Transformative Dialogues: Teaching and Learning Journal
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Employability Skills Development Through Collaborative Learning in Business Math: An Onward Journey
Get PDFThis paper reflects upon the journey of the author in facilitating collaborative teaching and learning practices for developing employability skills in General Education Mathematics courses at the undergraduate level. The paper discusses similar experiences of STEM faculty members who have experimented with collaborative learning and teaching for enhancing student experience. The research also discusses how specific employability skills can be developed during various stages of the collaborative teaching and learning model designed for the purpose of the study. Team formation and work in teams are discussed in detail. Finally, the paper concludes with the possibilities of future SoTL research for employability purposes
Researching the Self: Autoethnography and Empathy in the University Classroom
Get PDFThis paper proposes a strong link between the practice of self-reflection and the growth of emotional empathy in university students. Importantly, the study occurs in the context of a capstone experience in the history major, combining both reflective activities and detailed disciplinary research to break down student barriers to learning as they move into their professional lives. The results of multiple administrations at the beginning and the end of the semester of the Toronto Empathy Questionnaire revealed a statistically significant increase in student empathic scores. Student weekly reflective journals, when assessed using a three-part rubric of “superficial,” “proficient,” and “advanced” categories, also demonstrated a substantial increase in the proportion of advanced expressions relative to superficial writing. Qualitative review of these journals and related reflective writing assignments revealed significant growth in student personal vulnerability as an entry point to authentic learning and empathy. Vital as a leadership skill, empathy also provides an important indicator of student metacognitive engagement with their intellectual and emotional changes during their youth that will be helpful in their following lives. 
Lean on Me: Developing Restorative Thinking in Online Higher Education Faculty
Get PDFThis article is a literature review to understand if there is a need to study the implementation of restorative thinking in the online classroom. Restorative thinking is the metacognitive processing of the power dynamics in a learning environment that works toward equalizing the balance of power while increasing student engagement, relationship building, and social consciousness. The researchers focused on the importance of strengthening student-faculty relationships and communication, particularly in the distance learning environment, through analyzing established theoretical information and research on teacher perceptions of transformative thinking and students’ self-perception of their contributions in an online classroom. This review centered on students’ educational experiences in the classroom and how educators can increase student performance. The researchers look to guide educators’ perceptions of transformative thinking by implementing restorative practices, mindfulness, relational competencies, social presence, and positive self-conception, providing opportunities to identify students’ positive and negative academic experiences to increase academic performance
Cooperative Learning Reflection: Virtual Connections Post-COVID
Get PDFCooperative or collaborative learning has long been a successful teaching method for use by teachers. We––teachers within the elementary, secondary, and post-secondary classrooms––have seen the benefits of forming intentional small groups with an emphasis on student interaction that leads to students taking ownership of their own learning. This ownership is coupled with increased student engagement levels as well as increased opportunities for teachers to assist students with additional learning needs. With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen that teachers and students alike were thrusted into virtual environments where collaboration suffered. All parties were navigating new learning platforms, and while the need for collaboration was still there, the means did not become available at once. After students and teachers found their way navigating the virtual academic waters, we have found the proverbial academic life vests in the form of breakout groups, exterior websites, and an emphasis on cooperative learning to recenter and re-engage them. The post COVID-19 world has brought forth new educational insights that have opened doors for students and teachers alike to thrive in virtual settings that would have gone undiscovered prior to the pandemic
"I Genuinely Can’t Understand Why I Was Selected for the Job": Descriptions of the Impostor Phenomenon in University Staff and Professors
Get PDFThe Impostor Phenomenon (IP) is a person’s experience of internalized fraudulence relative to their successes; this is characterized by a fear of being “found out” and judged by others as well as difficulties internalizing successes (Clance & Imes, 1978). Previous research has suggested that it is commonly experienced by professors and staff in postsecondary institutions and associated with a variety of negative outcomes related to career and mental health. As part of an online survey about IP, academic staff and professors were provided an open text box and asked to describe the causes, consequences, and experiences of impostor feelings in academic settings. Three overarching categories and eight subcategories were identified through inductive content analysis, including 1) triggers of impostor feelings (i.e., interpersonal interactions, situational influences), 2) qualities of the experience itself (i.e., negative external perceptions, negative self-perceptions, feelings of fraudulence, negative emotions) and 3) management of impostor feelings (i.e., effective strategies, ineffective strategies). Implications for addressing impostor feelings in academic staff and professors are considered
What Do You Think About My Syllabus? An Assessment of Adult Learner Perspectives on Faculty Expectations Through Syllabus Review
Get PDFThe purpose of this study was to determine if and how instructors included the adult learner demographic into their academic planning on their syllabus at Penn State Behrend in Erie, Pennsylvania. By evaluating adult learner inclusivity in the classroom, Penn State Behrend can assess areas to improve adult learner’s sense of belonging, engagement, and learning. Eight syllabi of varying subjects and levels were reviewed by adult learner participants who were asked to assess the goals, objectives, workload, schedule, feedback, tone, and accessibility of the course and instructor. The results of this study will be used as starting points for assessing adult learner retention and attraction levels and for determining areas that may need improvement
Co-Learning and Co-Leading in a Capstone Course: Exploring the Possibilities of Transformative Learning
Get PDFThis article shares the reflective experiences and learning of two students and a faculty member from the Bachelor of Child Studies degree at Mount Royal University who embarked on a collaborative learning journey in a 4th-year capstone course. Capstone courses provide students with real-life projects within a community agency where they are able to apply theories and knowledge under the guidance of a faculty member and community partner. Key themes are shared that led to transformative change and learning. This was done through collaboration, relational practice, co-learning, and critical reflection
Enamoramiento in the Spanish Heritage Classroom
Get PDFThis article offers an alternative to revamp the Spanish curriculum with an emphasis on heritage language (HL) courses with a social justice mission that promotes falling in love with their language and cultures to foster language vitality. Classroom activities should be designed to challenge hegemonic language ideologies to change this low vitality. Attitudes matter in terms of language vitality, so the development of critical awareness in the Spanish heritage classroom is essential for students to foster a critical worldview and to empower them to overcome the prejudices against their local dialects through resilience (Leeman, 2018). Community service-learning can also be connected to Spanish for Specific Purposes courses to provide heritage language learners (HLLs) with more confidence in their studies and a connection with the community (Thompson & Brown, 2019). A new curriculum adapted to student needs is key to promote Spanish vitality and to recruit more students for our programs
Using Metacognitive Prospection to Understand, Promote, and Assess Undergraduates’ Self-Regulated Learning Strategies
Get PDFSelf-regulated learning (SRL) is a beneficial skill for college students to develop and is an important step on the path to lifelong learning. Instructional techniques like flipping the classroom and project-based learning are proven to foster SRL, but wholescale transformation of traditional lecture and discussion-based courses is not always feasible or desirable. This article introduces metacognitive prospection, an easy-to-use instructional method for fostering and applying SRL skills, and reports on the results of using the technique across four sections of an introductory-level college course at a small, liberal arts college. Results indicate that students exposed to this technique are able to identify weaknesses in their learning behaviors and develop effective adaptations for future learning, with nearly half indicating they will employ agentic learning strategies in the future