2008–2009 Schedule of Events

Getting students to learn deeply requires their active engagement in deliberately structured and sequenced activities that challenge their assumptions, expose them to divergent thinking, and involve them in creative problem-solving. Participants attending this workshop will learn how to use these ideas to design or redesign their courses so that their students have learning experiences that take into account five phases of course design: situational factors, learning goals, feedback and assessment, teaching/learning activities, and careful integration. The workshop leader will guide participants through all the key steps of this process, including applying principles of "backwards design." Working with a specific course, participants will frame learning goals, incorporate evaluation and assessment, and formulate powerful, active teaching strategies.

Learning to teach more effectively also means teaching more efficiently. Participants will review and apply research on learning; they will find out how to use a variety of teaching methods, assessment/ evaluation approaches, technology, and other tools to create engaged learning environments. Without critical reflection and analysis, teachers tend to teach as they were taught. This workshop focuses on breaking this cycle by helping faculty gain the knowledge and skills to help them create courses that challenge and support students in their learning.

Participants will come to know the theory and philosophy behind cooperative learning, including its belief in the value and educability of all students and the need to provide cooperative environments that balance challenge and support. As important, however, they will learn how to use cooperative structures to foster academic achievement, critical thinking, and deeper learning. Deep learning emerges from the careful sequencing of assignments and activities "orchestrated" by a teacher committed to student learning. It involves motivating students to acquire a solid knowledge base through active, interactive learning.

The presenter will emphasize both relevant theory and the efficient facilitation of group processes. The session itself will model a cooperative classroom with combinations of direct instruction, interactive group work tied to the session objectives, and whole-class discussion with questions. Participants will experience numerous cooperative structures, applicable to virtually all disciplines, that they can apply in their classrooms or online environments.

It is well documented that to be a learning-focused organization an institution must be teaching- focused. That is, the institution must actively support high quality, scholarly teaching. However, invoking the idea of "scholarly teaching" and taking the steps to document it and ensure that the process is authentic and useful is something quite different.

This workshop will focus on having participants:

• Examine their teaching in a reflective manner.
• Present this examination as scholarly work to document effective teaching.
• Identify faculty interested in designing new ways that they could serve as professional colleagues to each other in the arena of teaching.

If possible please:

• Bring TWO copies of the same course syllabus. Pick one that you would like to talk about. It could be one you've used many times, one for a new course or one that you think you'd like to make changes to.
• Go to the following web site, take the teaching perspectives inventory AND bring the results with you to the workshop: teachingperspectives.com. If this request is not practical, do NOT worry. You can follow up on this after the workshop.

At the New Faculty Orientation, Part I, new faculty hired since January 2008 will be welcomed formally by the President and Provost; learn about NMSU students; hear a panel of new NMSU faculty talk about what they wish they had known when they were new; and, learn about the annual evaluation process for faculty at NMSU.

Do you want feedback on your next journal article or grant proposal?

Writing groups are forming! Writing groups are made up of about 3-4 scholars from different disciplines. These groups give structured feedback on a manuscript to one member each week. Comments are shared in “rounds”: one in which readers share positive comments about something specific they liked; one in which readers respond to the title, thesis, abstract, introduction and conclusion; another in which readers respond to the writer’s stated questions; and, one in which other issues are addressed.

I found the writing groups to be a wonderful experience… It was somewhat intimidating, but it didn’t take long to recognize that everyone was intimidated, and we grew comfortable with the process together.

I appreciated my group’s comments and having more pairs of eyes to find ways to improve my writing before I submitted it.

The orientation provides a demonstration of what happens during a typical writing group meeting. During the mandatory orientation, writing groups are also formed and decide when and where to meet.

Writing groups will meet for one hour, 3–4 times at mutually agreed upon times. Meeting times will be arranged by participants during the mandatory orientation.

This workshop will provide participants with practical tools to become more aware of self and student emotions, thoughts, needs, and behaviors, and how they may affect their work/academic performance and decision-making processes. It will also offer guidelines to identify self and student symptoms of stress, anxiety, depression, and self-harming behaviors, as well as healthy and unhealthy coping skills and strategies.

Effective communication is integral to the job of a professor, not only in educating students but also in educating fellow researchers about your work. This communication is often verbal-through formal and informal presentations-and your voice is your most important communication tool.

The first part of this session will concentrate on the qualities of voices that impress people, including studies on how people respond to voices and how societal expectations influence how women's communications are perceived. We will talk about ways in which women can make themselves heard and how to maintain vocal health in professions which require us to speak publicly often.

