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Changing our colleges and universities into learning institutions has become increasingly important at the same time it has become more difficult. Faculty learning communities have proven to be effective for addressing institutional challenges, from preparing the faculty of the future and reinvigorating senior faculty, to implementing new courses, curricula, and campus initiatives on diversity and technology. The results of faculty learning community programs parallel for faculty members the results of student learning communities for students, such as retention, deeper learning, respect for other cultures, and greater civic participation. The chapters in this issue of New Directions for Teaching and Learning describe from a practitioner's perspective the history, development, implementation, and results of faculty learning communities across a wide range of institutions and purposes. Institutions are invited to use this volume to initiate faculty learning communities on their campuses. This is the 97th issue of the quarterly journal New Directions for Teaching and Learning.
A guide to thirty-five creative assignments for pairs and groups Collaborative Learning Techniques is the bestseller that college and university faculty around the world have used to help them make the most of small group learning. A mountain of evidence shows that students who learn in small groups together exhibit higher academic achievement, motivation, and satisfaction than those who don't. Collaborative learning puts into practice the major conclusion from learning theory: that students must be actively engaged in building their own minds. In this book, the authors synthesize the relevant research and theory to support thirty-five collaborative learning activities for use in both traditional and online classrooms. This second edition reflects the changed world of higher education. New technologies have opened up endless possibilities for college teaching, but it's not always easy to use these technologies effectively. Updated to address the challenges of today's new teaching environments, including online, "flipped," and large lectures, Collaborative Learning Techniques is a wonderful reference for educators who want to make the most of any course environment. This revised and expanded edition includes: Additional techniques, with an all-new chapter on using games to provide exciting, current, technologically-sophisticated curricula A section on effective online implementation for each of the thirty-five techniques Significantly expanded pedagogical rationale and updates on the latest research showing how and why collaborative learning works Examples for implementing collaborative learning techniques in a variety of learning environments, including large lecture classes and "flipped" classes Expanded guidance on how to solve common problems associated with group work The authors guide instructors through all aspects of group work, providing a solid grounding in what to do, how to do it, and why it is important for student learning. The detailed procedures in Collaborative Learning Techniques will help teachers make sure group activities go smoothly, no matter the size or delivery method of their classes. With practical advice on how to form student groups, assign roles, build team spirit, address unexpected problems, and evaluate and grade student participation, this new edition of the international classic makes incorporating effective group work easy.
In this much needed resource, Maryellen Weimer-one of the nation's most highly regarded authorities on effective college teaching-offers a comprehensive work on the topic of learner-centered teaching in the college and university classroom. As the author explains, learner-centered teaching focuses attention on what the student is learning, how the student is learning, the conditions under which the student is learning, whether the student is retaining and applying the learning, and how current learning positions the student for future learning. To help educators accomplish the goals of learner-centered teaching, this important book presents the meaning, practice, and ramifications of the learner-centered approach, and how this approach transforms the college classroom environment. Learner-Centered Teaching shows how to tie teaching and curriculum to the process and objectives of learning rather than to the content delivery alone.
Learning communities are curricular structures that link different disciplines around a common theme or question. They give greater coherence to the curriculum and provide students and faculty with a vital sense of shared inquiry. This volume of New Directions for Teaching and Learning places learning communities within the framework of twentieth-century educational theory and reform. The authors provide comprehensive, detailed descriptions of how to design, maintain, and evaluate learning communities and include firsthand accounts from students and faculty in learning communities across the nation. At a time when higher education seeks a sense of shared purpose, learning communities offer an approach that balances the demands of individualism with those of contributing to the common good. Solutions to the problems we confront require multiple points of view, a variety of competencies, and an acknowledgment of interdepAndence and mutual respect. Learning communities are one way we may build the commonalities and connections so essential to our education and our society. This is the 41st issue of the quarterly journal New Directions for Teaching and Learning. For more information on the series, please see the Journals and Periodicals page.
Changing our colleges and universities into learning institutions has become increasingly important at the same time it has become more difficult. Faculty learning communities have proven to be effective for addressing institutional challenges, from preparing the faculty of the future and reinvigorating senior faculty, to implementing new courses, curricula, and campus initiatives on diversity and technology. The results of faculty learning community programs parallel for faculty members the results of student learning communities for students, such as retention, deeper learning, respect for other cultures, and greater civic participation. The chapters in this issue of New Directions for Teaching and Learning describe from a practitioner's perspective the history, development, implementation, and results of faculty learning communities across a wide range of institutions and purposes. Institutions are invited to use this volume to initiate faculty learning communities on their campuses. This is the 97th issue of the quarterly journal New Directions for Teaching and Learning.
This edited book on Faculty Learning Communities (FLCs) provides and explores powerful examples of FLCs as a impactful form of professional learning for faculty in higher education. The chapters describe faculty learning community initiatives across different fields of study and within dynamic and flexible teaching and learning models. Contributing authors provide a framework for faculty learning communities, show the impact of faculty learning communities on teaching practices or student learning, and describe how these communities of practice can lead to institutional change. The book’s foreword, by Milton D. Cox, investigates the changes in the FLC world over the past decade: the influence of Communities of Practices (CoP), recent recommendations about virtual FLCs and CoPs, and the positive affirmation for FLCs that implementation science has provided.
