Do you know how to transform your students into self-regulated learners? If not, I encourage you to attend the Lunch+Learn on October 5 at noon in the Dining Hall's private dining room. If you do know, we want you to come as well and share your experiences with the rest of us. Did you know that student peer assessment allows students to get more varied, immediate and frequent feedback, feel their input is valued, helps to build critical thinking skills and usually produces better student work? Come and discuss the techniques you can use to teach your students about self-assessment at the Lunch+Learn on Wednesday. For those of you who are participating in the LU journaling program, remember that we will be holding our monthly discussion group on Thursday, October 6 at 2:00 PM in 621 MJGL. Critical self reflection helps you to achieve results especially when you share your results. Allie Grasgreen wrote an interesting story about the sophomore slump and what some institutions are doing to curtail its effect. Students reported poor or undeveloped peer-to-peer relationships as one of the biggest reasons for withdrawing in a survey taken at Pace University. We are putting the final pieces in place for the Faculty Learning Communities for Academic Year 2011-12. The next step is to hold training for the leadership. After that, the FLC will begin to meet and set goals for the year. Get ready for the community of scholars at LU to become energized.

Linda Nilson has come and gone but the effects of her visit will continue to ignite conversations across the LU campus for a while. She brought research-backed knowledge to her sessions. She was engaging and modeled active learning methods throughout the two days of workshops. The faculty in attendance were learning and it was quite evident from the conversations, some of which had to be stopped in the interest of time. But fear not, we will continue the discussions at the follow-up Lunch+Learn set for Wednesday, October 5 at noon in the private dining room of the Dining Hall. We are requesting that those who participated in any of Dr. Nilson's three sessions come armed with their notes and memories. If you were unable to attend, we want you to participate as well. We will have copies of the handouts from the sessions, which along with the conversation, will allow you to fully participate in the discussion. The room will open at 11:30 AM so that you can grab lunch and then join the discussion beginning at noon. Educational Leadership faculty member Nancy Adams, who attended the Top Ten session, said, "Nilson offered good, concrete strategies that can be immediately transferred in the classroom." Finance and Economics faculty member Karyn Newhauser, who attended the Student Peer and Self-Assessment session, said, "The peer review forms [provided by Nilson] that provide information to the writer and are non-threatening to the reviewer is something I will implement." English and Modern Languages faculty member and ACES Fellow Julie Wilhelm felt that Nilson delivered a "very specific, practical presentation that showed me how to implement the scholarship." Kami Makki (Computer Science) and Weihang Zhu (Industrial Engineering) both liked Nilson's idea of having students write a letter to future students about the class they have just completed. ACES Fellow Jeremy Shelton (Psychology), "liked that [Nilson] gave us many references so that we can further explore and implement these ideas later." As we dropped Dr. Nilson at the airport, she commented on how much she enjoyed visiting LU and was impressed with the level of engagement at each session. Next Tuesday (October 4) you have the opportunity to learn a little more about our accrediting organization commonly known as SACS. Register now for the free webinar "Do You Know What SACS Accreditors Really Expect in Assessment?" Provost Steve Doblin thinks it is important that we all understand how the process works and encourages participation as well. Richard M. Felder and Rebecca Brent extol the virtues of student-centered instruction (SCI) in their article Navigating the Bumpy Road to Student-Centered Instruction. SCI is a broad approach that includes such techniques as substituting active learning experiences for lectures, holding students responsible for material that has not been explicitly discussed in class, assigning open-ended problems and problems requiring critical or creative thinking that cannot be solved by following text examples, involving students in simulations and role-plays, assigning a variety of unconventional writing exercises, and using self-paced and/or cooperative (team-based) learning.They conclude that "instructors who set out to try student-centered instruction in a class for the first time are often unpleasantly surprised by the fierce negativity of some responses. Many who don't anticipate such reactions get discouraged when they encounter them, give up, and go back to more comfortable but less effective methods.To minimize resistance to any student-centered method, try to persuade the students from the outset that you are neither playing a game nor performing an experiment, but teaching in a way known to help students learn more and understand better."

