Higher Education Observer

 If it hasn't become apparent yet to the readers of this blog (the analytics tell me someone reads it, but no comments?), I am a Christian. I have in the last few years decided to jettison any other labels I might have used in the past because of "shenanigans," political and otherwise.  But I do study the Bible every morning, write devotional books, attend church regularly, teach a Bible class, sponsor a Christian student group, and try to ensure my life's decisions are guided by Christ's teachings and the Holy Spirit.  I also think about teaching a lot, so this will be more Bible study than evidence-based andragogy.  I read Mark 4 this morning, where we find the parable of the sower. I think it is relevant to instructors in college. The basic point is that the readiness of the heart and mind of the hearer of the gospel will determine the results--conversion and growth, or immediate happiness and falling away due to pressure and persecutions and unrooted faith. ...

I was able--and privileged--to sit in on a session with Todd Zakrajsec (pronounced Kry zik) on Friday, Feb. 23. If you do not know his work in teaching and learning in higher education, please get to know it. This was one of the best teaching and learning sessions I have experienced in a long time. I used to run our CETL (with no budget), and my dissertation is about faculty professional (instructional) development.  In this session he exploded some myths about active learning and teaching v. lecturing.  Perhaps I'll write more about them in a future post, but you would do better to get his books, of which there are several. 

  https://rss.com/podcasts/dialogues-with-creators/ I talk with some fascinating people!

 This was an assignment I gave my business communication students this January, having grown tired of AI-generated submissions and wanting to confront the issue. I am presenting on this to our faculty March 1--I don't have IRB approval to do more with the results, but I did get permission from ten students to use their answers in my presentation. Choose one of the following writing tasks. Go to an AI writing tool (Google Bard, Chat Gpt4, etc.) and put the prompt in: 1.  Brainstorm ideas/topics for social media posts for a small business that provides pet care and grooming products and services. 2.  Write a negative news letter (also referred to as a bad news letter) to a client explaining that the company will not be able to replace a pair of pet clippers it sold because the clippers were damaged and returned after the warranty expired. 3.  Explain the concept of a cat café with a personal example. Read the output critically and slowly. Answer these questions H...

 Faculty in the University System of Georgia are now evaluated on the category (ambiguity realized) of STUDENT SUCCESS.  The underlying message is: Student Success is the faculty member's responsbility.  I argue it is not. It is joint. We can all improve our teaching. I am a major advocate of that. I recommend TILT, Universal Design, and Quality Matters for online courses every chance I get.  We cannot give the students wake up calls to attend class.   I fear we have shifted all the responsibility to the wrong side.  So I was refreshed to read this at Piedmont University a couple of days ago. I was there for the Georgia Communication Association Conference. Piedmont were wonderful hosts, and it is a beautiful campus.  Now, I admit, this comes from something called the Porcelain Press. You can figure that one out on your own.  Tips for Success:  Introduce yourself to your professors the first week of class! Possible Introductions: Tell th...