 |
| What are your course learning goals? You’ve likely outlined them in your syllabus. Now, as we reach the sixth week of the semester, ask yourself: Do your students really know and understand these goals?
“Critical thinking” frequently appears in learning goal lists for a liberal arts education. In my current sophomore-level math class, I estimate we engage in critical thinking about 97.3% of the time. |
Teaching Tip – TTT
Articles and resources to empower your teaching experience.
Teaching: Transparency, Dynamic Lecturing, & Review
 |
| I (Julie Dalke) am auditing Hoda Yousef’s class titled “The Making of the Modern Middle East,” and I am excited to share three teaching methodologies for this week’s “Caught in the Act” column. Her commitment to transparent instruction, dynamic lecturing, and effective review strategies significantly enhances student engagement and learning outcomes.
Hoda consistently employs the Transparency in Learning and Teaching (TILT) framework, ensuring that students understand the purpose behind their learning activities. |
Teaching: How should AI be used for creating personal stories?
 |
During our recent Faculty Learning Community on AI, Laura Russell shared a novel way she engaged her 100-level personal storytelling class in considering writing in the age of AI. The exercise centered around two main questions:
|
Teaching: Take a moment to dwell on the positive
 |
| The first batch of major writing assignments will come in soon (if it hasn’t already), so I want to take a moment to dwell on the positive. In my class last semester, it was clear that only a small minority of students were misusing AI. Participants in the November Teaching Matters session on AI in writing instruction reported similar experiences. |
Teaching: Sustaining Student Attention
 |
| I cannot give a professional talk or webinar without PowerPoint, but I never use it in my classroom. Nevertheless, the recent piece Effective Strategies for Sustaining Student Attention During PowerPoint Lectures offered some really helpful tips, regardless of whether you use this technology in your classroom or not. The article recommends three tried-and-true practices that I would classify as CATs—Classroom Assessment Techniques—small yet effective ways to check whether your students are actually picking up what you’re putting down. |
Teaching: Be Kind to Your Future Self
 |
| Lew Ludwig caught Susan Villarreal in the act of good teaching, he writes: Last Monday, as I scrambled to finish my notes for the first week of class, I was kicking myself. I’ve taught this course many times before, but it had been three semesters since the last round. I can barely remember what I had for lunch yesterday, much less the details of what worked- or didn’t- three semesters ago. |
Teaching: Student and Instructor Guides for Group Work
 |
| Group work is a vital component of college education. It is often challenging to execute effectively, and many students are predisposed to dislike it. Fortunately, our friend Tracie Addy, along with Wendy Hill, have developed valuable resources for both students and instructors to better navigate this essential pedagogical tool.
The student guide is crafted for groups to utilize collaboratively at the beginning of a long-term class project. |
Teaching: Stealing Ideas, Opening Doors
 |
| Both of my parents were teachers. My father, who passed away when I was five, taught high school math, while my mother taught for 12 years in the Cincinnati school system before stepping away to raise me. Although I never saw either of them in the classroom, my mother often shared insights and lessons from her teaching experiences, shaping my perspective on education. |
Teaching: Syllabi and AI
 |
| As you finalize your syllabi, you might take a look (or another look, for those of you who have already seen this) at the resources provided by Tricia Bertram Gallant (Director of Academic Integrity at UC San Diego) during her webinar on gen-AI and academic integrity. There are resources for designing an AI-policy statement, securing assessments, rethinking learning goals, and redesigning assignments. |
Teaching: Getting Ready for the New Semester
 |
| Whether this is your first time or tenth time you’ve taught a course, it is always good to run through a few checklists of things to consider:
1. Your syllabus: This comprehensive article by Kevin Gannon titled “How to Create a Syllabus” offers practical advice, innovative strategies, and thoughtful insights into making a syllabus be a tool for fostering a positive learning environment and clear communication with students. |