The second part of this session will focus on exercises in breath support, moving into the connection of breath and voice. Professor Mulligan will work with participants on vocal placement and inflection and provide take-home exercises for use throughout their speaking careers.

This workshop is designed to create a work environment of unity, individual empowerment and committed involvement in achieving a group's goals or organization's mission. Participants will learn hands-on, practical skills that enhance relationships and create and maintain long-term unified and inclusive working environments where talents and the spirit of creativity and productivity can prosper. The workshop is enhanced with materials and hands-on exercises that reflect and promote the PAZ* international philosophy.

Lunch and a discussion.

The Teaching Academy provides the food, you provide the conversation.

Want to teach better, enjoy it more, and earn higher teaching evaluations? Join Team Mentoring!

New instructors with mentors improved much faster than those without mentors; that is, far more instructors with mentors attained above average student evaluations by the second semester (56% v. 18%) (Boice 1990).

In this program, you will meet regularly with a team of your peers and a more experienced facilitator; treat a mentor of your choice (not a friend!) to lunch twice, ask him or her the questions you and your team members have generated about teaching; and, share their answers with your team. The time commitment is about two hours per week throughout the program.

Successful participants will be honored as sustaining members of the Teaching Academy at the Gala in April. By earning a sustaining membership, successful participants will have earned membership in the second highest group of members. Last year, out of almost 2,000 educators on campus (full and part-time faculty and graduate students), about 50 earned this level of designation or higher. (Talk about a resume stuffer!)

This program will be offered each fall semester

To cover the cost of treating your mentor(s) to lunch, at the end of the semester successful participants will receive a reimbursement for both lunches (up to $50). Successful participants will also receive an NMSU Bookstore credit of $100.

The mix of millennials, gen-x'ers, and baby boomers teaching and learning together complicate modern education. In addition, blended learning, mobile devices, gaming, social networking, high-impact presentation technologies, and analytics are bringing new twists and quick turns to our on-ground and online learning environments. What else is ahead? How much more can we take? How do we retain the human touch? How do we make these learning environments sustainable? Come join the conversation about how this new generation of learning is taking shape.

Both individuals and workplaces can be work addicted. Did you know that 28% of the people in one study were considered workaholic, but 56% of teachers had workaholic tendencies? Are you workaholic? Is your workplace? Come and find out by taking an individual test for workaholism and by discussing the situation in your department.

Learn the three myths about workaholism:

Myth #1: Workaholics work all the time.
Myth #2: Work addiction is the only way to get ahead.
Myth #3: No one ever died from overwork.

Lastly, learn twelve steps you can take to stop workaholism:

1. Don't put work first.
2. Don't run on empty.
3. Tone down your perfectionism.
4. Just say 'no.'
5. Keep your email in-box empty.
6. Beware of home offices.
7. Downplay the Puritan work ethic.
8. Volunteer.
9. Plan margins in your life.
10. Put your job in a box.
11. Take vacations without phone, TV, or email.
12. Consider Workaholics Anonymous.

Supplemental Instruction (SI) is a student academic assistance program that has traditionally targeted academically difficult classes. The SI model has been shown to increase academic performance and retention through its use of collaborative learning strategies. This workshop will present elements of the SI model that can be implemented in any class, including test analysis and focus groups.

Students defensive? Colleagues missing deadlines? Supervisor unsupportive? Crucial conversations are ones that happen when there is much at issue, emotions are intense, and beliefs clash.

The authors of the book, Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking when Stakes are High, suggest that when the discourse becomes crucial, people tend to react by avoiding the conversation (silence) or by becoming angry (violence). Patterson, Grenny, McMillan and Switzler (2002) explain that our human physiology stops us from facing these types of situations well. When conditions intensify and stakes are high, we resort to "fight or flight." Our brains divert blood to our extremities in preparation for either. Our more rational reasoning levels plummet. We face challenges with little capacity, and when our communication skills matter the most, we do our worst.

Not having these crucial conversations keep us from getting the outcomes we want. In an effort to learn more about crucial conversations, this workshop will help participants identify their typical reaction styles and deal with dishonored expectations, disappointments, resistance, accountability issues, and challenges in ways that yield more positive results.

Being a professional means that there is always something to do. It can be overwhelming, to say the least! And, at the same time, you chose the academic life because you like the challenge and don't want to be underwhelmed by others and their performance. So, is it possible just be "whelmed?" Actually, yes it is.

In this engaging, practical, and energizing workshop, led by Meggin McIntosh (AKA "The Productivity Professor") we will talk about how to determine what your "whelm" looks and feels like as well as how to move ever closer to the state of "whelm" instead of the alternatives. You will learn tools, techniques, and strategies to apply-in conjunction with your new awareness.

