Center for Teaching and Learning 2012-2013 Annual Report
T
he Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) had much to celebrate this year. In 2012-2013, we marked the 5th year of the Senior Symposium and our largest number of presenters to date, with 101 students sharing their academic passions with the HWS community. The CTL also continued to provide our signature programs like the Teaching Fellows, Writing Fellows, Study Mentors, and Study Tables for students and Midterm Assessment Process, Faculty Grants for Innovative Teaching, and Course Design Workshops for faculty. These and other programs were made even richer with the development of several exciting new initiatives, spotlighted throughout this report. The CTL’s mission is to engage, accomplish, empower, and enrich the teaching and learning environment for both faculty and students. Our innovative assignments, teaching approaches and materials are designed to help students engage more deeply with course topics; develop skills of critical analysis, problem-solving and decision-making; and promote more meaningful learning. Students consistently report that when a professor relates course content to relevant current events it enriches their understanding of the material and they have a way to connect to ideas and theories. This is key to the CTL’s approach. At our core, we believe that in order to create, innovate, inspire, and lead lives of consequence, our journeys begin with 4 cornerstones: we ENGAGE in our own learning processes in order to ACCOMPLISH the goals we set so that we can EMPOWER ourselves and others and ENRICH our lives as learners and teachers. To that end, our annual report highlights the myriad ways that the CTL has had an impact. With a redesigned website to reflect the vibrant and collaborative nature of the CTL, we look forward to continued growth and exciting opportunities in the upcoming academic year and invite you learn more about the ways in which the CTL works to support students and faculty. Sincerely, Susan M. Pliner, Ed.D. Associate Dean for Teaching, Learning, and Assessment and CTL Director
STUDENT ENRICHMENT PROGRAMS 2012-2013 Student Participation In the 2012-2013 academic year, 1209 out of 2185 HWS students made 8280 visits to the CTL’s four signature programs (Teaching Fellows, Writing Fellows, Study Mentors, Study Tables). The two figures below show a summary of student usage by program and class year. Figure 1: 2012-2013 Summary of Student Enrichment The Teaching Fellows The Teaching Fellows (TF) Program provides learning support linked to faculty teaching efforts. TFs are student peer-learning facilitators nominated by department faculty and trained by the CTL Assistant Director to facilitate conversation, ask challenging questions, suggest study strategies, and help students locate additional resources. The TFs use a collaborative inquiry model that allows students to learn from and with each other. They Signature Program hold regular, group-oriented hours on Snapshot: Sunday through Thursday throughout 1209 out of 2185 HWS the semester and are available to all students made 8280 students. visits to the CTL. In the 2012-2013 academic year, the TF program supported eleven departments: Anthropology/ Sociology, Art History, Architectural Studies, Biology, Chemistry, Economics, French and Francophone Studies, Philosophy, Physics, Psychology, and Spanish and Hispanic Studies. During this past year, 1,093 unique students made 7,366 visits to the TFs, an 11% increase from the previous year.
Program by Student Usage and Faculty/Staff Support
Program Teaching Fellows* Writing Fellows* Study Mentors* Study Tables* Senior Symposium Eye to Eye Student Advisory Board HWS Honors Program Oral Communication Workshops
Students Faculty/Staff 1149 16 210 20 80 1 120 16 101 70 24 1 10 6 12 1 21 7 231 8
* The number of students reflected in these totals includes the number of students working in these leadership roles. Figure 2: 2012-2013 Signature Program Student Usage by Class Year
Process: Freeman and the Sociology TFs developed a review session model: the TFs would lead students in small-group discussion sessions of questions/content for 45 minutes; these sessions helped students collaborate to clarify what they knew and pinpoint the questions that remained unanswered. Students then signed into an online forum with Freeman (which also allowed any student unable to attend in person to participate) during which they could ask their remaining questions and review core topics in depth. ** Signature Programs include Teaching Fellows, Writing Fellows, Study Mentors and Study Tables
Process: At the suggestion of the Lead TFs, we created a blog (http://teachingfellows.wordpress.com/) where TFs can provide one another with useful teaching advice, learn more about the program, and interact with faculty and staff. The blog also highlights individual TFs, liaisons, and TF alumni.
Outcomes: Community and conversation across and within TF departments has increased. Individual TF departments have also started using other forms of social media, like Facebook, to generate awareness and faculty liaisons check for program updates and have offered to write several posts. SPOTLIGHT: Sketch-Ins at Houghton House
Goal: Together, Architectural Studies faculty and our new Architectural Studies TFs identified sketching practice as one key way in which the TFs could enhance Architectural Studies students’ learning. Process: TF Andrew Guild (’13) drew on his experience of group sketching during the Rome Study Abroad program and developed “Sketch-Ins,” bi-weekly evening gatherings at Houghton House to sketch together and learn from one another.
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SPOTLIGHT: Collaborative Exam Prep in Sociology
Goals: Kendralin Freeman, Assistant Professor of Sociology, sought a method for helping Introduction to Sociology students prepare more effectively and efficiently for their exams, and build students’ sociological thinking skills and collaboration techniques; she sought help from the Sociology TFs.
SPOTLIGHT: Teaching Fellows’ Blog
Goal: Teaching Fellow feedback suggested a need for increased communication among and between TFs to enhance TF practice.
Outcome: Students in both the introductory and upper-level studio courses attended Sketch-Ins throughout the Spring, allowing beginning Architecture students to develop new skills and upper-level students to hone their own skills. Jeffrey Blankenship, Assistant Professor of Architectural Studies, says the Sketch-Ins create an atmosphere of “healthy competition” and students say the Sketch-Ins create a “low-stakes” opportunity to practice and receive feedback on assignments.