This book offers a game plan for developing faculty expertise in student success pedagogies across disciplines through hundreds of supported faculty learning communities (FLC). Using the FLC as a foundation and offering support and training for individual faculty moderators/facilitators, the program establishes systemwide conversations around selected topics and pedagogies. The topics have been selected as evidence-based practices that can be used across the disciplines to inform faculty and support student success in undergraduate coursework. These pedagogies include: transparency in learning and teaching (TiLT), inclusive pedagogy, course redesign, mindset, High Impact Practices, strategies from neuroscience, Small Teaching, and SoTL. The program is set in motion by nominations for facilitators (Chancellor’s Learning Scholars, CLS) from institutional academic leaders, an individual application, and confirmation. Training for the CLS is provided by the system’s Office of Faculty Development and supported by directors of the institutional teaching centers. The formation of each FLC, the identification of course products and changes emerging from the FLC, and the full story of each FLC is contained in the annual report. All told, the program has involved 2500 faculty and thousands of course changes. Finally, the book offers evaluation of three types—by USG office, by system’s teaching center directors, and by the analysis of the final reports submitted each year.
This edited book on Faculty Learning Communities (FLCs) explores the ways in which FLCs have expanded across platforms, spaces, and focus while maintaining the core values and elements of original FLCs. The first section investigates ways that FLCs support faculty retention, teaching, and scholarship. The second section offers examples of FLCs focused on teaching that is responsive to student learning. The third section explores the move to online and virtual FLCs. The fourth section explores FLCs that create and foster faculty belonging, communities of care, and the integration of mindfulness. The fifth section looks at multi-year, long-term progression and impact of FLCs. The book’s foreword, by Milton D. Cox, investigates the evolution of leadership of and within faculty learning communities as they expand.
This book introduces community college faculty and faculty developers to the use of faculty learning communities (FLCs) as a means for faculty themselves to investigate and surmount student learning problems they encounter in their classrooms, and as an effective and low-cost strategy for faculty developers working with few resources to stimulate innovative teaching that leads to student persistence and improved learning outcomes.Two-year college instructors face the unique challenge of teaching a mix of learners, from the developmental to high-achievers, that requires using a variety of instructional strategies and techniques. Even the most experienced teachers can find this diversity demanding.Faculty developers at many two-year colleges still rely solely on the one-day workshop model that, while useful, rarely results in sustained student-centered changes in pedagogy or the curriculum, and may not be practicable for the growing cohort of part-time faculty members.By linking work in the classroom with scholarship and reflection, FLCs provide participants with a sense of renewed engagement and stimulate collegial exploration of ways to achieve educational excellence. FLCs are usually faculty-instigated and cross-disciplinary, and comprise groups of six to fifteen faculty that work collaboratively through regular meetings over an extended period of time to promote research and an exchange of experiences, foster community, and develop the scholarship of teaching. FLCs alleviate burnout and isolation, promote the development, testing, and peer review of new classroom strategies or technologies, and lead to the reenergizing and professionalization of teachers.This book introduces the reader to FLCs and to the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, offering examples of application in two-year colleges. Individual chapters describe, among others, an FLC set up to support course redesign; an “Adjunct Connectivity FLC” to integrate part-time faculty within a department and collaborate on the curriculum; a cross-disciplinary FLC to promote student self-regulated learning, and improve academic performance and persistence; a critical thinking FLC that sought to define critical thinking in separate disciplines, examine interdisciplinary cross-over of critical thinking, and measure critical thinking more accurately; an FLC that researched the transfer of learning and developed strategies to promote students’ application of their learning across courses and beyond the classroom. Each chapter describes the formation of its FLC, the processes it engaged in, what worked and did not, and the outcomes achieved.Just as when college faculty fail to remain current in their fields, the failure to engage in continuing development of teaching skills, will equally lead teaching and learning to suffer. When two-year college administrators restrain scholarship and reflection as inappropriate for the real work of the institution they are in fact hindering the professionalization of their teaching force that is essential to institutional mission and student success.When FLCs are supported by leaders and administrators, and faculty learn that collaboration and peer review are valued and even expected as part of being a teaching professional, they become intrinsically motivated and committed to collaboratively solving problems, setting the institution on a path to becoming a learning organization that is proactive and adept at navigating change.
Faculty learning communities are a fairly new ideology that is gaining traction among educators and institutions. These communities have numerous benefits on professional development such as enhancing educator preparedness and learning. The possibilities of these communities are endless; however, further study is required to understand how these learning communities work and the best practices and challenges they face. Experiences and Research on Enhanced Professional Development Through Faculty Learning Communities shares the experiences and research related to the enhanced professional development received by university faculty and staff participating in a series of collaborative faculty learning communities. The book, using qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methodologies, considers educator experiences as participants in the faculty learning communities, what they learned, and how they applied and implemented best practices in their courses. Covering topics such as curricula, course design, and rubrics, this reference book is ideal for administrators, higher education professionals, program developers, program directors, researchers, academicians, scholars, practitioners, instructors, and students.