Year: 2021

Active Teaching for Today’s Students

It has been an interesting week! Classes started, and I have enjoyed the energy that students bring. I observed a Zoom synchronous session, launched our online yeast course, participated in a virtual workshop, and attended a faculty and instructional design virtual break. At the same time, I’m working on scheduling and planning our summer programs […]
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Templates for Community of Inquiry in Real-Time Remote Learning

Drs. Carolyn Samuel, Angela Guadagno, and Mariela Tovar from the McGill University shared tips and templates for real-time remote learning at the 2020 Lilly Conference. The three work as educational developers at Teaching and Learning Services at McGill and developed strategies instructors could use to enhance engagement in Zoom sessions, including webinars. Their recording was […]
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Mind in the Gutter Today!

Today was the first day of classes. It is still surreal to start when teaching an online asynchronous course, and I am starting to enjoy the thought process of designing an engaging online introduction to the course. We tried several new things this semester on our Start Here module for the Yeast Metabolic Engineering course. […]
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Gratitude and Reflective Writing Practices

Dr. JoAnne Bullard from Rowan University presented at the 2020 Lilly Conference on the use of reflective writing and gratitude to increase resilience of undergraduate students. Bullard reviewed literature about the anxieties that affect students and the research on using journaling and reflection to promote well-being. I did not know that studies have indicated that […]
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Experiential Learning… Virtually

Dr. Laura Hunt Trull from James Madison University shared insights on teaching a grant writing course with significant experiential learning at the 2020 Lilly Conference. Hunt Trull began by introducing (for me, probably review for others familiar with experiential learning) National Society for Experiential Education (NSEE) Principles of Good Practice. There are eight principles: intention, […]
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Two Articles from the Pros to Prepare for the Spring Semester

Tomorrow we start our spring 2021 semester. I am fortunate to be able to teach an online version of the BIT 480/580 Yeast Metabolic Engineering course with my significant other, Claire Gordy. We have planned the course to be asynchronous to provide flexibility and options to students who could benefit from this alternative. Several undergraduates […]
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Using Course Preparation Assignments to Encourage Reading and Discussion

Dr. Amanda Green from Eastern Kentucky University presented a recorded talk for the 2020 Lilly Conference that was both engaging and informative. I didn’t know anything about Course Preparation Assignments (CPAs) and loved how Green designed the workshop! I watched the recording three times. Green used the new Zoom option to embed a live screenshot […]
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The Delftia Project Presented at SENCER

I am impressed by the creativity and motivation that students generate when they latch onto something they are passionate about. The Delftia Citizen Science group of undergraduates launched an entirely online collaborative research, annotation, and public science initiative last fall. Lauren Ramilo and Daiza Norman helped coordinate a group that at times had a dozen […]
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Network Analysis and Classroom Management

Dr. Eric Hogan from Georgia Southern University presented on one-mode networks and classroom management at the 2020 Lilly Conference online. Hogan is faculty in the Education Department and teaches on learning, motivation, and assessment. I didn’t know about one-mode networks and, while I have seen a couple network analysis studies in education, I had not […]
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