Outcome: Freeman reports “students in the introductory course worked together to study in an efficient, helpful way, engaging in critical thinking to solve problems posed by their peers and demonstrating skill-building in thinking sociologically.”
Teaching Fellows Snapshot: 1,093 unique students made 7,366 visits to the TFs. This represents an 11% increase in student visits from the previous year.
SPOTLIGHT: Collaborative Exam Prep in Economics
Goals: The CTL Assistant Director is working with Jennifer Tessendorf, Instructor of Economics, and Feisal Khan, Associate Professor of Economics, to determine the impact of a new model of studying for exams and to understand students’ motivation behind taking Principles of Economics. Process: The team created special student sessions with the Economics TFs two weeks prior to an exam, allowing students to work together on past exams during TF hours. Tessendorf, Khan, and the CTL Assistant Director also developed a survey to understand students’ motivations for taking Principles of Economics; their backgrounds in economics, math, and writing; and their perceptions of themselves as learners in economics classes. Outcomes: Initial results revealed that students did as well and better on the exam, and began using Economics TFs more frequently. The survey will help determine whether correlations exist between students’ motivation and self-perception and their use of TF hours and course success. Analysis of this data is ongoing.
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Writing Fellows Writing Fellows (WFs) support students at any stage of their writing process and support faculty goals for engaging students as writers. Supervised by the Coordinator of Writing Initiatives, WFs help create a cultural expectation for comprehensive development of the abilities outlined in HWS curricular Goals 1 Writing Fellows Snapshot: and 2. More specifically, WFs help students learn and develop 200 unique students made their ideas; work with student writers by offering productive 440 visits, an 18% increase feedback, writing strategies, and brainstorming techniques in student visits from the across skill levels and disciplines; and provide support for previous year. One student English Language Learners and international students. In commented the most helpful part of a WF session the 2012-2013 academic year, 200 unique students made 440 was “developing a plan of visits, an 18% increase in student visits from the previous action so that I didn’t feel year. Exit surveys reveal that 80% of students who met with intimidated or afraid of writing the rest of my paper.” WFs left their meeting with an understanding of how to improve. One student commented the most helpful part of a WF session was “developing a plan of action so that I didn’t feel intimidated or afraid of writing the rest of my paper.” Writing in the Disciplines Snapshot: “[This project] has not only allowed me to become a better writer in these subject areas, but has also expanded my capacity to help students format and structure papers in different disciplines.”
SPOTLIGHT: Writing in the Disciplines (WID) Project
Goals: Information from faculty, patterns of student usage, and the observations of WFs suggested a need for HWS-specific WID resources to address common writing concerns and conventions within specific fields. In addition, WFs also sought to engage faculty in sustained conversation about normative practices of WF support.
• Identified core issues to explore, • Examined outside sources and resources for exploring each core issue, • Used their analysis and research as the basis for interviews with HWS faculty to better understand how these core issues manifest at HWS. Outcomes: These HWS-specific disciplinary writing guides are now available on the WF page of the CTL website for student, faculty, and WF use. A valuable yet unintended outcome of the project has been significant increases in WFs own understanding of how disciplinary writing differs from common norms of “good writing”: “[This project] has not only allowed me to become a better writer in these subject areas, but has also expanded my capacity to help students format and structure papers in different disciplines.” SPOTLIGHT: First-Year Seminar (FSEM) Linked-Course Pilot
Goals: To meet the growing demand for targeted writing support in FSEMs and to expand our collaborations with the Writing Colleagues Program, we piloted a linked-course model for WF support of two FSEM classes. Process: In this pilot, two WFs (one working with David Kendrick, Assistant Professor of Geology, and the other working with May Farnsworth, Assistant Professor of Spanish and Hispanic Studies) developed small-group models for FSEM writing support, tailoring these group workshops to the needs of each FSEM course. Outcomes: Students reported that both small-group models helped them talk “about each other’s writing” in ways that were effective and helped them “get some different ideas about writing and improve [our] strategy.” Study Mentors Snapshot:
Study Mentors (SMs) help students make the transition from high school to college and adjust to increased course workloads throughout students’ college careers. Trained via
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Study Tables For individual courses in departments without Teaching Fellows, the CTL offers the Study Table (ST) program: group sessions led by faculty-nominated student learning facilitators where, during regular hours each week, students can access smallgroup learning support. Once an ST has been established, students may sign up via TutorTrac, allowing them to take control of their own learning. For the 2012-2013 academic year, STs saw 104 students for 280 visits, in classes ranging from Chinese and Environmental Studies to Political Science, Music and Russian Area Studies. Senior Symposium
Process: Based on usage patterns, WFs targeted two departments in Fall of 2012, Philosophy and Economics, and added Chemistry in Spring 2013 in support of writing workshops. To complete this project, WFs:
Study Mentors
an apprenticeship model and supervised by the Coordinator of Student Services, SMs offer academic time management using the Big Picture calendar, reading and note-taking strategies, model confident academic engagement, and offer a student perspective that is real, responsive, and responsible. In the 2012-2013 academic year, the SM program reached 75 unique students for 159 visits.
In the 2012-2013 academic year, the SM program reached 75 unique students in 159 visits.
Study Table Snapshot: STs saw 104 students for 280 visits. STs served classes ranging from Chinese and Environmental Studies to Political Science, Music and Russian Area Studies.
