Conference Program

Friday Opening Plenary Session
5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.

Understanding Student Behavior and Creating Effective Learning Environments
We all know the amazing capacity of the human mind. What seems equally amazing, however, is how difficult it is for our students to learn even "simple" material and also how quickly that information evaporates from their awareness. This presentation will focus on research pertaining to human learning and methods you can use to create more effective learning environments for your students. Find out why your students skip class, learn strategies to encourage them to complete assigned readings, and acquire tips you can give them to increase the effectiveness of their study time. Most importantly, learn how to use fundamental cues humans rely on for survival to facilitate learning in your classes.

Invited Presenter: Todd Zakrajsek, inaugural director of the Faculty Center for Innovative Teaching at Central Michigan University

Saturday Luncheon Plenary
1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Mentoring: New Meanings and New Ways to Improve Instruction
Using a conversation format, Ike Shibley and Maryellen Weimer will explore how colleagues can be involved in helping each other grow and develop as teachers. Drawing examples from their more than ten years as mentoring colleagues (they've mentored each other as well as many new faculty members) they will propose a wide range of activities that can be undertaken, they will characterize the kind of conversations that advance understanding of teaching and learning, and challenge conventional notions of mentoring as something an experienced faculty member does for a beginning teacher.

Presenters: Ike Shibley, conference chair, associate professor of chemistry, Penn State-Berks
Maryellen Weimer, editor, The Teaching Professor, professor of teaching and learning, Penn State-Berks

The Conference Case Study

This year's case will explore issues of a college professor's response to issues of grading and diversity. This case, authored by Rita Silverman and William Welty and developed with funding from the Fund for the Improvement of Post-Secondary Education (FIPSE) was developed as part of a grant-funded project that produced a number of cases designed to help faculty grapple with instructional issues. These cases have been used extensively with faculty across the country. Their rich detail captures the complexity and nuance of issues that faculty face in their daily practice. As in previous years, a variety of conference activities will give participants the opportunity to discuss the case with other attendees and presenters.

Using Case Method to Enliven Teaching

Rita Silverman, one of the authors of the case being featured at this year's The Teaching Professor Conference, will demonstrate case method teaching in three special conference sessions. She will use the conference case to show how cases can be used to engage and involve learners in exploring complicated and conflicting issues. This instructional method uses a variety of facilitation techniques to lead learners to a deeper understanding of issues and how they might be resolved. Dr. Silverman is a widely recognized expert in case-method teaching. Enrollment in these sessions is limited, therefore pre-registration is required. Sign up sheets will be available at the conference registration desk.

“Excellent. I have told several of my colleagues that this conference is a tremendous opportunity for growth and renewal.” 2006 Participant

Invited Presenters/Workshop Sessions

Workshops and plenary sessions provide broad, deep coverage of the following topical areas:

• Scholarship of Teaching
• Technology
• Teaching Large Classes
• Undergraduate Research
• Faculty Growth, Resilience and Change
• Learning
• The Pedagogies of Engagement

The 2007 Teaching Professor Conference Advisory Board is pleased to announce the following Presenters/Worshops:

Burnout and Beyond -- Examining Compassion, Fatigue and Other Stressors in Academic Culture
This session will examine the conditions, characteristics, contexts, and consequences of various manifestations of stress and burnout in academic culture. Participants will explore a reflective and dialogical process based in critical incidents from previous inquiry blended with experiences from the session participants themselves.
Presenters: Maureen Connolly, professor, and Lorne Adams, associate professor, Brock University

Beyond the Bloody Red Pen: Classroom Assessment That Promotes Learning
Students and professors alike dread grading, for a host of reasons. In this session, learn how to design formative and summative assessments that will focus, not increase, your work. We will explore traditional and performance-based assessments, employing several of the strategies that we treasure most in our scholarly work. Participants should bring a copy of an assignment or test they use in their class that they would like to strengthen.
Presenter: Karen Eifler, associate professor, University of Portland

From Adversaries to Colleagues: Changing the Relationship between Teachers and Students
The adversarial nature of college classrooms can be measured by the course syllabus, which often seems to be a legalistic document filled with detailed rules for student behavior and grades, written in a defensive and authoritarian tone. In this session, we will look at the reasons for this phenomenon and discuss techniques that instructors can use to enhance the intrinsic motivation of students and to recapture the spirit of collegiality between faculty and students that can transform the classroom into a joyous learning experience for all.
Presenter: Mano Singham, director of the University Center for Innovation in Teaching and Education, Case Western Reserve University

