Resources from Recent Events
Most CNDLS events will appear below after they are held, along with any relevant video, presentation slides, handouts, or notes. Click on an event title to see its full description and a list of available resources.
Resources available: 
Video 
Presentation Slides 
Handouts 
Notes
2011
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4/27/11Info Session: Teaching, Learning, & Technology Initiative
This session will offer faculty more information about the new Teaching, Learning, and Technology Initiative, launching this summer.
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4/4/11Effective Classroom Interaction
Instructors: Janet Russell (CNDLS), Joselyn Schultz Lewis (CNDLS)
This workshop covers various types of classroom interaction including lecture, discussion, and other activities that can be used in both small and large classes. Possible additional topics include the use of online communication environments to enhance class interactions both in and outside the classroom.
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3/31/11Lab Teaching
Instructors: Elena Shiffert (Biology), Michael Hickey (Biology)
Description forthcoming.
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3/29/11Project Makeover: Redesigning Student Assignments
This session will offer a window onto the process of pedagogical design. Two professors will bring assignments that they feel need reworking, and staff members from Gelardin and CNDLS, as well as other faculty members, will offer their suggestions for how to make the assignments more effective.
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3/23/11Syllabus Design
Instructor: John Rakestraw (CNDLS)
In this workshop we will discuss the fundamental components of a good syllabus as well as organizational approaches to designing one. In light of these components and approaches, we will discuss best practices of syllabus design through past examples. Participants should bring a syllabus or ideas for a syllabus to the workshop to receive informal feedback from the group.
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2/28/11Using Clickers to Promote Active Learning
Instructor: Susan Pennestri (CNDLS)
Research has shown that using active learning techniques increases student learning. This workshop will focus on the use of student response systems aka clickers in class to increase student engagement, discussion, collaboration, and participation. In this hands-on workshop, participants will learn how to use the i<clicker system, discover key benefits and challenges, identify ways to develop effective clicker questions, and learn about other practices and resources available for successful implementation.
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2/16/11Assessment & Grading
Instructor: Mindy McWilliams (CNDLS), Mark Rom (GPPI)
In this workshop, we explore a variety of ways to understand what and how students are learning. Why wait until the end of the semester to find out that your students didn't 'get it'? We will introduce a number of techniques to use early in and midway through the semester to assess your students' true understanding of material. We will also discuss topics such as rubrics and taxonomies for easy and effective grading, and accounting for prior knowledge and possible misconceptions on the part of students.
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2/8/11Connecting with Participatory Culture: Teaching with Clickers for Deep Learning
Presenter: Derek Bruff, Assistant Director at the Vanderbilt Center for Teaching
Today's students vote for their favorite contestants on American Idol, "like" a friend's wall post on Facebook, text each other while watching sports events, and engage in robust online discussions about World of Warcraft. We live in a participatory culture, one in which voting, commenting, creating, and sharing are the norm and people prefer being contributors to being consumers. Teaching with clickers is one way to tap into this culture, engaging students in ways that motivate them to participate during class in meaningful ways. In this talk, we'll explore ways that using clickers connects with our students' participatory culture and how those connections can be leveraged to promote deep learning.
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2/7/11Class Time Reconsidered: Motivating Student Participation and Engagement
Presenter: Derek Bruff, Assistant Director at the Vanderbilt Center for Teaching
Whether you have 20 students in your class or 200, motivating students to engage meaningfully with course material during class can be a challenge. Some are hesitant to speak up in front of their peers, some are preoccupied with taking notes, and others are more focused on grades than learning. How can instructors make their lectures more dynamic? What in-class activities help students grapple with tough questions, and which of these scale up well to large classes? What out-of-class activities can prepare students to participate more intentionally during class? In this talk, we'll explore some ways to rethink what you do— and what you have your students do—,during class, with the goal of increasing student attendance, participation, and engagement.