April 19th marked the fifth annual Senior Symposium and the largest number of student presenters to date: 101 HWS seniors and Masters of Arts in Teaching (MAT) candidates presented in this day-long, conference-style celebration of the academic engagement, critical thinking, and complex applied learning experiences available through an HWS education. The event also emphasize connections between students and faculty by highlighting the ways they collaborate in research, independent studies, Honors projects, and civic engagement work. Students interested in participating in the Senior Symposium must submit an abstract and prepare a 10-minute presentation. In 2013, students presented on a range of topics with titles like: • “Revolutionizing Early Education: Promoting Equality through Policy and Structure,” • “Stories of the Asian Elephant in Thailand: Repairing the Broken,” and • “Developing Anticancer Therapeutics in the Undergraduate Lab.” Equally important, the Senior Symposium enhances student skill development. In 2013, 50 students attended abstract writing workshops and presentation practice sessions that help prepare students for the Symposium and the challenges of the job and graduate school markets.
Senior Symposium Snapshot:
Faculty and staff engage as sponsors for presenters, panel moderators, and abstract writing and presentation practice facilitators. In 2013, 70 faculty/staff supported the Senior Symposium in some capacity:
“It’s a great opportunity to share something you care about with other people who care about what they’re sharing. The best part is the passion and curiosity throughout the day.”
• 47 sponsored students, • 24 acted as moderators during the event, and • 10 facilitated abstract and/or presentation workshops.
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Senior Symposium Snapshot: 50 students attended abstract writing workshops and presentation practice sessions.
One faculty member who sponsored presenters commented that s/he hoped students would gain “a better sense of how to prepare a presentation as well as skills necessary for successfully presenting [to a broad audience].” A survey of faculty who attended the Senior Symposium revealed that 92% found the experience “definitely valuable.” One faculty member commented, “It is my favorite academic event of the year—evidence of learning outcomes!”
Disability Services The CTL cultivates an inclusive and supportive learning community and values the diverse learning styles of our students. We are committed to providing students with disabilities full and meaningful access to college programs and activities and strive to provide individualized accommodations necessary for students to realize an equal opportunity to succeed. In the 2012-2013 academic year, 213 students with documented disabilities were registered with Disability Services. Of those 213 students, 173 students actively received accommodations. See Figure 3 for usage details of services specific to students with disabilities. Figure 3: 2012-2013 Student Usage of Disability Services
Students with Disabilities
Registered (N = 213)
Active (N = 173)
Student Advisory Board
Services
Number of students
Number of Accommodations
In the 2012-2013 academic year, the CTL initiated the CTL Student Advisory Board (SAB). The SAB met throughout the year to provide student perspectives on needs and expectations around teaching and learning at HWS. Members of the SAB play an integral role in shaping and assessing CTL student enrichment services.
Testing
111
618
Note-taking
27
49
Housing
61
61
Dining
67
67
Note: we do not separately track usage by students with disabilities of programs that are available to all students.
Eye to Eye The Associate Dean for Teaching, Learning, and Assessment acts as the advisor to this student club, a branch of the national Eye to Eye organization, which matches HWS and Geneva Middle School students with learning disabilities in an arts-based mentorship program. The chapter at HWS has been lauded for being one of the most vibrant and successful across the country and for our participation in disability awareness initiatives, like Disability in the Arts Month. Having an Eye to Eye chapter on campus has created a connected and empowered community of students with LD/ADHD, which benefits the entire community with a visible diversity. In the 2012-2013 academic year, co-coordinators Mary Kacprowicz (’15) and George Trimble (’14) and 22 HWS mentors supported 11 Geneva Middle School student mentees. Three of these mentees graduated from the middle school program and, as high school students, will be eligible to be junior mentors next year. One mentor commented, “As a student with ADD, Eye to Eye gave me the opportunity to help younger students with learning disabilities or ADHD who struggled with similar problems that I did. This program gives the HWS LD/ADHD community the chance to consistently support these middle school students and use their own experience as students with LDs/ADHD to show the kids that they can do it.”
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HWS Honors Program The CTL helps prepare candidates in the Honors Program for both their Honors written thesis and oral defense. In the 2012-2013 academic year, 12 among the 24 Honors students participated in CTL support writing or oral exam preparation.
2012-2013 Student Advisory Board members include: • Aminata Dansoko WS’15 • Dan Mahaney ’15 • Haleigh Marshall ’14 • Domenic Merolla ’16 • Stephen Mugel H’13 • Afrika Owes ’16 • Leila Peraro ’13 • Kevin Pollard ’13 • Harrison Schutzer ’15 • E Zhao WS’14
Oral Communication The CTL provides support for students involved in oral presentation projects and academic fellowships. In the 2012-2013 academic year, the CTL collaborated with the Advisor for Health Professions and Fellowships, the Centennial Center for Leadership, the Center for Community Engagement and Service Learning, and other offices to prepare students applying for Fulbright, Rhodes, and Truman fellowships, Teach for America, Honors, and The Pitch entrepreneurial leadership competition. In addition, we assisted students in Assistant Professor Keoka Grayson’s Economics 120 class in preparing for their in-class debates.
HWS Honors Snapshot: 50% of Honors candidates accessed CTL support for either their written thesis or oral defense.
Workshops
First-Year Learning Tips
The CTL provides workshops in response to specific requests. Regular writing workshops include Health Professions (medical school applications) and Intercultural Affairs (cover letters and graduate school essays), and source-use and study skills workshops in classes at faculty request. In addition to these, the Writing and Teaching/ Learning Specialist conducts writing workshops for the MAT program; in the 2012-2013 academic year, this included two literature reviews and two thesis writing workshops.
