Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching (CELT)

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• Less than 2 weeks to go for FREE registration! (10/30/2020)

  

  See here for more information

• Online Teaching of Psychology Conference (10/12/2020)

  November 13th, 2020

  Title: Active Student Responding to Increase Student Engagement in Online University Course

  Author: Stephanie A.C. Kuhn, Department of Education and Educational Psychology, Western Connecticut State University

  

  Abstract: Data suggest that just over one third of students in post-secondary education settings enrolled in at least one online course (IPEDS, Spring 2018). In an unprecedented situation in the spring 2020 all universities were forced to quickly move courses online after the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. It is unclear how this will influence student enrollment in online courses in the future. Regardless, there is a role for online learning in post-secondary education settings. There are challenges that come with online teaching, one of the primary ones being student engagement. Research has shown that promoting active student responding in course activities increases engagement. This presentation will detail the use of specific methods and technology to incorporate active student responding in online courses. Preliminary data on the effects of an active student responding components in a graduate level program will be presented and discussed.

  To register and for more info, visit the Online Teaching of Psychology Conference page

• Online Teaching of Psychology Conference (10/9/2020)

  November 13th, 2020

  Title: Online Behavioral Instruction: An Introduction

  Author: James W. Diller, Department of Psychological Science, Eastern Connecticut State University

  

  Abstract: Within the context of higher education, behavior analysts have made substantial contributions to the development of effective instructional techniques. These techniques typically involve frequent opportunities for active responding, individualized feedback, breaking material into small units, and the management of consequences to promote learning. Although many of these strategies were developed prior to the advent of online education, they can be applied in this environment. This presentation will describe behavior-analytic instructional techniques including interteaching and personalized systems of instruction, with a focus on how to carry out these techniques in an online instructional setting. Best practices, derived from the existing research literature, will be described.

  Learning objectives:

  Viewers of this presentation should be able to:

  1. Define behavioral instruction.

  2. Explain the research support for behavioral instruction techniques.

  3. Describe how to use behavioral instruction techniques to promote online learning.

   

  To register and for more info, visit the Online Teaching of Psychology Conference page

• Online Teaching of Psychology Conference (10/6/2020)

  November 13th, 2020

  Panel Discussion

  Title: Fostering Community and Rapport in the Online Classroom
  

  Panelists: Drs. Neeta Connally (WCSU: upper left), Kaston Anderson-Carpenter (MSU: upper right), Nicole DeRonck (WCSU: bottom left), and Sharon Young (WCSU: bottom right)

  Abstract: The link between student success and sense of community in online courses is well established in the scholarship of teaching and learning. Students who feel connected to the instructor, one another and the course content are more likely persist and succeed in online learning. How can we design our courses so that a learning community flourishes and how do we sustain and promote it once the class has started? What are the factors that impact community – from social factors, to expectation settings, to class climate? Panelists will explore the dimensions of online course community, share their techniques and discuss lessons learned.

  

  Moderator: Aura Lippincott (WCSU)

  To register and for more info, visit the Online Teaching of Psychology Conference page

• Online Teaching of Psychology Conference (10/5/2020)

  November 13th, 2020

  Keynote Speaker: Afternoon

  Title: Creativity in the Classroom: What It Is and How to Make it Happen

  Author: Joseph Dracobly, Department of Behavior Analysis, University of North Texas

  

   

  Abstract: In any course, there is core material students must learn to be successful. However, more and more, students and administrators are seeking educational opportunities that are immediately relevant outside the classroom. This can be a tall task, particularly in online courses in which interactions may not occur in real time. Additionally, as every teacher knows, however, the world can be a complex, messy place. With the limited time we have with students, it can be difficult to balance the acquisition of new skills with the application and synthesis of those skills. Fortunately, there is an emerging solution to this problem based on the promotion of variation in learning. In this talk, I will focus on three areas. First, I will discuss some of the research on how we can promote variability of responding across a variety of areas to promote the creativity of our students. Second, I will discuss how, and why, infusing variable responding across the curriculum creates a skill-set that is adaptable to an ever-changing world. Finally, I will provide some practical strategies for how you can be creative in making your material, instruction, and class activities facilitate the variability and creativity of your students.