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1/15/11Clickers presentations at the Mid-Atlantic Regional EDUCAUSE Conference
Presenters: Janet Russell (CNDLS), Susan Pennestri (CNDLS)
Read Janet Russel's blog post recapping the event here. -
1/6/11"The Problem of Learning in Higher Education" — Keynote Presentation at the University of Delaware Winter Faculty Institute
Presenter: Randy Bass (CNDLS)
2010
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10/22/10 Project Makeover: Redesigning Student Assignments
Presenters: Janet Russell (CNDLS), Steve Fernie (GNMC)
This session will offer a window onto the process of pedagogical design. Two professors will bring assignments that they feel need reworking, and staff members from CNDLS and Gelardin, as well as faculty in the audience, will offer their suggestions for how to make the assignments more effective. Please join us for what is sure to be an exciting session!
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10/21/10 Conversing to Learn
Presenter: Peter Janssens (CNDLS)
A panel of Georgetown foreign languages faculty will discuss the roles of conversation--both low-tech and high-tech, structured and spontaneous, in class and outside of class--in language learning. Panelists will include Michael Ferreira and João Telles (Portuguese), Fei Ren (Chinese), Kassem Wahba (Arabic), and Donatella Melucci (Italian).
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10/13/10 Teaching Portfolio
Presenters: John Rakestraw (CNDLS), Joselyn Schultz Lewis (CNDLS)
When beginning the job search, applicants for teaching positions are often asked to provide a teaching portfolio, a philosophy statement, or some other documentation from their teaching experience. How do you best demonstrate the depth and scope of your teaching skills and experiences? In this workshop, we will examine and discuss how you might document and reflect on the knowledge and skills gained from your teaching experience through developing a professional teaching portfolio. We will illustrate the iterative and continuing nature of portfolio construction. Participants will leave the workshop with a template for building their own teaching portfolios, as well as examples to support them in writing their own teaching philosophy statements.
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10/06/10 Assessment and Grading
Presenters: Daryl Nardick (CNDLS), Mindy McWilliams (CNDLS), Mark Rom (GPPI)
In this workshop, we explore a variety of ways to understand what and how students are learning. Why wait until the end of the semester to find out that your students didn't 'get it'? We will introduce a number of techniques to use early in and midway through the semester to assess your students' true understanding of material. We will also discuss topics such as rubrics and taxonomies for easy and effective grading, and accounting for prior knowledge and possible misconceptions on the part of the students.
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09/23/10; 10/14/10 AT Teaching Circle (Brownbag Lunch Discussion)
Presenter: John Rakestraw (CNDLS)
This teaching circle will offer graduate students the opportunity to explore with their colleagues the challenges and excitement they experience as teachers. The agenda for teaching circle discussions will depend in part on questions and concerns that participants bring to the group. Participants are encouraged to bring their lunch. CNDLS will provide beverages.
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09/20/10 Digital Technologies and Quality of Life: Examining Personal and Professional Issues
Presenter: Daryl Nardick (CNDLS)
Have you ever considered how your use of digital technologies and social media has influenced the personal pace and rhythm of your life as well as the lives of your students? Have you considered how students' use of these tools—Facebook, cell phones, etc.—impacts how you teach and manage your classroom? Using data gleaned from a study currently being conducted by Georgetown and the University of Washington, we will explore these questions along with strategies to address students' "unsanctioned" use of technology in the classroom.
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09/17/10 Harnessing the Cloud: Exploring Web Applications for Academic Projects
Presenters: Per Hoel (GNMC), Rob Pongsajapan (CNDLS)
The internet—called the "cloud" by many—offers an amazing variety of groundbreaking applications that can run directly in your browser. "Cloudware" is fundamentally challenging the way we think about using programs on our computers—rather than purchasing, installing, and running a program on your computer, you can access these applications on any computer's browser, and most are free to use.