To connect first-year students with the CTL and help them understand potential academic issues that can emerge during their first year, the CTL and HWS Deans Offices collaborated to develop a series of First-Year Learning Tips. These short strategies are emailed to all first-year students, FSEM faculty, and HWS athletic coaches throughout the fall semester. Some titles of these Learning Tips include “HS to HWS: Tips to Help Ease Your Transition to College,” “Top 10 Times to Visit Your Professors Office Hours,” “Stress Management,” and “20-minute Test Prep.” Since implementing this series in the fall of 2009, we have seen a dramatic increase of first-year students using CTL services.
In addition, this year the CTL collaborated with faculty teaching sections of Organic Chemistry I and II to develop workshops to help students understand the atypical conventions of writing in Organic Chemistry. The work began with a request for a one-off workshop during lab time; it has morphed into an ongoing project with the three faculty members who teach Organic Chemistry—Associate Professor of Chemistry Justin Miller, Associate Professor of Chemistry Erin Pelkey, and Laboratory Instructor David Slade—that includes before and after draft assessment, analysis of student learning needs, and possible curricular implications.
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ENRICHMENT PROGRAMS FOR FACULTY
Finally, Figure 6 presents a summary of faculty involvement with individual faculty enrichment programs. Because faculty tend to engage in multiple CTL programs, the totals in the last column represent the total number of faculty using each individual program.
Faculty Participation in CTL Faculty Enrichment by Position
Program
Figure 4: Compares the 2012-2013 CTL Faculty Enrichment Usage Compared to Total HWS Faculty
Figure 6: 2012-2013 Faculty Enrichment Summary by Program and Position
Visiting
Assistant
Associate
Full
TOTAL*
MAP
1
11
3
1
16
E-Newsletter Contributors
0
5
2
1
8
Classroom Observation Luxnches
0
17
6
1
24
Open Teaching Weeks
4
15
9
0
28
Faculty Learning Communities
1
15
4
0
20
Faculty Advisory Committee
0
4
3
1
8
Syllabus and Course Design Workshops
11
9
0
0
20
Individual Consultations
10
29
10
4
53
Figure 5 breaks down the 98 faculty who used CTL faculty enrichment by position.
Teaching Critical Thinking Institute
5
11
7
3
26
FSEM Lunches
2
8
1
1
12
Midterm Assessment Process (MAP)
FSEM Pedagogy Day
5
10
4
8
27
Faculty Grants for Innovative Teaching
1
4
0
1
6
Fall 2012 Faculty Reading Group
3
11
1
0
15
New Faculty Orientation
10
18
0
0
28
In the 2012-2013 academic year, 98 of the 248 faculty teaching on campus utilized CTL faculty enrichment opportunities. The three figures below demonstrate faculty usage of CTL faculty enrichment programs, each showing the breakdown by position in different ways. Figure 4 compares the faculty who have taken advantage of CTL faculty enrichment with the total number of faculty at HWS.
Figure 5: 2012-2013 Use of CTL Faculty Enrichment by Position
The Midterm Assessment Process (MAP) is a small group, consensusbased process designed to gather feedback on teaching and learning directly from students; the process asks students three questions: “What is working well for your learning in this course?” MAP Snapshot: “What is not working well for your learning in this CTL conducted 29 course?” MAPs for 16 faculty “What suggestions do you have for improving learning in this course?” resulting in 652 students providing feedback on their learning experience.
* = Please note that these totals do not represent unique numbers of faculty using CTL faculty enrichment services. Please see Figures 4, 5, and 6 for the breakdown of unique faculty by position.
Classroom Observation Lunches The MAP is a confidential and voluntary service. Unlike the mandatory evaluations students fill out at the end of the semester, MAPs occur around the middle of the semester to allow faculty to make meaningful changes during the semester.
This year, the CTL conducted 29 MAPs for 16 faculty teaching in a wide range of disciplines including Education, Chemistry, Economics, Women Studies, and others; 521 students provided feedback about their learning experience as a way to help faculty think more deeply and critically about the ways they are teaching their courses. Assessing MAPs This year the CTL also conducted several assessments of faculty who used MAPs. The first, a post-MAP survey for faculty who use MAPs in the 20122013 academic year, revealed that 100% of respondents found the MAP “very helpful.” One respondent commented “I made some changes and mostly talked to students about the course. I was more explicit with them about why I chose particular readings or do particular activities.” A second survey of all faculty who have participated in MAPs from 2007-2013 was done in preparation for the HWS Middle States accreditation process also revealed a high satisfaction with MAPs (68% saying it was “very helpful”);
Assessing MAPs Snapshot: “I did MAPs twice. The first time it changed some of my teaching strategies and the second time it helped me understand where my students were coming from on certain class dynamics.”
The CTL and the Committee on the Faculty (CoFac) collaborated to provide a series of learning opportunities about the new teaching observation requirements as stated in the Faculty Bylaws. Informal lunch discussions allowed faculty to share their own experiences with observing colleagues and being observed and to trade insights into the observation process. The following faculty facilitated these lunches: • • • • • •
Julie Kingery, Assistant Professor of Psychology Jo Beth Mertens, Associate Professor of Economics Charlie Temple, Professor of Education Erika L.C. King, Associate Professor of Mathematics and Computer Science Darrin Magee, Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies Leah Shafer, Assistant Professor of Media and Society
A total of 18 faculty attended these lunches where discussion topics ranged from the need to contextualize observations and provide written feedback to the differences between formative and summative observations and requests for workshops about observation and feedback techniques. A survey of the faculty who attended these lunches revealed that 90% of respondents rated the discussions “very useful.”
