[social-bio] In my reading, researching, writing and chatting about the topic of academic dishonesty over the past decade, teachers’ reactions to academic dishonesty can range from feelings of general disillusionment with students to feelings of personal affront by a specific student. Many struggle with questions like why would students do this, what could I have…
[social-bio] Recently, I did some reading on using debates as a course format. I had been familiar with using debates as an instructional strategy, but not as the actual format for an entire course. I was able to find a few examples of where this had been previously done, including the Genome 475 course at…
[social-bio] My title here at the Gwenna Moss Centre is officially “Instructional Design Specialist”; I apply my instructional design background to help faculty and instructors develop and improve their skills and abilities as teachers and course designers. However, I think of my “real” work as being more fluid and less prescriptive than the title suggests;…
Guest Author, George Siemens The following post was written by George Siemens from the Technology Enhanced Knowledge Research Institute at Athabasca University. It is reprinted here with his permission. An Open Letter to Canadian Universities Dear Canadian Universities, You are, as the cool 4chan/Reddit kids say, about to get pwned. The dramatic entrance of elite…
[social-bio] I blush as I confess that I’ve been guilty of it myself—I’ve promoted the notion of learning styles in my graduate teaching courses. In my defense, it has been with the purpose encouraging future faculty to consider employing teaching strategies beyond a (poor) lecture. Thinking back to my own days as a student, classes…
[social-bio] Canada’s new copyright bill has passed Parliament and Senate and there are several things instructors on our campus need to know. 1. What copyrighted electronic materials can I share with my students? Answer: share links, but if you are copying or uploading articles for students to access, make sure copyright is cleared (I.e. open…
[social-bio] While I was reading Taking Stock: Research on Teaching and Learning in Higher Education Executive by Lindblom-Ylänne, I found myself reflecting on my own learning and asking which of my experiences and courses led me to deep learning? Conversely, what types of activities that I as an instructor have employed have led to deep…
[social-bio] Last December someone pointed me towards an article about John Boyer, a professor at Virginia Tech, and his intriguing uses of technology in his World Regions class. By the time the column about Boyer was published, he had already “used his viral YouTube tactics to lure actors Martin Sheen and Emilio Estevez to present…
[social-bio] By Carolyn Hoessler What’s in a name? that which we call a rose By any other name would smell as sweet” (William Shakespeare, Romeo & Juliet) If what determines the nature of a flower is its smell and not its name, then what determines the nature of an assessment tool is its use…