Keystone Concepts in Teaching: A Higher Education Podcast from the Stearns Center for Teaching and Learning
Keystone Concepts in Teaching and Learning is a higher education podcast from the Stearns Center for Teaching and Learning at George Mason University focused on discussing and sharing impactful teaching strategies that support all students and faculty.
You can find other Seasons and more episodes by navigating back to the podcast landing page.
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Season 1: Fall 2024
Episode 4: Using Design Elements and Feedback in Your Course
Dr. Crystal Anderson returns to discuss the practical aspects of course design, transparency, and productively using feedback in our course. This relates to our overall intentionality about how we approach teaching to support all students’ learning. We also talk about how to approach teaching if you are handed a pre-made syllabus.
For more information about student evaluations: El-Alayli, A., Hansen-Brown, A. A., & Ceynar, M. (2018). Dancing backwards in high heels: Female professors experience more work demands and special favor requests, particularly from academically entitled students. Sex roles, 79, 136-150. | Boring, A., & Ottoboni, K. (2016). Student evaluations of teaching (mostly) do not measure teaching effectiveness. ScienceOpen research. | Kreitzer, R. J., & Sweet-Cushman, J. (2021). Evaluating student evaluations of teaching: A review of measurement and equity bias in SETs and recommendations for ethical reform. Journal of Academic Ethics, 1-12.
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Episode 3: Fundamentals of Teaching for All Students
We welcome Dr. Crystal Anderson for a conversation about what teaching looks like today, particularly coming off several years of pandemic teaching. We also explore how we engage students across different modalities, whether face-to-face, hybrid, online, or others.
Resources: Stearns Center Teaching Online: https://stearnscenter.gmu.edu/knowledge-center/online-teaching/
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Episode 2: Teaching for Everyone
Dr. Shelley Reid returns for a follow-up conversation about how we create a classroom that supports all students – and the instructors – to create an environment of educational success through policies, procedures, assessment, and more.
Resources: Reality, equity, equality, and justice figure: https://www.bu.edu/diversity/resource-toolkit/inequity-equality-equity-and-justice/, Stearns Center resource – Designing for Flexibility: https://stearnscenter.gmu.edu/wp-content/uploads/21-Course-Design-Flexibility-ALL-Policies.pdf, Stearns Center Face-to-Face and/or Hybrid Teaching Resources (see Course Design & Organization Basics section for Life Happens Pass): https://stearnscenter.gmu.edu/knowledge-center/hybrid-teaching-resources/, Fast Learner/Slow Learner news article: https://www.cmu.edu/news/stories/archives/2023/march/the-myth-of-the-fast-learner, Fast/Learner Slow Learner original research article: https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2221311120, Example Exam Wrapper from the American Psychological Association: https://www.apa.org/ed/precollege/topss/teaching-resources/exam-wrapper.pdf
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Episode 1: Building Strategies That Include All Learners
Join us as Dr. Shelley Reid discusses how good teaching is focused on learning, rather than just delivering content, in a way that supports and includes all students.
Resources: Think-Pair-Share and other active learning strategies, Concentric circles of diversity
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