Course Design Conversations: Strategies for In-Person Teaching and Learning
The Course Design Conversations: Strategies for In-Person Teaching and Learning series invites you to join in conversations with peers about teaching in the classroom. With the return to classroom instruction, there are opportunities and challenges such as connecting remote students, new classroom technology, and engaging students in meaningful discussions. Each session will have a guest presenter to share their experiences, engage in discussions and explore strategies for effective classroom teaching and learning.
In this series, participants will have opportunities to:
- Apply practical strategies to your own classroom instructional needs.
- Engage in meaningful discussions with colleagues
- Explore the latest trends in classroom instruction to best support student learning
Educational Change, Policy, and Cultural Impacts on Transgender Classroom Experiences
This session will use storytelling from personal experience to provide examples of transgender experiences in the classroom which were helpful, and others which were harmful. We will begin with a basic overview of important definitions and language suggestions to foster inclusive classrooms for gender diverse folks. Next we will share a series of stories of our experiences, as students, as educators, and as community members. Each story aims to provide insight into the experience of living and learning in the world as queer and gender diverse folks. We will close with an opportunity for discussion and questions to expand everyone's wealth of knowledge and share personal reflections to the information presented.
Learning Outcomes:
- Distinguish basic language, including gender identity, gender expression, sex, and pronouns.
- Learn through stories how small actions can have a big impact on fostering gender inclusive classrooms and spaces.
- Reflect on personal takeaways from stories told.
Presenters: Rebecca Holm (she/her) and Robyn Paul, PhD (she/her)
Facilitator: Lorelei Anselmo
Date: March 27
Time: 12- 1 p.m.
Location: Online
Past workshops
Fall 2024
The numbers might vary depending on the context but high enrolment courses have one thing in common: they all have a high student-to-instructor ratio for the desired pedagogical outcomes. Do any of these scenarios sound familiar?
- A small enrolment intensive course has been doubled in student size.
- 250+ first year students trying to navigate their first big university course.
- Asking questions and seeing a lecture theatre of blank stares.
- Intensive grading to get students timely feedback.
These are just some of the challenges associated with large enrolment courses, yet large enrolment courses create opportunities for enhanced teaching and learning. Join us as we explore five course design considerations for large enrolment courses including: supporting students, interactive lectures, student assessments, connecting with students, and course organization.
Guest Speaker: Amber Porter
Facilitator: Patrick Kelly
The course outline is ready, due dates are set, and assignments have been reviewed for clarity. What's next?
Whether it is your first time teaching or years of experience, the first day of class can be full of opportunities and worries. Course design practices are one place to bring intention and focus to the first day including getting to know each other, setting expectations, key concepts, reviewing course learning outcomes and assessments, and setting individual learning goals. Join us to share strategies to make the first day memorable, productive and support the course goals.
Guest Speaker: Cari Din
Facilitator: Patrick Kelly
Winter 2023
Open Educational Resources, also known as OERs, are peer reviewed academic content that is made available through an open access license. Benefits for both instructors and students include accessibility, enhanced quality of content, opportunities for self-directed learning, and more. OERs include print material, videos, audio, and even quizzes and assignments. Join us to explore the many ways OERs can be used in your classroom and the benefits for all.
Guest Presenter: Verena Roberts
Facilitators: Lorelei Anselmo
Over the last few years, ‘ungrading’ — an approach to assessment that de-centres grades, privileging instead student labour and formative feedback — has become both an increasingly common practice in postsecondary classrooms and the subject of increasing controversy in popular and scholarly publications concerned with teaching and learning.
What does it mean to have ‘completed’ an assignment? How can this approach work in classes that require demonstrated mastery of core disciplinary skills? What does an ungraded final exam look like? Along with a brief introduction to ungrading, this workshop is intended to offer participants an opportunity to work through some of these questions, and to collaborate with colleagues in other fields to identify solutions that could work in each of their courses.
Other topics: Academic Integrity, self-direct learning, backchannels, teaching intercultural competence
Guest Presenters: Derritt Mason & Morgan Vanek
Facilitator: Patrick Kelly
Fall 2022
The student population is becoming more diverse than ever, from socio-economic status, culture, language, race, gender to interests and experiences they bring. Using Equity, Diversity, and Inclusive (EDI) principles we will explore strategies to create a welcoming, safe, and inclusive classroom environment to create robust learning experiences for all learners. Teaching in a diverse classroom starts well before the first day of class by reflecting on your own positionality, including an EDI statement in your course outline, and intentional integration of EDI strategies into the first day of class and beyond. Join us as we further explore strategies when teaching in a diverse classroom.
Facilitators: Patrick Kelly, Lin Yu
Having well-defined and articulated student assessment and grading strategies is essential for effective course design. Specifications grading takes a different approach to assign grades where student work is evaluated simply using a one-level grading rubric based on whether the work meets expectations. In this approach, assignments and tests are "bundled" around course learning outcomes, clearly aligning the work students do and mastery of course content. Students earn higher grades by completing more challenging learning bundles. Join us as we explore how specifications grading can motivate students, uphold high standards, and build strong alignment in course design!
Facilitators: Kyla Flanagan
Spring/Summer 2022
Are you curious about the available technology in classrooms and how you might leverage them to engage students and meet learning outcomes? This session will review what technology is available and provide time to share and learn from each other on how technology can be used to support student learning, instruction, and connecting remote students into the classroom.
Facilitators: Corey Flynn, Patrick Kelly, Lin Yu
Are you wondering how to engage students in discussions in class? Collaborative learning has been shown to have a dramatic impact on student engagement and learning yet has it’s challenges. This session will discuss some of the common opportunities and challenges with facilitating student discussions and then provide opportunities for participants to share their own facilitation strategies and learn from each other.
Facilitator: Lisa Stowe, Patrick Kelly, Lin Yu