The Jackson Center for Teaching and Learning is planning several lunch-and-learn events, coffee chats and guest speaker luncheons for the upcoming year. Details coming soon!
During the fall and spring semesters, faculty and instructional staff will be invited approximately monthly to either a lunchtime workshop or coffee chat on a topic of current interest. eLearning workshops are also available year round to help you use technology to enhance your courses. These events provide an opportunity to network with faculty from other departments, learn new instructional strategies and tools, and become aware of instructional policy changes. Please contact us with ideas and suggestions for future events.
What’s Working, What’s not, and What’s needed?
Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs) are often on the front lines of Tech’s important undergraduate hands-on teaching mission. This discussion-based session, which will be held on Thursday, April 11 from 3-4pm, will give GTAs and their supervisors an opportunity to share both what is working for them and what further support is needed to make their teaching mission a success.
Please register online here or call 487-2046.
The Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) will hold a Lunch and Learn entitled “Integrated Communication” on Thursday, March 28 from noon-1. During the next academic year, Michigan Tech will focus on assessing and improving the way communication is taught, both in general education and across all disciplines.
“Students will be able to communicate effectively, orally, in writing and in new media, to a wide variety of audiences.” – University Learning Goal #5
First, you will watch short videos of faculty and students initiating this effort, and select your lunch partners for further conversation. Then, hear tips from programs that have already started this process, and learn about resources available!
To ensure an accurate count for lunch, register for this workshop at RSVP by Monday, March 25 or contact CTL at 487-2046. Once your register, you will receive an email confirmation that will give you the location and a reminder about the date and time.
Thursday, Feb 21 from 3-4 PM in the library’s East Reading Room
Connected students are more likely to be retained. This munch and learn session, in collaboration with Nilufer Onder’s NSF funded ENGAGE project, will help faculty explore ways to better connect with students. Four speakers will initiate faculty discussions about connections in the classroom, through research, in career discussions, and in other small but effective ways.
Coffee and light refreshments will be provided to those who register by Monday 2/18. Please register by calling 487-2046, or click here to register online.
The first 2013 luncheon workshop, “Great Groups,” will be held from noon to 12:55 p.m., Thursday, Jan. 24. Lunch will be provided to those who register by Monday, Jan. 21. Click here to register.
Michigan Tech instructors use a wide variety of pedagogical and technological approaches to help motivate and guide student groups to learn interactively. In this workshop, you will get time-saving ideas and gather best practices from eLearning staff and experienced faculty! Prior to the event, we will provide you with short videos of faculty describing their most effective techniques. You will have the opportunity to discuss your favorite topics from these videos during the luncheon.
To ensure an accurate count for lunch, register for this workshop at RSVP by Monday, Jan. 21, or contact CTL at 487-2046. Once your register, you will receive an email confirmation, which will give you the location and a reminder about the date and time.
Workshops
To help prepare for spring semester, the Center for Teaching and Learning will hold a total of eight faculty workshops during the week of January 7 -11. This workshop blitz includes not only sessions targeting best practices in Canvas, but also use of clickers and video. Faculty can sign up directly from the CTL Website.
Testing Center
The computerized testing center in Rekhi Hall is now scheduling spring term exams for any interested faculty. The 40 seat center requires instructors to provide their own proctors but has been used for courses with up to 200 students, who take the exam in groups. The CTL will help faculty understand the process and can help faculty draw from a wide variety of question types (even essay and calculation questions) to build exams. A meeting of all those interested in using the center will be scheduled during the week of Jan. 8. Interested faculty should contact Mike Meyer (487-2046, or mrmeyer@mtu.edu) by Jan. 8 to be included in this conversation.
Walk-In Hours
CTL walk-in hours will be held as usual throughout the break EXCEPT on scheduled holidays AND December 27 and 28. We are located on the second floor of the library and encourage you to stop in and let us help you get ready for next semester!
The final fall-semester luncheon workshop, “Active Learning, Low-Tech Style,” will be held from noon to 12:55 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 6. Lunch will be provided to those who register by Monday, Dec. 3.
To address the concern that pure lectures result in low student retention, many instructors are exposing students to content outside of class and reserving class time for exercises, discussions and interaction. In this workshop, you’ll explore some low-tech ways to stimulate and guide these activities, even in large classes.
To ensure an accurate count for lunch, register for this workshop at RSVP, or contact CTL at 487-2046. Once your register, you will receive an email confirmation that will give you the location and a reminder about the date and time.
Welcome to the website for the Center for Teaching and Learning. You will notice that this site also contains information about eLearning at Michigan Tech and support resources for the Canvas Learning Management System. The eLearning staff joined the Center this July in order to offer coordinated instructional support to Michigan Tech faculty and instructional staff.
The Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) will hold a Lunch and Learn entitled “A Blended Learning Buffet” on Thursday, 10/25 from noon-1. Blended learning involves the use of technology to augment interaction in the face to face classroom. Attendees will be asked to watch a series of short videos explaining five blended learning techniques currently being used by several Michigan Tech faculty members, then select a few of them for further discussion with those experts. Facilitators and topics for the session include:
Will Cantrell and Claudio Mazzoleni (Physics) – Just in Time Teaching
Joel Neves (VPA) – Computerized Testing
Paul Charlesworth (Chemistry) and Todd King (Mathematics) – Flipped Classroom
Linda Wanless (Sch of Tech) – Virtual Office Hours
Mike Meyer (CTL/Physics) – Discussion Boards
All instructional staff are encouraged to register no later than Monday, 10/22 .