Classroom Observation Lunches Snapshot: “I came away with a sense of the need for further transparency of the observation process, a feeling that some sort of training for observers would be incredibly important, and a sense that the observation process could be much more useful for nontenured faculty with some minor revisions.”
Open Teaching Weeks In response to feedback from these Classroom Observation Lunches, the CTL sponsored the first Open Teaching Weeks. This “open house” style event was an opportunity for untenured faculty to informally observe the classes
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of newly-tenured faculty and learn more about teaching at HWS. Between March 25 and April 5, nine newly-tenured faculty opened their classrooms and 19 untenured faculty members took advantage of this opportunity. One faculty member who attended the open classes commented, “I realized that I had never seen another liberal arts course being taught. It was a very valuable experience to see how another person ran their class, to see the strategies they used, the way they organized the session, and the way students responded. It was an important opportunity for me to reflect on my own teaching and to imagine other ways that I might structure class time.”
Open Teaching Weeks Snapshot: “In my opinion, any opportunity to observe another colleague’s teaching is an incredibly rich learning experience that has the potential to enhance the teaching experience for both the observer and the individual being observed.”
Faculty Learning Communities According to Milton Cox (2012), “A faculty learning community (FLC) is a group of trans-disciplinary faculty engaging in an active, collaborative, yearlong program with a curriculum about enhancing teaching and learning and with frequent seminars and activities that provide learning, development, trans-disciplinarity, the scholarship of teaching and learning, and community building.” In the Spring 2013 semester, as we contemplated our usual pedagogy book-group offering, CTL decided to test the FLC community model, a growing trend in faculty development nation-wide, for applicability at HWS, and we asked faculty instead to commit to a FLC as a way to enhance their learning experience and manifest outcomes. In the Spring 2013 semester, the CTL invited faculty to participate in two Faculty Learning Communities (FLCs), guided by faculty, and required faculty to prepare a specific method for sharing their learning outcomes with the HWS community: FLC: Teaching Critical Thinking Faculty in this Learning Community read Stephen Brookfield’s Teaching Critical Thinking: Tools and Techniques to Help Students Question Their Assumptions and discussed the text at weekly meetings. Faculty also integrated some of Brookfield’s teaching strategies into their courses, reflected on these experiences, and received feedback from their colleagues during these weekly meetings. Participants in this FLC included: • Christine Chin, Assistant Professor of Art and Architecture • Portia Dyrenforth, Assistant Professor of Psychology • Emily Fisher, Assistant Professor of Psychology • Jon Forde, Assistant Professor of Mathematics and Computer Science • Christina Houseworth, Assistant Professor of Economics • Khuram Hussain, Assistant Professor of Education • Eric Klaus, Associate Professor of German Area Studies • Robin Lewis, Luce Environmental Studies Postdoctoral Fellow • Jim MaKinster, Associate Professor of Education Outcomes: Senior Symposium Critical Thinking Assessment Senior Symposium Snapshot: Seven members of this FLC developed a rubric using Brookfield’s five categories of critical thinking to carry out a small educational research In 2013, 70 faculty/staff supported the Senior assessment of 22 Senior Symposium panels (with 3-4 students in each panel) Symposium in some capacity. to evaluate HWS seniors’ critical thinking strategies. General conclusions suggest that while Brookfield’s categories were of some utility in assessing Senior Symposium presentations, they may be better used as the starting point for development of disciplinary or departmental or assessment that measures both product and process. The participants in this assessment activity, however, agree that the attempt was fruitful for their own learning: “It got me thinking more broadly about the assessments I use in classes—how can I make them more about the process and less about the final product?” Said another: “My syllabus for each course next semester will include learning objectives for the critical theory tradition along with assessments for evaluating the extent to which students employ the critical thinking [category].”