Here is what you can count on if you participate: Your vibrancy, energy, and productivity will expand within your professional (and yes, even your personal) life. Don't miss this workshop!

Did you ever ask, "Any questions?" only to face blank stares. There's another way to call on students without making them feel singled out. This method involves putting each student's name on a card in a stack of index cards and calling on the first name that comes up. This way, students know they were chosen by the luck of the draw. Also, by calling on many students (15-20 per class), you inject a lot of energy into the classroom. Students want to know: Will the next student get the answer right?

Several faculty around campus use this approach. Come and hear them discuss their successes with it-as well as any difficulties they faced when they first implemented it.

We have all heard about different strategies to enhance our teaching-from clickers to team-based learning to writing better quizzes and designing better assignments. But how do we know if these work equally well? How do we even define "working"? By implementing classroom research, we can begin to determine which techniques are working for each of us and for our students. We can also turn these more "private" explorations into public forms. This workshop will address some methods to implement classroom research in your class, and the steps you need to take to make your findings public. Bring your most pressing question about teaching and learning in your class and we can begin to brainstorm ideas for a classroom research project.

Lunch and a discussion.

The Teaching Academy provides the food, you provide the conversation.

Implementing an assessment plan for an academic program presents multiple challenges. This interactive workshop will present a step-by-step structure for writing and implementing a program level assessment plan. The emphasis will be on creating a plan for assessing student learning at the academic program level that is both genuinely practical and sustainable. The end result will be a plan that both provides useful data to the program, and also meets the Higher Learning Commission's expectations for assessment of learning in academic programs.

The process of assessing student learning begins with well-written student learning outcomes. At the academic program level, that means outcomes that are learner centered, focused, measurable, and cognitively appropriate.

After the outcomes have been identified, participants will work on defining the outcomes-a critical step that is often overlooked and one that makes the later steps in the process considerably easier. Characteristics of successful student performance of the outcomes will be defined and possible implementation strategies will be outlined.

Participants will then learn what to do with the data that they have collected. Methods of data interpretation and ways to close the loop will be explored.

Second Life is one of the best-known Massively Multiplayer Online Role-playing Games (MMORG) that provides a social community for its members. The Linden Laboratories in San Francisco, the creators and operators of Second Life, immediately became aware of its potential to form online learning communities in addition to its social and entertainment functions. Several factors contribute to this potential. First, it provides a synchronous environment with communication available through text or voice. Second, because each participant constructs a computer alter ego called an avatar, the social presence lacking in text-based online learning is enhanced. Finally, because each learner is immersed in the environment in which they learn, the educator has a unique opportunity to provide a shared intellectual environment not available in other online venues.

This workshop will present an introduction to Second Life, show several in-world sites that are using Second Life as a teaching and learning tool, provide some ideas for how Second Life can enhance online learning, and provide a question and answer period for the participants. The final portion of the workshop will allow those who are interested to join Second Life (it's free), and to assist those already in Second Life with some of the basics of navigation, communication, and other necessary Second Life skills. Participants will also get a tour of Aggie Island, NMSU's online presence in Second Life.

Lunch and a discussion.

The Teaching Academy provides the food, you provide the conversation.

At the New Faculty Orientation, Part II, new faculty hired since January 2008 will be welcomed formally by the President and Provost; hear the vice President for Research talk about sponsored programs; hear a panel of seasoned NMSU faculty talk about balancing teaching, research, service and their personal lives; and learn about the promotion and tenure process for faculty at NMSU.

Did you ever wish you could take a course that covered teaching from A to Z? Now you can! This course systematically covers teaching, including learning objectives, assessment and pedagogy. As the course moves through these three broad areas, the following topics are discussed: time management for teachers, engaging students, using "clickers," diversity, and an online unit on teaching online.

Unlike our research in which peer review is a staple, we can become isolated from each other in our teaching. What is needed are ways for instructors to become colleagues in teaching as we are in research (Hutchings 1994). Our shared learning model in this class will allow us to challenge each other to our personal best with peer review of learning objectives, syllabi, and teaching philosophies, and an exchange of classroom observations.

Please note: Participants who successfully complete the course will receive a $250 bookstore gift card.

The myth persists that prolific scholars are born not made, but research suggests otherwise. Much is known about the steps you can take to become more prolific:

• Write daily for 15-30 minutes
• Organize around key sentences
• Solicit the right feedback from the right colleagues
• Make effective use of feedback

What previous participants say:

"I tried these steps on a paper I had been trying to put together for five years. Four weeks later the paper is out for review."

"Internalizing these steps has caused my productivity to quadruple."