  To register and for more info, visit the Online Teaching of Psychology Conference page

   

• Online Teaching of Psychology Conference (9/30/2020)

  November 13th, 2020

  Keynote Speaker: Morning

  Title: Supporting Meaningful Student Outcomes in the Online Environment

  Author: Christy Alligood, Department of Psychology, University of Florida

  

  Abstract: Classroom instruction in psychology presents many opportunities for teaching and assessing skills such as analysis and application. While the online teaching environment presents some challenges in translating these practices, creative applications of behavioral teaching strategies can facilitate skill development without face-to-face interaction. This presentation will focus on operationalizing outcomes at multiple levels beyond multiple-choice assessment performance using a behavioral version of Bloom’s taxonomy as a guide, and describe examples of instructional practices that can be used to facilitate these outcomes in both small- and large-enrollment asynchronous online courses.

  Learning objectives:

  Viewers of this presentation should be able to:

  1. Give operational definitions of at least two levels of learning outcomes beyond remembering from Bloom’s taxonomy.

  2. Describe how interteaching can be applied in an asynchronous online course.

  3. Describe two benefits of student-led inquiry in an online course.

  To register and for more info:

  https://celtwcsu.wordpress.com/online-teaching-of…/

• What Happens When You Give Students Control of the Syllabus? (2/19/2020)

  Please join me in celebrating Dr. Leslie Lindenauer and Aura Lippincott’s amazing achievement featured in The Chronicle of Higher Education. Way to go on disseminating your top-tier approach to teaching!

  At CELT, we would like to highlight more of these extraordinary efforts. Please share your accomplishments in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning. Contact brewera@wcsu.edu

  Click below for the article:

  https://www.chronicle.com/article/What-Happens-When-You-Give/247888

• The Power of Collaboration (10/29/2018)

  Amidst the pressures of our profession – a heavy teaching load, the challenge of teaching students of widely different abilities and preparation – it is sometimes easy to forget why we chose this vocation in the first place.  In addition to finding deep satisfaction in working with students whose lives are transformed by the opportunity to earn a college degree, some of what we revel in has to do with being a part of a community of educators and scholars.  Perhaps we have fond memories of being students ourselves. We are attracted by a life of the mind, which includes, at least in part, the opportunity to engage in discourse about our work.  Many of us entered our graduate programs in a cohort; if we are lucky we maintain those connections for a lifetime.  We recognize that on campus there is strength in numbers.  We take comfort in our ability to share our successes as well as grievances with our colleagues.  All of this should point to reasons to engage in collaboration in the classroom as well.  Indeed, some of the most exciting and nourishing experiences I have had of late have been the result of collaborations with colleagues across the university. When we appear in the classroom together, we demonstrate the power of interdisciplinary learning; we model for students the value of collaborative work and civil discourse; we demonstrate that even as professors we have much to learn from our peers.  How exhilarating it has been to share the classroom with an anthropologist, a political scientist, and a scholar of theater. Collaborations with our Instructional Designer, Aura Lippincott, have also been tremendously fruitful.  I encourage you to try it!  And I encourage our administration to explore strategies for facilitating (and rewarding)  collaboration.

• Welcome to the 2018-2019 Academic Year (9/26/2018)

  We have a wide range of programs on the horizon, including a workshop on facilitating face-to-face and online group work, a live podcast/discussion about navigating the line between hate speech and free speech, and a workshop on winterizing your courses to mitigate the impact of disruptions to teaching.  Keep an eye out for programs on meditation and mindfulness in our classrooms and in stress reduction, and a workshop on effective strategies for serving students on the spectrum.  We opened the year with a very successful Spa Day – a combination of relaxing spa treatments and individual consultations on a range of course planning issues. We plan to repeat that program next year.

  As always, our intention is to provide opportunities to engage in programs in a variety of ways, including face-to-face workshops and discussion, online, and on-demand recordings. We’d like to experiment this year with having participants share follow-up reactions to the program topics that extend the discourse and learning.

  In addition, please consider sharing your interests and expertise about topics in teaching and learning by suggesting a program or crafting a blogpost. There’s no idea that’s too big or too small; we can explore teaching strategies for individual lessons, or simply discuss an open-ended question about challenges and opportunities in the classroom. CELT aims to tap into the enormous energy and innovation around teaching and learning that exists across the university.

• Fall 2017 Teaching & Learning Technology Showcase (9/18/2017)