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Outcomes: Teaching Critical Thinking Institute This FLC looked for an outcome that would engage more faculty members in the kind of structured, systematic analysis of critical thinking and practical strategies Brookfield offered. They developed an institute titled “Teaching Critical Thinking” that focused on using Brookfield’s approach to integrate critical thinking into course design; a total of 26 faculty members attended this workshop. The institute featured sessions on defining critical thinking; examples of integrating critical thinking into reading, writing, and class discussion; time for participants to brainstorm methods for their Fall classes; and a call to consider how critical thinking pedagogy can fit into the upcoming curriculum review, as well as ways for institute attendees to participate in those discussions. FLC: Whiteness Theory and Critical Race Theory: Implications for Course Design and Strategies Faculty in this FLC read Barbara Applebaum’s Being White, Being Good: White Complicity, White Moral Responsibility, and Social Justice Pedagogy and discussed the text. Participants included: • Chris Annear, Assistant Professor of Anthropology/Sociology • Brien Ashdown, Assistant Professor of Psychology • Michelle Baron, Assistant Professor of Women’s Studies • Neeta Bhasin, Assistant Professor of Writing and Rhetoric • Stephen Cope, Assistant Professor of English • Kendralin Freeman, Assistant Professor of Anthropology/Sociology • Amy Forbes, Associate Director of the Centennial Center for Leadership • Keoka Grayson, Assistant Professor of Economics • Jessica Hayes-Conroy, Assistant Professor of Women’s Studies • James McCorkle, Visiting Assistant Professor of Africana Studies • Stacey Philbrick-Yadav, Assistant Professor of Political Science • Jason Rodriguez, Assistant Professor of Anthropology/Sociology Outcomes: Barbara Applebaum Visits Campus In April, the FLC welcomed Barbara Applebaum, Associate Professor of Education at Syracuse University, to campus. While on campus, Applebaum met with the FLC and members of the Race and Racism Coalition, a group of students, faculty, and staff dedicated to improving cultural and institutional ideas about and responses to issues of race. Her talk, entitled “Being White, Being Good, Being Vigilant,” was co-sponsored by the CTL, the Race and Racism Coalition, and the Social Justice Studies Program. Faculty Advisory Board In the 2012-2013 academic year, the CTL brought together a group of faculty to provide direction and guidance, identify issues of importance to the faculty for CTL attention, and review programming assessment. The Faculty Advisory Board will assist with the program development of programming to support faculty throughout their career stages. Faculty Advisory Board Members include: • Brien Ashdown, Assistant Professor of Psychology • Anna Creadick, Associate Professor of English • Mark Deutschlander, Associate Professor of Biology • Katie Flowers, Director of the Center for Community Engagement and Service Learning • Khuram Hussain, Assistant Professor of Education • Michelle Ikle, Associate Professor of Dance • Stacey Philbrick Yadav, Assistant Professor of Political Science • Felipe Rezende, Assistant Professor of Economics • Jim Ryan, Professor of Biology
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Syllabus and Course Design Workshops
Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC)
Every August and January, the CTL, in conjunction with our Learning Commons colleagues, offers syllabus peer-feedback workshops for faculty. This past year, 22 faculty attended these workshops. In August 2012, staff of the CTL attended several sessions during New Faculty Orientation to welcome the 28 new faculty and answer questions.
Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC) is the philosophy that writing instruction should happen across all disciplines, should span the breadth of an academic community, and should occur throughout an undergraduate education. CTL support for WAC instruction provides enrichment for both students and faculty through the Writing Fellows program, First-Year Seminar (FSEM) support, and in-class writing workshops.
CTL E-Newsletter
In addition, this year the Coordinator of Writing Initiatives collaborated with the Writing Colleagues Program Director and Coordinator to examine the ways that the Writing Colleagues Program and CTL Writing Fellows impact the teaching of writing in FSEMs. This study emerged due to personnel changes (all three researchers have been hired within the last two years), the introduction of the WF linked-course pilot project, and a need for assessment. Eighteen faculty working with Writing Colleagues or Fellows (WC/F) were surveyed at the beginning and end of the Fall 2012 semester. The initial results provided valuable data on faculty expectations of working with WC/Fs. This has led to the development of an application process for faculty requesting Writing Colleagues, a mandatory planning meeting for all faculty working with WC/Fs, changes in the linked-course model, and an increase in conversations about ways that the CTL and Writing Colleagues Program can partner to support writing. Future directions for this project include collecting more data in the Fall 2013, integrating WC/F perspectives, and eventually publishing the results in the Writing Center Journal.
In the Spring 2013 semester, the CTL began producing an e-newsletter for HWS faculty and staff. This newsletter is an opportunity to share innovative pedagogy and engage in current conversations about teaching and learning both at HWS and in higher education in general. The two editions of the CTL E-Newsletter that came out in the Spring 2013 semester are available on the CTL website. www.hws.edu/academics/ctl/newsletter/index.aspx Contributors include: First Edition: • Hannah Dickinson and Maggie Werner, Assistant Professors of Writing and Rhetoric, “Faculty Share: Comic Conversations” • Susan Hess, Writing and Teaching/Learning Specialist, “Innovative Pedagogy: Flipped Classrooms” • Caitlin Caron, Coordinator of Writing Initiatives, “Learner-Centered Teaching: A Faculty Institute Follow-up” • Caitlin Caron, Coordinator of Writing Initiatives, “Writing in the Disciplines: An Interview with Assistant Professor of Economics Felipe Rezende” Second Edition: • Susan Hess, Writing and Teaching/Learning Specialist, “Orgo, Ergo, Argue? Workshopping in Organic Chemistry Labs” • Ruth Shields, CTL Assistant Director, “Practice Exams and Econ 160: Using Teaching Fellows in a New Way” • Erika L.C. King, Associate Professor of Mathematics and Computer Science and Jo Beth Mertens, Associate Professor of Economics, “Spotlight on: Classroom Observation Methods in the Economics and Mathematics and Computer Science Departments” • Kirin Makker, Assistant Professor of Architecture and Christopher Button, Director for Planning and Construction, “Professional Props: A Project for Seniors in Architectural Studies” and “A Reflection on Professional Props Critique” • Eric Klaus, Associate Professor of German Area Studies, “Mapping Our Way to Critical Thinking: Reading Strategies in the German Classroom” • Caitlin Caron, Coordinator of Writing Initiatives, Morgan Hopkins (’10), Coordinator of Leadership Programs, Caroline Dosky (’12, MAT ’13), Kazia Berkley-Kramer (’13), Kevin Pollard (’13), Khuram Hussain, Assistant Professor of Education, and Donna Davenport, Professor of Dance, “Celebrating 5 Years of the Senior Symposium”
The CTL provides outreach to the FSEM program by providing support for student writing and for teaching writing in FSEMs, providing student academic support through Study Mentors, and developing collaborative initiatives with the Deans, Provost’s Office, the Writing Colleagues Program, and the Learning Commons pedagogy offices (the Library and the Digital Learning Center). The Writing and Teaching/Learning Specialist’s dual role as the Assistant Director of the First-Year Seminar Program has enhanced connections with the FSEM Program and helped establish a more cohesive “writing instructive” definition for FSEM courses and provided more course design resources for FSEM faculty. This year, to shift newcomer training out of the May FSEM Advising and Pedagogy Day, Susan Hess conducted a series of Newcomer Orientation Lunches for all new FSEM faculty as well as those returning after a long period. With the help of long-term FSEM faculty members David Galloway, Donna Davenport, and Eric Klaus, these lunches focused on practical approaches to FSEM teaching. Twelve faculty attended these orientation lunches. As a result, the FSEM Pedagogy day, which was attended by 27 newcomer and returning faculty, was better able to focus on advising, practical approaches to writing instruction, and faculty-to-faculty mentoring. In addition, Hess is collaborating with Eric Klaus, Associate Professor of German Area Studies and new Director of the First Year Seminar Program, on a Critical Thinking FSEM Study Group.
