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REFLECTIONS
Monthly News & Updates
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1-Day Workshop: Assessment for Quality Improvement in Campus Learning Environments | | |
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Join us before the 2024 PE Conference for this face-to-face workshop @ UIndy, Indianapolis! | | |
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Facilitators: Tris Utschig and Steve Beyerlein
Workshop Outcomes
- Experience and validate new tools and techniques for performing quality assessment
- Improve your ability to perform high quality self-assessment
- Learn the design principles and processes for building appropriate assessment systems and data collection tools
- Embed formative assessment in the design, delivery, and review of a broad range of campus programs
Workshop Activities
- Activity 1: Analyzing a Performance
- Activity 2: Comparing Assessment and Evaluation
- Activity 3: Using Assessment to Improve Assessment
- Activity 4: Designing an Assessment
- Activity 5: Assessment at Every Level
- Activity 6: Creating Meaningful Assessment Systems
Registration includes lunch and fellowship with a diverse array of participants.
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We are so very sorry to announce that Carol Holmes, of New Glarus, WI passed away on Friday, April 19 at OSF St. Anthony Medical Center in Rockford, IL.
Carol was a founding member of the Academy of Process Educators and a passionate collaborator who shared much time and expertise with us at Pacific Crest. We will always be grateful for her contributions, not least as editor of the Faculty Guidebook. A part of the "MATC group", Carol was dedicated to the continuing education of adult learners. She is fondly remembered by many of us as a mentor, colleague, and friend.
A tribute page, including a link to Carol's obituary and personal memories of several Academy members, is available here.
A memorial service will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, June 1, 2024 at the Swiss United Church of Christ, 18 Fifth Ave., New Glarus, WI. A gathering will precede the memorial service from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, June 1, 2024, at the Swiss United Church of Christ in New Glarus.
Memorial gifts are suggested to be given to Habitat for Humanity of Green County, and the Swiss United Church of Christ in New Glarus.
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Context is one of those words you will encounter again and again, without anyone offering anything like a useful definition. It is something of a catch-all word usually used to mean “all those things in the situation which are relevant to meaning in some sense, but which I haven’t identified”. —Noel Williams | |
In the famous Ebbinghaus illusion (at right), the orange dots seem to be different sizes but are actually the same dimensions. The difference between them is not in the dots themselves. The perceptual size of each dot changes because of what is around it—its context. | |
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Context matters. In face, some say context is EVERYTHING. It certainly matters when we're talking about performance. But in that case, there are two kinds of context: the context of the performance and the context of the performer. Here's a good explanation of each with enough information to help you improve, appreciate, assess, and even evaluate any performance more effectively. | |
The context of the performance |
Consider our pirate, Walmart Jim (it will become clear). While his identity is that of pirate, he is not always in performance mode. In fact, he has promised his sister that while he’s watching her kids, he will be only Uncle Jim and NOT perform as a pirate, though he does take his parrot with him to entertain the kids. The context of Jim’s performance as pirate is limited to “the high seas”, “desert islands”, and whatever coastal villages Jim has his crew pillage (the where). He prefers to limit acts of piracy to weekdays... | | | |
The context of the performer |
Personal Context & Gardening Success | Felicity enjoys growing some of her own vegetables in a smallish garden in her back yard. She lives in Vancouver, so her growing season is a lot shorter than that of her friend, Helen (who lives in Tuscaloosa). Felicity is teaching a heavier load than usual at the local college, so has less time for the garden this summer. In general, Felicity is willing to grow most any vegetable she can cook, can, or freeze, but draws the line at zucchini, which she simply can’t stand... | | | |
The Self-Growth Institute offers an unparalleled opportunity to embark on a transformative journey of both personal and professional development. | |
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Lodging information is now available (click to view).
And here are maps to the meeting locations:
Oakes Learning Center Rachel Carson Dining Hall Oakes Kahlo Apartments
The Self-Growth Institute will help you build your personal capabilities so you can increase your quality of life. Here are the outcomes participants will achieve:
- Understand who you are, who you want to become by envisioning the best version of yourself and producing a strategic plan for your life
- Establish your own monthly measure of life quality
- Develop growth capabilities that help produce a monthly increase in life quality by improving your learning performance
- Design your self-growth journey by learning how to generate life enriching opportunities
- Learn how to make each week the best week of your life so far by increasing reflective powers to enhance relationships and life meaning, developing active growth plans, and weekly scripting
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Be open to meeting new people
"All real living is meeting." —Martin Buber
When we meet another, we are presented with a choice of whether or not to risk ourselves. To take the time and risk of opening ourselves to another means being willing to lose a measure of control over our interaction and the direction it takes. To take this risk is to embrace living a richer life than we could possibly script ourselves.
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Recently, I had the opportunity to meet new people. This only happened because I intentionally opened myself up to meeting new people. While traveling to spend a holiday with family, I struck up a conversation was started with someone else who was also waiting for the plane. The conversation was not long — maybe 15 minutes. But as I reflected on it during the flight, I realized that purely as a result of our time talking, I had learned from them. I saw some aspects of my life differently. And I came away accepting some new challenges for myself that will surely provide opportunities for growth.
I could not possibly have planned that meeting and sharing; I did not know this person and it was coincidence that we found ourselves seated near one another. But had I not responded to their conversational sally with an interested “Oh?”, my life would not be a good degree richer right now.
I took another lesson from that chance encounter because after I arrived at my destination and was together with people I have known my entire life (or their entire life, in the case of my younger siblings), I realized that although I knew them, they were still strangers in a way…they had life experiences, ideas, traits, and so much more than I knew nothing about. I found myself responding again and again with an interested, “Oh?” and ‘meeting’ them again. It was amazing getting to know them better. I intentionally opened myself up to experiencing and appreciating them in a way I had never done before. And what I took from that time has made my life richer still.
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Tuesday, June 11 - Thursday, June 13 | | | | |
