When we plan our courses, we tend to think in academic calendar time: opening day, assignment deadlines, final exam schedules. But what about the calendar that students actually live by?
Growing up, I was drawn to punk rock because it effectively expressed the angst I felt with things like curfews and homework, to say nothing of the raging hormones of being a teenager. I loved how it questioned authority with an unapologetic attitude. I now
As the new academic year rolls around, hordes of new students venture onto campus. Some of them did well in high school and come to college prepared for the rigors and challenges of higher education. Too many, lacking socialization, treat college as the 13th year
For years, an undergraduate geography lesson in a history of religion course centered on Jerusalem posed the same challenge: How can you give students a feel for the actual city? Students recognized that three major religions share sacred ground within the same square mile, but
AI tools are major time-savers and have helped me overcome those tedious or creatively challenging parts of instructional planning. AI tools can assist educators with discussion prompts, course projects, rubric generation, and career-focused assessments. AI can take some of the heavy lifting off your plate,
A few years ago, toward the end of the semester, one of my advisees sat in my office and asked me about an upper-level science course she was taking: “How is this going to make me a better person?”
At the start of each new semester, I look out at a room of nontraditional students and see the hidden superheroes of higher education. Returning to college after years of managing careers, family, and life’s many demands, they bring remarkable strength, resilience, and perspective to
The recent report from Harvard College on grade inflation (Claybaugh, 2025; hereafter “the report”) is an important reminder of how complex grading is and the many ways it can go wrong. The report focuses on grade inflation, but negative outcomes of poor grading systems include
Students often enter a new course with some degree of trepidation wondering whether they belong (Wilson & Wilson, 2007). During the first few weeks of the semester, classrooms can feel intimidating as students learn names, establish routines, and determine whether their instructors see them as
Online students are not only reading our words; they are interpreting our intentions. That realization changed the way I teach.