Individual Consultations
Faculty Grants for Innovative Teaching
These consultations are available to all faculty and used extensively by new and First-Year Seminar faculty engaging in new pedagogical methods. In the 2012-2013 academic year, 53 unique faculty made use of this service. Consults are individualized based on faculty needs and cover a range of topics such as developing assignment rubrics, integrating specific techniques into specific courses and tracking learning outcomes, tenure and promotion, methods for selecting students to invite to present at a national conference, developing assessment questionnaires, classroom observation processes, troubleshooting issues within a course, managing negative students in the classroom, and planning future courses.
Each semester, the CTL invites faculty to submit proposals for projects that enhance teaching and learning through an innovative or methodological design; projects are selected based on their potential impact on practice. Grantees meet regularly throughout the semester for mutual project support and to discuss and implement student-learning assessment. These interdisciplinary faculty discussions provide significant learning opportunity. For example, one grant recipient commented, “The two aspects of the grant that I found most valuable were: 1) focusing on a single aspect of my teaching— I think the grant really helped me accomplish a clear goal, rather than trying to do a hundred new pedagogical things at one time; and 2) learning about what other people do in their classes and how they think about teaching. I think the community-building aspect of the grant was extremely valuable.” This year’s grant recipients presented their work at the Engaged Scholarship
Department Consultations The CTL offers consultations to academic departments on a range of issues. In the 2012-2013 academic year, we consulted with the Chemistry department to develop a lab report writing workshop for Organic Chemistry classes and with faculty in Environmental Studies about integrating environmental issues in Asian countries into the department’s curriculum. We also helped faculty plan the Public Policy’s programmatic review retreat.
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First-Year Seminar (FSEM) Support
FSEM Linked-Course Snapshot: Students reported that small-group discussions helped them talk “about each others writing” in ways that were effective and helped them “get some different ideas about writing and improve [our] strategy.”
Faculty Grant for Innovation Teaching Snapshot: 31 faculty teaching FSEMs in Fall 2012 attended the FSEM Pedagogy Day with the potential to impact 364 FY students
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Forum, allowing the broader HWS community to learn about their work. This year, the following faculty received Innovation Grants in courses that enrolled a total of 168 students: • Jamie Bodenlos, Assistant Professor of Psychology, “The Scientist-Practitioner in the Real World” • James Capreedy, Assistant Professor of Classics, “‘Mapping Antiquity’: A Collaborative Mapping Tool of Antiquity for Mobile Devices” • Hannah Dickinson and Maggie Werner, Assistant Professors of Writing and Rhetoric, “Comic Conversations: Multimodal Scholar Dialogue in Inquiry-Based Research” • Linda Robertson, Professor of Media and Society, “Introduction to Making Social Documentaries” • Lisa Patti, Visiting Assistant Professor of Media and Society, “Console-Based Gaming Laboratory” Faculty Reading Group In the Fall 2012, 15 faculty read and discussed Carol Dweck’s book Mindset: The New Psychology of Success. Mindset explains: • Why brains and talent don’t bring success • How they can stand in the way of it • Why praising brains and talent doesn’t foster self-esteem and accomplishment, but jeopardizes them • How teaching a simple idea about the brain raises grades and productivity • What all great CEOs, parents, teachers, athletes know Mindset is a simple idea discovered by world-renowned Stanford University psychologist Carol Dweck in decades of research on achievement and success—a simple idea that makes all the difference. In a fixed mindset, people believe their basic qualities, like their intelligence or talent, are simply fixed traits. They spend their time documenting their intelligence or talent instead of developing them. They also believe that talent alone creates success—without effort. They’re wrong. In a growth mindset, people believe that their most basic abilities can be developed through dedication and hard work—brains and talent are just the starting point. This Mindset explains: people have had these qualities.
OTHER COLLABORATIONS AND CAMPUS SERVICE First-Year Writing Prize
In the 2012-2013 academic year, the Coordinator of Writing Initiatives and the Director of the Writing Colleagues Program collaborated to develop Hobart and William Smith Colleges’ first annual First-Year Writing Prize. Faculty who taught First-Year Seminars (FSEMs) in the Fall 2012 were invited to nominate up to two students’ essays as excellent examples of first-year college writing. In total, 11 faculty nominated 16 first-year students’ essays. In addition to their essays, these nominated students submitted a cover letter detailing their writing process. Summer Institute
Each July-August, the HEOP program brings approximately 25 students to campus for the Summer Institute preparatory program, and CTL staff regularly teach in this program; we find that the personal connections made during this summer session encourage students in this program to make use of CTL support. In the summer of 2012, staff of the CTL taught two courses: the Coordinator of Student Services taught at study skills class titled “Study Strategies for College Success” and the Coordinator of Writing Initiatives taught a writing class titled “Introduction to College Writing.”
