent Teaching Matters discussion on “Cultivating Trust, Honesty, and Disclosure in the Age of Gen AI”? We had a great turn out of folks who came together to share their ideas and experiences. Here are just some of the highlights:
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| Thursday (11/21/24) from 11:45-1:00, I am hosting a Teaching Matters session entitled “Cultivating Trust, Honesty, and Disclosure in the Age of Gen AI.” It is an opportunity to share our experiences with student-use of AI for our writing assignments and to generate ideas around helping students make better decisions about how and when to use generative AI to complete assignments. |
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| Whenever colleagues invite me to observe their classes for formative feedback, I always ask them to share two or three specific aspects they’re working on and would appreciate input on. For instance, they may want to engage more students in discussion, effectively wrap up with a summary in the last five minutes, or improve how they organize board work. |
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| Our library subscribes to a wide range of scholarly article databases, giving you and your students access to thousands of high-quality research articles. While downloading a PDF and posting it directly to Canvas may seem convenient, linking to the article through the library’s website offers important benefits.
Why Link Instead of Uploading? |
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| Congratulations! You’re almost there- the end of the semester is in sight! As we near the last week of classes, there is an opportunity to wrap up with impact and purpose. Too often, December’s frenzied deadlines leave us rushing through those final moments, but as Kristi Rudenga shares in 7 Ideas to Perk Up Your Last Day of Class, a well-designed closing can amplify everything students have learned. |
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| This week, we’re highlighting an engaging teaching strategy used by Dr. Kelsi Morrison-Atkins in her Religion 108 class, Bible, Gender, Sexuality. Julie Dalke, who is auditing the course, writes:
Each day Kelsi’s class begins with a simple yet impactful check-in that sets the tone for the day’s learning. Students break into small groups of 3-4 for about 10 minutes to discuss their thoughts, questions, or insights from the reading. |
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| I am doubtful we will have a clear decision by tomorrow. Nevertheless, as I’ve shared before, and as we discussed in our recent Teaching Matters session, it is good to have a game plan, no matter your discipline.
For a quick take, consider this resource from the CRLT at the University of Michigan: Navigating the Post-Election Period With Your Students. If |