As we begin the sixth week of class at LU, now is a good time to reflect on how effective you are being as an instructor. By now you should have a firm grasp of how well your students are learning the material. You should have done a number of formative assessments (including at least one, low-stakes, non-graded activity) and know each of your students by name. You should have provided your students with multiple opportunities to network within the classroom and you should be aware of their goals in life. Your students should be aware of what is expected of them, what the learning outcomes are, and notice the clear alignment of the learning experiences with the outcomes. While this might be the ideal, research proves that the situation described above does indeed provide the best scenario for success both in teaching and learning. If you are looking for some insight into how you can enhance your classroom performance, this is a perfect week. Dr. Linda Nilson will visit LU on Tuesday and Wednesday. She will deliver three powerful workshops that will provide you with valuable insight that you can implement immediately. Continuous critical reflection is very effective when used to change habits or identify trigger points that create impediments to reaching your benchmarks. Taking the time to attend any of the workshops will pay big dividends for you in the future. We encourage you to come,even if you can only attend part of the session. CT+LE is excited to announce that we have added some valuable resources specifically for our department chairs and those who are thinking of pursuing a leadership position in the future. On Thursday, September 28 at 10:30 AM, you have the opportunity to participate in a webinar entitled "A Quick and Practical Guide to Managing Your Time and Stress." We will be hosting the online webinar in room 622 MJGL. To register, send an email to Todd Pourciau (todd.pourciau@lamar.edu) or call CT+LE at 8426. Did you know that you have access to an course rubric that allows you to compare your online or hybrid course to some of the best in the world? By using the Blackboard Exemplary Course Program rubric, you can evaluate how well your own course conforms to best practices for course design, interaction and collaboration, assessment and learner support. The rubric details a range of criteria to rate performance in each component of your course and you receive detailed feedback. There are also examples of exemplary courses. Did you hear that LU has reached another enrollment milestone? We have 14,552 students enrolled in 141,748 credit hours this semester. That is a lot of teaching and learning and we are committed to seeing each one of them graduate and become citizens who not only contribute but change the world.

We have tallied the enrollment requests for the Faculty Learning Communities and there are four still standing. These four FLC will move forward and meet throughout the Academic Year 2011-12. At the end of the year, each of the four FLC will present their results at an expo event. If you are interested in becoming a member of one of the four FLC, contact a staff member of CT+LE immediately. We will also be holding training for the facilitators and co-facilitators very soon. The four FLC for 2011-12 are: Active Research and the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning: FLC focused on the research, scholarship and discovery about teaching and learning (topic-based); Creating an Online Course of Substance: FLC focused on the design of online or hybrid classes that utilize technology at or above 50% of the class time. Exploration of pedagogy and curriculum designed for this teaching forum including active learning methods. Participants will work on their targeted courses as part of a community of scholars (tb); High School to College Transition: FLC focused on the first year experience, specifically how to assist students making the transition from a “standardized test” culture to one that values critical thinking, empirical/quantitative methods, communication skills, team work, and personal and social responsibility. Some emphasis will be placed on introducing active learning methods to incoming freshmen (tb); Sustainability Across the Curriculum: FLC focused on infusing sustainability issues into an existing course or designing a new course or curriculum to focus on those issues. Participants will work on their targeted courses as part of a community of scholars. This program could be designed to expand the inventory of classes at LU that focus on sustainability as a lens through which students will examine and act upon our shared world systems, including but not limited to energy, environment, food systems, economic justice, and globalization (tb). Have you registered for one of Dr. Linda Nilson's three workshops yet? She will visit LU on September 27 and 28. Sad to see that the average SAT scores have dropped again. The reading score for the high school class of 2011 fell three points to 497, the lowest on record, according to a report by the College Board, which administers the exams.The average writing score dropped two points, to 489, and the math score was down one point, to 514. Each of the three SAT sections is scored from 200 to 800, with 2,400 the highest possible combined score. This year’s combined average was 1,500, down from 1,506 last year. Research shows that student's scores in reading and writing are intimately linked with the size of their vocabulary. It prompted us to add a new feature to the CT+LE blog. We will attempt to broaden the vocabulary of LU by using unique or rarely used words and encourage you to use them in your classes. If it sends someone to a dictionary, even better. Here is today's word used in a sentence. Let us know what you think. The excessive amount of dross in the quad today was very unsettling.