Join Per and Rob for this 1-hour session which will feature 5 web apps, including a Photoshop-like application and one that lets you edit video and audio—all online, and all for free! The session will start with a short demonstration followed by interactive play and brainstorming about academic uses.
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09/15/10 Georgetown Commons Open House
Presenters: Rob Pongsajapan (CNDLS), Marie Selvanadin (CNDLS), Anna Kruse (CNDLS)
Stop by to learn more about blogs, wikis, and other Georgetown Commons tools. You can bring a specific question for CNDLS staff or just show up and explore the options for incorporating these tools into your teaching or research. Both sessions will take place in the CNDLS conference room, 314 Car Barn.
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09/14/10 Introduction to Teaching Resources
Presenter: John Rakestraw (CNDLS)
This orientation session serves as a welcome and introduction to the AT Program by CNDLS and the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. You will meet other graduate students interested in the program and will find out about teaching resources available to you as a graduate student here at Georgetown. The Introduction to Teaching Resources is held at the beginning of each semester. Please note, if your class schedule prohibits your attendance at this orientation session, please let us know of your interest via email. You are still welcome to enroll in other workshops. While a required program component, the introductory session is not a prerequisite for enrollment and participation in other program events.
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04/15/10 Workshop on Undergraduate Research and Active Learning
Presenter: Mick Healey
On Thursday, April 15, Mick Healey led a workshop for Georgetown faculty and staff on “Strategies for developing an active research curriculum.” During the workshop, Healey, who directs the Centre for Active Learning at the University of Gloucestershire, explored such questions as:
- How can we break down barriers between research and learning?
- How might we embed undergraduate research into the curriculum?
- How do we define what “research” or “inquiry-based learning” means in the context of the undergraduate curriculum?
Healey shared case studies from a range of disciplines at various colleges and universities, and asked participants to brainstorm about strategies for further integrating undergraduate research into Georgetown’s institutional culture.
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03/05/10 Connecting Life and Learning: Teaching the Whole Person (Montclair State University)
Presenter: Randy Bass
One powerful version of integrative learning is helping students connect their academic and intellectual work to their sense of wellness and mental health. This presentation described the Engelhard Project at Georgetown University that has used a "curriculum infusion" approach across the disciplines to help faculty and students find organic connections between intellectual material in coursework and issues of mental health and wellness. The success of the program depends especially on the collaborative partnerships forged among faculty, and student health and faculty development professionals. The presentation put the Project in a larger context of embodied learning, as well as described the components of the Project, how we have tried to assess its impact, and ongoing challenges.
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03/02/10 Shaping the Life of the Mind for Practice
Presenter: William Sullivan
William Sullivan, Senior Scholar at the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, spoke on Tuesday, March 2 at 4pm in the Murray Room (Lauinger Library, 5th floor). In his presentation, titled "Shaping the Life of the Mind for Practice," Sullivan focused on on the concept of "practical reason" as a "new agenda for higher education," one that prioritizes and designs for curricular approaches that help students develop reasoned and responsible judgment in conditions of uncertainty.
Video coming soon. -
02/19/10 Scholarly Communications Symposium: Social Media
Presenters: Eddie Maloney, Gerry McCartney, Ulises Mejias
Social media tools have gained widespread use across our campuses in a very short time. Many academic disciplines are also adopting these online tools as they embrace collaboration and interactivity. The implications of these developments are profound--not only for scholars and students but also for the potential transformation of the teaching and learning process. How do social media networks change the way our students learn and our faculty teach? How is the traditional classroom relationship altered? Are students becoming more active and engaged learners? The speakers were Gerry McCartney, Vice President for Information Technology and CIO and Oesterle Professor of Information Technology, Purdue University; Edward Maloney, Director of Research and Learning Technology at the Center for New Designs in Leaning and Scholarship and Visiting Assistant Professor of English, Georgetown University; and Ulises Mejias, Assistant Professor of New Media in the Communication Studies Department at the State University of New York at Oswego.
