Elon faculty invited to register for “Reacting to the Past”

The Center for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning at Elon University will host a regional faculty conference Feb.15-17, 2008, as part of the “Reacting to the Past” program.

“Reacting to the Past” is a teaching and learning method that uses role playing games to engage students with key texts from critical moments in history. Elon is part of the Reacting Consortium, a group of universities which have committed to using the “Reacting to the Past” pedagogy as part of an overall commitment to engaged student learning.

Faculty and administrators from Elon and other universities are invited to register for the February faculty conference to learn more about “Reacting to the Past” by playing mini-versions of two games in the Reacting series: either Confucianism and the Succession Crisis of the Wanli Emperor, 1587, or The Trial of Galileo, 1616-33. In addition to experiencing the games by taking on roles and playing through several game sessions, faculty and administrators attending this conference will also participate in discussions of a more general character on liberal arts education, student motivation, and the problems and possibilities of the “Reacting” pedagogy.

Further information on the conference schedule, registration, and fees is available on the “Reacting to the Past” conference page, which can be accessed by clicking on the link below. (Elon University faculty and administrators can attend the conference free of charge, but should still register through the regular conference web page at the address listed above.)