Augustana Center for Teaching and Learning
- On Course Newsletter: Anyone is welcome to subscribe to this free newsletter. To subscribe, send a blank message to: OnCourse-on@mail-list.com
- The National Teaching & Learning Forum
ACTL Workshops for Spring Term
The following Teaching Circle and Reading/Writing Group Meetings will be open to all faculty on campus:
- March 12 [ 3:45 pm - Wilson ] and March 13 [ 10:30 am Dahl Room]: Grading in the Classroom . The session will begin with basic principles for effective grading in the classroom including the use of grading rubrics. A grading rubric is a protocol for grading the lists the critical components, a scale for each component and the weighting for each component. Following the general discussion and presentation of examples of grading rubrics, participants will be asked to consider how these might be applied to current classes. Faculty that use grading rubrics already are strongly encouraged to participate and share their models for grading. The main resource for this session is Effective Grading: A Tool for Learning and Assessment by Barbara Walvoord and Virginia Johnson Anderson (available in the teaching and learning section in the Tredway Library).
- March 19 [ 4:00 pm Reading/Writing Center]: Reading Group: Feminism and Composition . In honor of Women's History Month, this reading group invites discussion of the differences in the ways men and women write. Do differences exist, and if so, what are these differences, and what might account for them? Are some kinds of writing better suited to women than to men and vice versa? What kinds of writing should we teach and why? Can the writing classroom help students find their true voices while also equipping them to succeed? Seminal essays in feminist composition theory by Mary P. Hiatt, Joan Bolker, and Susan Jarrett offer lenses through which to consider the gender politics at play in our own writing classrooms. [For more information, contact Meg Gillette coordinator of this program]
- April 2 [ 3:45 pm - Wilson ] and March 3 [ 10:30 am - Dahl]: Learning Theories . There are many theories that are relevant to human learning and instruction. How might the understanding of some of these theories assist with our teaching and with student learning? The session will give a brief introduction to learning theories and will then focus on a select group of theories as models. Examples of how these theories might be used across different disciplines will be included.
- April 16 [ 4:00 pm location to be announced]: Writing Group: Writing Assignments in the Sciences . The session will focus on setting up solid writing assignments and methods for evaluation. (More information on this session will be forthcoming)
A Saturday morning session is currently being planned for all faculty on the topic of peer classroom observation methods . This topic idea came out of meetings with various departments suggesting more guidance and help with this important method for assessing teaching effectiveness. More information will be forthcoming.