Deepening the Dialogue with Students, Faculty and Administrators Alike
Although controversy often increases anxiety and decreases understanding, it doesn’t have to. This session demonstrates a process to help people move from one-sided arguing and simplistic conflict to complex sharing and negotiating of meaning. Volunteers split into pro, con, and neutral on a controversial issue, then acknowledge each other’s views, without necessarily agreeing. The ensuing active listening process, for students and faculty alike, encourages exploration of assumptions and contradictions and transformation of habits of mind. This workshop is ideal for faculty seeking methods to balance the voices and focus student discussion—and to deepen dialogue with their colleagues.
Presenter: Roben Torosyan, associate director, Center for Academic Excellence, Fairfield University

Active Learning Techniques for Introductory Courses
Resistance to incorporating active learning in the classroom includes the time it takes to prepare materials and the time it takes away from the classroom. This session will engage the participants by having them participate in simple, low risk activities that they can easily adopt in their classrooms. This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Award No. DUE-0442987.
Presenter: Keith Whittington, assistant professor, Rochester Institute of Technology

From Students that Click to Classes that Click: Engaging the Millennial Student
The purpose of this session is to gain an understanding of millennial students and to develop strategies that will engage these students in class. Strategies presented in the workshop will help faculty move students from procrastinators to active learners and will impact both the quality of their homework and their learning in class. This session is designed for faculty teaching in any discipline and any size class.
Presenters: Ann Singleton, associate dean, School of Education, Union University and Kina Mallard, academic dean, Gordon College

Teaching First-Year College Students
First-year students present unique challenges to college and university faculty. This session will focus on the characteristics of first-year students as learners with an emphasis on the instructional methods, assignments, and activities that provide both academic rigor and appropriate support for first-year students.
Presenters: Bette LaSere Erickson, director, Faculty Development and Calvin Breckinridge Peters, professor, University of Rhode Island

Practical Tips for Teaching Large Science Classes
Does an increase in class size lead to a loss of quality of education? Absolutely not! This session will focus on strategies and techniques to promote learning in large science classes. The discussion will focus on teaching philosophy and style, creative skills, methods to actively engage students, effective teaching and learning methods, relating to students in and out of the classroom, and recitation sections.
Presenter: Laurie McCorry, associate professor, Bay State College

Student Attitudes and Learning Gains in Tablet PC-Enabled Courses
The presence of tablet PCs in the classroom is providing new opportunities in technology-based instruction and raising old questions about the role of technology in improving teaching and enhancing student learning. This interactive session will be used to demonstrate the fundamentals of a one-tablet professor model involving electronic note archival, virtual office hours, and live screen capture. Several tablet PCs will be available for audience members to get hands-on experience with this technology. In addition, the presenters will share results of a student attitudinal survey on tablet instruction and discuss learning gains in a redesigned introductory chemistry course.
Presenters: James Ricky Cox, associate professor and James W. Rogers, assistant professor, Murray State University.

Those Silent Librarians!
Librarians are at the forefront of technological innovation and change. This presentation will remind participants what kinds of things librarians can provide for them, partnering with other faculty to make information literacy an exciting part of education. The presenters will also demonstrate several examples of high-tech classes and several interactive "exercises," allowing participants to see how they might enhance their classes by including a librarian.
Presenters: Marilyn Steinberg, assistant professor, Library and Learning Resources, Massachusetts College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences and Kari Mofford, instruction coordinator/information technology librarian, Wentworth Institute of Technology

“The conference was very motivating and provided useful and practical information.”
2006 Participant

Presenters / Workshop Sessions

Doing the Scholarship of Teaching
Presenters: Leo C. Rigsby, Mary Kayler, Karen Weller, Krissy Bartlett, and Shahidah Kalam Id-Din, George Mason University

Teaching and Scholarship in International Business
Presenter: Ping Deng, Maryville University of St. Louis

Do You Really Want to Know What I Think? Facilitating Classroom Discussions About “Sensitive” Issues
Presenters: Aaron Castelan Cargile and Marc Rich, California State University, Long Beach

