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March 8, 2022
Volume 8, Number 4
ANNOUNCEMENT
Dear Colleagues,

Happy International Women’s Day and welcome to week eight of the semester! As midterm grades come due, we hope your classes are going well.

We’d like to remind you that the FCTL can assist if you would like to attend the NKU Inclusive Teaching Academy occurring on April 7-8. This is a two-day, in-person immersion into the foundational knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary for educators who wish to lead and instruct through a lens of racial equity and inclusivity while creating a learning environment that fosters a sense of belonging for every student. 
 
Also, stay tuned for workshops exploring Backward Design in April.  We wish you a productive week, followed by a restful and relaxing spring break!

FCTL
Save the Date for NKU’s Inaugural Inclusive Teaching Academy
The 2022 Inclusive Teaching Academy will be a two-day immersion into the foundational knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary for educators who wish to lead and instruct through a lens of racial equity and inclusivity while creating a learning environment that fosters a sense of belonging for every student. In this two-day workshop, the goal is to provide participants an opportunity to increase their own awareness about concepts related to cultural and learning diversity through discussion and interaction, as well as to identify the conditions and strategies necessary to create relevant and engaging lessons that enable diverse students to matriculate and graduate.
Tap Into the Knowledge of Your Peers
Don’t miss the opportunity to attend the upcoming Quality in Action Conference. The one-day virtual event designed for higher education practitioners will feature a host of curated sessions presented by your peers — those, like you, who are responsible for creating and teaching quality courses.
You can register for the Quality in Action Conference by clicking the link here. Registration for the event starts at $175. 
Are Your Students Future Ready? Action Steps to Transform Your Learning Environment
It’s no secret that today’s students need to have skills that extend far beyond what is taught in a textbook. Digital-age skills include creativity, communication, collaboration, critical thinking, and so much more. But how do we teach these? And when?

In this edWeb podcast, Dr. L. Robert Furman discusses what the modern learner needs and supplies an 18-week “Future-Ready Challenge” to help systematically transform classrooms into the digital-age environments they so desperately need. For educators and school leaders interested in improving student outcomes, accept the challenge. You can learn more by clicking on the link here.
Creating a Meaningful First Day of Class
When I was an undergraduate, the first day of class was frequently predictable: syllabus, expectations, teacher’s introduction, a brief lesson, and early release. I tended to be more focused on who else was in the class (Do I know and like someone with whom to sit? If I don’t know anyone else, who do I want to befriend?) than on the information being imparted.

Now, when I teach, I try to remember my own experiences and create a more engaging first class. I have students complete a syllabus scavenger hunt for homework (to free up in-person time). We play a 20-minute name game where every person’s name gets repeated dozens of times. Students complete a gallery walk where they share their beginner perspective on concepts we’ll delve into further in the semester.

By asking students to engage on the first day, I recognize that I am asking them to take risks and trust strangers. I’m conscious that students may be thinking, “Why isn’t this professor just handing out the syllabus and telling me about this course? Do I have to interact with these classmates and professor I don’t know? What if I mess up or look stupid?”. I work to defuse anxiety by acknowledging the discomfort, being vulnerable with them (I participate in the name game and stumble my way through, too), and inviting them to be equal participants in their learning.

I have found value from two articles that illustrate interesting approaches to the first day of class:

And I’m sure that many of you have effective and clever ways to share your enthusiasm, introduce students to new topics, and begin to build community. Please comment on this post with anecdotes of what has worked well for you! If you’re considering trying something new, what shift might you make to your first-class session for greater student engagement?

References and additional resources
Fink, D. B. (2014, Fall). Provocation in the halls of academe: Bringing Piaget and Vygotsky into the university classroom. Thought & Action, 63-74. Retrieved from https://www.nea.org/assets/docs/HE/Fink1.pdf.
Smith. G. A. (2008, September). First-day questions for the learner-center classroom. The National Teaching & Learning Forum, 17(5), 1-4. Retrieved from https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/ntlf.10101.

Submitted by:
Jennifer Garrett-Ostermiller, M.Ed. [she/her pronouns]
Faculty Professional Development Specialist
Center for Teaching & Learning
The University of Vermont
What I Love About Teaching
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Share your response to the question "What I Love About Teaching". Your response can be short, long, a bulleted list, or an image to offer up a few suggestions.

To share your response, click here.
Blackboard Buzz
Force Completion changes to better support Multiple Attempt Tests

In Original Course View, enabling Force Completion on a test or survey has new behaviors. The Force Completion option now requires a time limit and automatic submission. We made this change to enforce the submission of incomplete or abandoned attempts. This change is important so that instructors can access and grade these attempts. Instructors may also create a multiple attempt assessment with the Force Completion option. This change ensures that students can now start new attempts in this scenario.

Email msuonline@moreheadstate.edu for additional information and on-campus support.
Ambassadors for Excellence in Teaching
Morehead State University