Are you struggling with remembering your student's names? In his 1993 book, What Matters in College, Alexander Austin reviewed the literature on college teaching, finding two things that made the biggest difference in getting students involved in the undergraduate experience: greater faculty-student interaction and greater student-student interaction. Though learning students names may seem a trivial matter in the entire university enterprise, it is a powerful means to foster both of these interactions. As teachers, some of us find it easy to learn names, while others have to work at it.Here are a few suggestions to help you. Liz Miller at Texas A&M suggests having the students prepare a “passport” for your class. This is an exercise in creativity and an opportunity for you to get to know about the student as well as their name. Using an old note card, have the student make a passport or document that describes them. The passport should include a personal picture (a snapshot is okay), some information about their likes and dislikes, and something about where they have been and where they are going. Linda Nilson, Clemson University, has her students wear name tags (first name only, printed very large) for the first two weeks. After class, she also reviews the index cards that she has students fill out with personal information on the first day of class. Unforgettable Neighbor is a technique suggested by Ed Nuhfer of the University of Colorado at Denver. He suggest that you have students turn to their neighbor and introduce themselves. The assignment is for the neighbor to introduce their companion “with a trait that no one can forget.” Obviously the partners have to be helpful with a trait or mnemonic aid. Pick randomly from around the room for introductions. After a third person is introduced, point at those introduced and the class has to name the individual. Continue with the introductions and cumulative reviews. he notes that the repetition in reviews really helps. You can register now for the upcoming free webinar Effective Teaching - How to Know it When You See it! Three Components of Effective Teaching. Join Nancy Fire, Ed.D. and Mike Simmons, Ph.D. from the University of North Texas and learn twelve proven items that mark an effective teacher. This webinar will be complete with strong take-aways and examples to begin implementing in your classroom right away. Wanted to remind you that our Quality Enhancement Plan was created to encourage the use of active learning methods to stimulate enhanced learning in our classrooms. Although the QEP focuses on core and developmental courses, all faculty at LU are invited to participate and the evidence indicates that the community of scholars is embracing that challenge. Active learning involves providing opportunities for students to meaningfully talk and listen, write, read, and reflect on the content, ideas, issues, and concerns of an academic subject. You should use active learning principles to develop activities for your students that best reflect both your own teaching style and the material, types of thinking, and approaches to the subject necessary to comprehend and apply the topic. Doing so will make you an active teacher, and you will cross beyond the essential, but incomplete, role of content expert. Content expertise and active teaching will provide students the opportunities to become engaged learners and dynamic thinkers.

There is nothing more exciting to a faculty developer than seeing the community of scholars gather to share ideas and concerns. That is exactly what happened yesterday during the Faculty Learning Communities Expo. It was terrific watching the advocates (Mark Asteris, Nancy Blume, Jessica Dandona, Carmen Doering, Paul Hemenway, Melissa Hudler, Komal Karani, Tom Matthews, Tony Pereira, Michael Saar, Yasulo Sato, Jeremy Shelton, Kaye Shelton, Randy Smith, Vaness Villate, and Steve Zani) talking with potential members about the various FLC. The strategies included using logic, passion and some good old-fashioned arm twisting. In the end, we are very close to announcing our top four FLC for the 2011-12 Academic Year. If you have not returned your FLC enrollment form, scan and email it to todd.pourciau@lamar.edu, mail it to P.O. Box 10302 or hand deliver it to room 618 Mary and John Gray Library (MJGL) no later than Friday, September 16. Stay tuned for the big announcement coming soon. There is still time to register for the free faculty development webinar Avoiding a Mid-Career Crisis: Helping Faculty Manage Their Careers to be held on September 20 at 1:00 PM. The webinar will focus on navigating the path to tenure and what happens next. As we move forward on the Retention Ad-hoc Committee, it is exciting to watch the enrollment management efforts begin to crystallize. Research has shown that students will persist at a college if there is a high level of congruence between the student’s values, goals, and attitudes and those of the college. The admissions process and materials can be a key factor in developing students’ expectations of the institution and in their adjustment to college environments. The renewed efforts towards retention, starting with President Jimmy Simmons and Provost Steve Doblin, involves integrating all of the necessary pieces aligned with a commitment from our students. Positive results are just around the bend. The Student Homecoming Committee has planned a Midnight Breakfast for Wednesday, October 19 from 11 PM to 1 AM. They are currently asking for faculty and staff to volunteer as servers. It is a great opportunity to interact with your students. If you are interested, complete this form. Each volunteer will receive a free homecoming shirt. Go Big Red!