Why Did You Make Us Buy This Book?
Presenters: Karen Weller, Mary Kayler, Leo Rigsby, and Krissy Bartlett, George Mason University

Engaging Students; Assuaging Conflict: How Occasional Vocational Exercises Create a Climate of Cooperation, Not Confrontation
Presenter: Paul Fritz, University of Toledo

Service Learning in the Aftermath of Katrina
Presenter: D. Allan Mitchell, Delta State University

Classroom Island…Outthink, Outplan, Outlast
Presenters: Suzanne Tapp and Allison Boye, Texas Tech University

Engaging the Overwhelmed: Improving Classroom Performance in a Baccalaureate Nursing Program
Presenters: Donna W. Roberson, Janice A. Neil, and Mary H. Wilson, East Carolina University School of Nursing

Born of Frustration, Nurtured by Learning: A Different Kind of Final Exam
Presenters: Jan R. Thompson and Barbara L. Licklider, Iowa State University

Teachers Talk Less--Students Learn More
Presenters: Patricia A. Herald and John Hugo Back, Hazard Community and Technical College

Shifting Paradigms from "Instruction Focused" to "Learning Focused" in an Introductory Nursing Course
Presenters: Jill Foster, Ellen DeLuca, and Kim Ayscue, Lynchburg College

Diversity in Delivery
Presenter: Joanne M. Walsh, Ramapo College of New Jersey

Teaching Critical Thinking Skills: Shifting Bloom's Paradigm
Presenters: Veda Brown, Del Stewart, Rance Morris, Jourdan Renfro, and Lisa Harris, Prairie View A & M University of Texas

Building a Repertoire of Social Justice-Inspired Pedagogical Tools across Disciplines in a Contemporary University Classroom
Presenters: Lauren Rauscher, Amy Cabrera Rasmussen, Guido Urizar, and Bianca Wilson, California State University, Long Beach

More is Definitely Better: Actively Engaging Large Classes in the Sciences
Presenters: Deb Wingert and Tom Molitor, University of Minnesota

Maximizing Student Engagement in Large Classes
Presenters: Stuart Yager and James Stump, Bethel College

Fostering Active Learning in the Large Classroom: Creative Teaching Techniques
Presenters: Jennifer D. Goldman-Levine and Kate MacDonald, Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences; Division of Library and Learning Resources; School of Pharmacy-Boston

A.G.E.D.--How Experience and Guile can Engage the Young Learner
Presenter: Scott A. Davis, Mansfield University

No More Excuses: A Stress-Free Method for Managing Students
Presenter: Gloria J. Howell, Saint Leo University

Stop Allowing Teaching to Burn You Out
Presenter: Gloria J. Howell, Saint Leo University

Think You Are An Unbiased Teacher? Think Again!
Presenter: Dionne Poulton, Spelman College

Seasons of Change in Becoming an Educator (Rather than an Information Disseminator)
Presenters: Barbara L. Licklider and Janice A. Wiersema, Iowa State University

Food For Thought: A Teaching Circle Tells All
Presenters: Marshall S. Harth, Valerie (Scottie) Massimo, Philip J. McLewin, Sharon Rubin, Robert Sproul, and Terra Vandergaw, Ramapo College of New Jersey

Stress and Female Faculty in Teacher Education
Presenter: Clarine Sandstrom, Minot State University

Hybrid Courses in Philosophy and Economics
Presenter: Julie C. Van Camp, California State University, Long Beach

Podcasting, an Opportunity for Exploring Course Content Beyond What Might be Possible in Traditional Classroom Settings
Presenter: Dave Yearwood, University of North Dakota

Using Digital Video to Motivate and Engage Students
Presenters: Jayne Zanglein and Barbara Jo White, Western Carolina University

Beyond Poster Board--Cell Phones, Cameras, and the Internet
Presenter: Beverly Evans, Southeast Missouri State University

Cognitive Cartography: Concept Mapping as a Tool to Support Problem Solving and Meaningful Learning in Individual and Collaborative Environments

Active Participation in a Research Study: A Teaching Strategy

Undergraduate Research: Raising Awareness and Expectations
Presenter: Gerald G. GeRue, Concordia University of Wisconsin