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ADDITIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS Courses Taught Introduction to College Writing, Summer Institute Study Strategies for College Success, Summer Institute FSEM 103, The Reality Effect Conference, Foundation, and Invited Presentations International Higher Education Teaching and Learning (HETL) Conference International Writing Center Association (IWCA) Conference College Composition and Communication Conference (CCCC) Professional and Organizational Development (POD) Conference Houghton College Fairfield College Franklin and Marshall College Conferences Attended Finger Lakes Faculty Development Network’s (FLFDN) Teaching and Learning Day at SUNY Brockport NY6 Hamilton College Faculty of Color Conference Blended Learning in the Liberal Arts Conference Western New York Consortium of New York State Disability Services Council Meeting Research and Scholarly Publications Director’s Book Published Susan M. Pliner, Associate Dean for Teaching Learning, and Assessment, Director of the Center for Teaching and Learning, and Director of the Centennial Center for Leadership, co-published her book, Teaching, Learning, and Intersecting Identities in Higher Education with Cerri A. Banks, Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Mount Holyoke College and former Dean of William Smith College. The book is a collection of essays on strategies and methods that encourage student learning and authentic classroom dialogue around social justice pedagogy, and features several chapters written by Hobart and William Smith students, faculty, staff, and alumni including Amber Jackson (’13), Patrice Thomas (’13), Reina Apraez (’11), Jalisa Whitley (’11), Katy Wolfe (’11), Morgan Hopkins (’10), Ashley Rodger (‘07, MAT ’08), Assistant Professor of Writing
and Rhetoric Neeta Bhasin, Assistant Professor of Education Khuram Hussain, and Associate Professor of English Anna Creadick. Director’s chapter featured in book Director Susan M. Pliner also has a chapter in Kim Case’s book, Deconstructing Privilege: Teaching and Learning as Allies in the Classroom (June, 2013). Pliner’s chapter, “Intersectionality and the Paradigms of Privilege: Teaching for Social Change,” is co-authored by Cerri A. Banks, Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Mount Holyoke College and former Dean of William Smith College, and Morgan Hopkins (’10), Coordinator of Leadership Programs. Assistant Director writing article for the Journal of Correctional Education Ruth Shields, Assistant Director of the Center for Teaching and Learning, is co-writing an article with Khuram Hussain, Assistant Professor of Education, for an upcoming issue of the Journal of Correctional Education. The article will look at the impact and influence for faculty teaching simultaneously in a prison program and a small liberal arts college. Writing and Teaching/Learning Specialist featured in forthcoming CCC Susan K. Hess, Writing and Teaching/Learning Specialist, has co-authored an article titled, “Privileging Pedagogy: Composition, Rhetoric, and Faculty Development.” This article will be featured in the Fall 2013 special issue of College Composition and Communication. Campus Service Co-Chair for Staff Engagement Presidential Commission on Inclusive Excellence Geneva 2020 Steering Committee Admissions Open Houses Respect Forum Department of Student Affairs Meetings Service Learning Advisory Committee Second Chances Initiative Middle States Review Self-Study Working Groups Advisory and Review Work International Higher Education Teaching and Learning (HETL) Review POD Conference Review
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STAFF CAITLIN CARON, Coordinator of Writing Initiatives, supervises the CTL Writing Colleagues; provides direct writing support to students, partners with faculty to provide writing support in courses, identifies and develops writing initiatives, collaborates with WRRH and the Writing Colleagues program, and teaches in the Summer Institute. SUSAN HESS, Writing and Teaching/Learning Specialist and Assistant Director of the First Year Seminar Program, provides writing and teaching consultation to faculty; offers in-class workshops to compliment instruction, develops programming to support Honors students including teaching Readers Colleges “Generating a Thesis” and “Countdown to a Thesis”, provides assessment support to faculty and departments, and teaches in the FSEM Program and the Summer Institute. SUSAN PLINER, Associate Dean for Teaching, Learning, and Assessment & CTL Director, manages initiatives across the CTL; represents the CTL on issues of teaching, learning, and faculty development; provides consultation to faculty and departments; and is an Assistant Professor in the Education Department and Social Justice Studies Program. RUTH SHIELDS, Assistant Director, directs the Teaching Fellow Program; oversees the oral communication programs; collaborates with faculty, deans, and staff to support student learning; oversees the Senior Symposium; and assists in the daily operations of the CTL office. DAVID SILVER, Coordinator of Disability Services, oversees all aspects of disability services; provides direct support to students with disabilities; provides information and support to faculty accommodating students with disabilities; develops and manages documentation guidelines, processes, and review; and collaborates with offices across campus on disability related issues. EVELYN SPERRY, Administrative Assistant, provides general support for all CTL activities, staff, and events. SAM VANN, Coordinator of Student Services, directs the Study Mentor and Study Table programs, manages office scheduling and data software, provides support to faculty, acts as a liaison to athletic departments, accommodates students with disabilities testing needs, provides direct learning and study support to students, and teaches for the Summer Institute.
Center for Teaching and Learning Rosensweig Learning Commons Warren Hunting Smith Library Phone: (315) 781-3351 Fax: (315) 781-3862 E-mail: ctl@hws.edu http://www.hws.edu/academics/ctl/index.aspx
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