The FLC Expo occurs tomorrow from 11:30 AM until 4:30 PM in rooms 621 and 622 Mary and John Gray Library (MJGL). Come and talk with advocates to determine which FLC you would like to join for the 2011-12 academic year. If you have made your choice, remember to complete the FLC enrollment form and return it to CT+LE at PO Box 10302 or have it delivered to room 617 MJGL. Registration is also open for the workshops to be delivered by Dr. Linda Nilson on September 27 and 28. Dr. Nilson has spent over 22 years intimately involved in faculty development and her book, Teaching at Its Best: A Research-Based Resource for College Instructors, is a best-seller filled with hundreds of practical teaching techniques, formats, classroom activities, and exercises. Online learning is the sole form of collegiate access for an increasing number of students according to a recent post by Eric Stoller. He proposes, "having a strategic student affairs communications plan will be a vital component to supporting online learners." Have you read about the new approach to student retention being attempted by a number of colleges that asks each student, faculty and president to sign a commitment form. The pledge focuses on increasing the completion rate for all students. “It’s kind of dreadful that we’ve never taken the time to explain to [students] that completion matters,” said Rod Risley, executive director of Phi Theta Kappa. “I have to sit sometimes and just think, why did it take us so long?” As part of AASCU Academic Leadership webinar series EDUCAUSE President, Diana Oblinger, will be offering a free presentation entitled “The Game Changers: Education and IT” on Monday September 19, 2011. Diana is an immensely knowledgeable and engaging presenter who has keynoted numerous meetings around this topic. She is also the national leader who helped pull together the Next Generation Learning Challenge grants which have already awarded millions of dollars in support of high quality use of learning technology in higher education. She will be joined by Dr. James L. Hilton, CIO at the University of Virginia.

The voting is open for round two of the Faculty Learning Communities (FLC) program for Academic Year 2011-12. You have whittled down the potential FLC from over 20 to nine remaining. Your voting and commitments will decide which four FLC will move forward this AY. If you are ready to make your decision, fill out the FLC enrollment form that you received via email. If you are undecided, plan to attend the FLC Expo on September 14 in rooms 621 and 622 Mary and John Gray Library (MJGL). You can come anytime between 11:30 AM and 4:30 PM and talk with an advocate for the remaining nine FLC. If you did not receive a FLC enrollment form, give us a call at 8426. Dan Apple is on campus today. His workshop this morning was terrific and he continues this afternoon through 5:00 PM in the Cardinal Club Room of the Montagne Center. The faculty who attended this morning appeared to be inspired by Dr. Apple's presentation of his process education philosophy which focuses on the development of broad, transferable learning skills. Special thanks to Dean Brenda Nichols and Exxon Mobil who made the visit possible. There is still time to register your students for the Learn to Learn workshop set for September 10 and 11 (Saturday and Sunday) by contacting Kathy Pierce in the College of Arts and Sciences. The first discussion session of the LU Journaling Program was very productive. Journalers are already benefiting from the critical reflection activity. Full commitment to the process is the key. The next discussion group session is set for October 6 at 2:00 PM in room 621 MJGL. The next opportunity to join the program will be this Friday, September 9 at 1:00 PM in 622 MJGL. Look for an email soon asking you to indicate your attendance for Dr. Linda Nilson's upcoming three workshops to be delivered on September 27 and 28.