CATL team members present at annual faculty development conference

Three Elon faculty members presented at the 41st annual conference of the POD Network in Higher Education held Nov. 9-13 in Louisville, Kentucky. The POD Network in Higher Education is devoted to improving teaching and learning in U.S. higher education and is the scholarly organization for faculty developers. The organization also fulfills an advocacy role nationally, seeking to inform and persuade educational leaders of the value of educational development in institutions of higher education.

Associate Director of CATL and Associate Professor of Psychology Amy Overman copresented a session titled “Using Transparency to Promote Students’ Learning through Faculty Development” with Mary-Ann Winkelmes of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Dorothe Bach of the University of Virginia, Laurel Willingham-McLain of Duquesne University, Taimi Olsen of University of Tennessee Knoxville, and Suzanne Tapp and Allison Boye of Texas Tech University. The transparency approach focuses on enhancing learning for all students, but is particularly effective for underprepared students.

In brief, it consists of designing assignments that clearly state their intended purpose, the tasks to be completed and the criteria for assessment. This approach allows for the creation of assignments that are challenging because of their rigor and expectations rather than being challenging because they are confusing to students. Overman was also a panelist at the preconference workshop “Building a Social Media Presence” in which she shared recommendations for increasing outreach and building community around teaching and learning.

Assistant Provost, Executive Director of CEL, and Professor of History Peter Felten copresented three sessions. He facilitated a day-long, preconference workshop with more than 110 participants focused on “Getting Started in Faculty Development” with Isis Artze-Vega of Florida International University, Tershia Pinder-Grover of the University of Michigan, Suzanne Tapp of Texas Tech University, and Jason Craig of Loyola.

Felten also copresented a workshop on “Advancing Diversity through Strategic Micro-, Meso-, and Macro-level Leadership” with Kathy Takayama of Northeastern University, Matt Kaplan of the University of Michigan, and Alison Cook-Sather of Bryn Mawr College. This session explored theories and practices that faculty developers might use to work with individual colleagues, departments, and institutions to support inclusive excellence.

Felten’s final session about “Faculty Development for Gateway Courses” included Jon Iuzzini of Achieving the Dream, Josh Caulkins of the University of Rhode Island, Isis Artze-Vega of Florida International University, and Drew Koch of the John N. Gardner Institute. Drawing on two national projects, this session shared lessons for faculty developers who are working to enhance learning in foundational courses in majors.

The 2016 POD Network conference brought together more than 950 colleagues, stimulating growth and innovation in faculty development, and offering invaluable opportunities for the exchange of evidence-based ideas and practices in higher education.