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02/17/10 Rosenzweig Forum on the Digital Humanities
Presenters: Timothy Powell and Bethany Nowviskie
Timothy Powell (University of Pennsylvania) and Bethany Nowviskie (University of Virginia) will present and lead a discussion on digital humanities. Powell will discuss his work creating digital archives of Ojibwe cultural materials, and Nowviskie will share her work with NINES, SpecLab, and the Scholars' Lab at the University of Virginia.
For Parts 2-4, Visit the Rosenzweig Forum Album on Vimeo. -
02/01/10 Microblogging workshop
Instructors: Rob Pongsajapan (CNDLS) and Michael Matason (Gelardin)
This workshop provided instruction on how to use Twitter; an online microblogging service that offers a way to share short bites of information instantly with others. We held an overview about Twitter and its features. The discussion explored various ways educators and companies use Twitter to communicate to their followers and what makes a successful Twitter page. We also took a look at other 3rd party applications that take microblogging to the next level by allowing users to track statistics, posts videos/photos, and allow for more integration in other web 2.0 applications.
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02/01/10 Getting Started with Blogs at Georgetown
Instructors: Rob Pongsajapan and Marie Selvanadin (CNDLS)
Georgetown faculty, staff, and students have used WordPress—the blogging tool offered by CNDLS as part of the Georgetown Commons project—for classes, research portfolios, and content management. Participants received hands-on training on how to set up, use, and customize WordPress to their needs.
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01/19/10 Provost's Seminar 2010
Featured Speakers: Julie Reynolds, David Pace
2010's Provost’s Seminar on Teaching and Learning offered three opportunities for faculty to participate in ongoing discussions about teaching, learning and the curriculum, building on the Provost’s Call to Action: Curriculum and Learning at Georgetown and the 2009 Fall Faculty Convocation’s focus on teaching and learning at Georgetown.
Video: "A Systematic Approach to Improving the Quality of Undergraduate Theses"Video: "New Approaches for Improving Student Engagement in Large Enrollment Classes"Video: "Big Concepts and Instructional Bottlenecks: the ‘Decoding the Disciplines’ Approach" -
1/13/10 Clickers Community of Practice
Presenter: Matt Carnes
2009
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10/28/09 Articulating Instructional Goals
Instructor: Janet Russell (CNDLS)
What do I want my students to learn? Every instructor asks this question, but you can't answer it until you define what knowledge, skills, and understandings you want your students to take away from your course. What outcomes do you desire?
These outcomes—your instructional goals—must be phrased in active terms that clearly tell students what is expected. A clear and complete set of learning goals also helps you develop authentic assessments by targeting those aspects of your students' learning that you most value.
In this workshop, we discussed how to establish and frame a set of learning goals that represent the learning outcomes you most desire and explicitly communicate these to your students. Participants interested in bringing teaching/learning goals with them to refine at the workshop were encouraged to do so.
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10/23/09 "No Time to Think" — A Talk by David Levy, Ph.D.
Point of Contact: Daryl Nardick (CNDLS)
David Levy, a technologist by training and a professor in the Information School at the University of Washington, discussed his research on the effects of contemporary information technologies on work habits, attention spans, and the amount of time available for personal reflection and contemplation. David’s talk explored why it is that we have “no time to think,” and what we can do about it, on individual, institutional, and societal levels.
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9/29/09 Pedagogically Sound Uses of Presentation Software
Instructors: John Rakestraw and Paulina Maldonado (CNDLS)
Many instructors are using PowerPoint and other presentation software programs to present information to students, and many students expect professors to use these materials. At the same time, many of the professors using these software programs have doubts about their effectiveness, and many students complain about the design and/or use of the slide presentations. In this workshop, we considered several basic pedagogical principles underlying effective classroom presentations, and considered how these principles might shape the design and use of visual aids in the classroom. Participants learned not only how to design engaging slides, but also how to use these slides as part of an effective classroom presentation.