Research as an Authentic and Collaborative Task in an Undergraduate Methods Course
Presenter: Lysandra Perez-Strumolo, Ramapo College of New Jersey

Involving Pre-service Undergraduate Students in Classroom Research
Presenter: Eucabeth Odhiambo, Shippensburg University

Ensuring a Sense of Belonging Through Inclusive Teaching
Presenter: Laura MacDonald, University of Manitoba

Do We Need to Buy the Book for this Class?
Presenters: Nancy C. McClure and Nancy Parks, Pierpont Community & Technical College of Fairmont State University

The Challenge of Change: Increasing Student Motivation
Presenters: Debra A. Murray, Viterbo University and Colin Ward, Oakland University Michigan

Weaving Cooperative Work into Literature Courses
Presenter: Susan Cosby Ronnenberg, Viterbo University

Intergenerational Learning
Presenter: Vickie S. Cook, University of Illinois at Springfield

Empowering Students to Learn: Experiential and Reflective Approaches
Presenter: Regina Clark, Ramapo College of New Jersey

Online Interpersonal Learning
Presenter: Sandra Loucks Campbell, Renison College

Putting Technology in the Hands of Students to Provide Active and Deep Learning Experiences
Presenters: Jane Harris, Pamela Kocher Brown, Sandie Barrie Blackley, Celia Hooper, and Robin Gee, University of North Carolina at Greensboro

Teaching Counseling Theories: Understanding Who I Am
Presenter: Shelley Jackson, Texas Woman’s University

Embarking on the Service-Learning Journey: Design, Implementation, and Assessment
Presenter: Ann Marie G. Halstead, St. Lawrence University

Active Classroom Learning with Beginner-Level Multimedia Animation
Presenter: Tom Schrand, Philadelphia University

Using Portfolios to Assess Leadership Competencies
Presenter: Gretchen Gemeinhardt, Texas Woman’s University

When It's About Skills, Not Integrity: Assessing and Remedying Skill Deficiencies Related to Common Academic-Integrity Issues
Presenter: Sarah Ryan, Baruch College/CUNY

Creating an Environment of Academic Motivation in the First Two Years of a Student’s Academic Career
Presenters: Kathie Erdman and Denise Peterson, South Dakota State University

“I learned many new techniques to deal with discussion, group work, as well as ways to engage my students.” 2006 Participant

Poster Sessions

We’ve assembled a wide array of cutting-edge, informative, engaging and interactive poster sessions. During Friday night’s reception, you’ll have a chance to meet and greet colleagues while perusing the following sessions:

Mentoring Faculty Scholarship: Creating Opportunities for Publication

The Importance of Community Collaboration: Connecting Your Students to the World of Practice

Raising Student Self-Efficacy Through Authentic Assessment

Student Library Scavenger Hunt

Follow the Relevant Road

Strategies to Effectively Manage Large Classes

From On-campus to Online Instruction: Making the Transition in a Teacher Education Program

Online Classroom Management Software: Thinkwave as a Tool for Facilitating Communication with Students

Request for WebQuest? Using a WebQuest to Promote Learning

Integrating the Seven Principles

How to Develop and Manage Effective Service Learning Opportunities

Building a Course Portfolio to Mentor Critical Thinking Faculty

Interactive Education Methods in Development of Clinical Reasoning Skills

Working with Cooperative Learning Groups to Make Them Change Agents

Adult Learners: Community Projects

Crash and Burn to Something Learned

Backward Course Redesign Through Teaching Circles: A Set of Poster Boards

The Teaching Professor Conference is honored to introduce the 2007 Advisory Panel:

Conference Chair: Ike Shibley, associate professor of chemistry, Penn State-Berks
Conference Vice-Chair: Karen Eifler, associate professor, University of Portland

Advisory Panel Members:
Hank Johnson, director of Education Services & Outreach, Johnson & Wales University-Providence
Rob Kelly, internal editor, The Teaching Professor newsletter & Magna Publications
Laurie McCorry, associate professor of physiology, Bay State College
Roben Torosyan, associate director, Center for Academic Excellence, Fairfield University
Keith Whittington, assistant professor, Rochester Institute of Technology

The Advisory Panel is in charge of reviewing, rating, and selecting the top workshop/poster proposals in order to provide you with the best possible, cutting-edge workshops.