Weekly News and Tip, September 25, 2008

Tip - Peer Instruction in the Lecture Setting
Last week's Tip concerned collaborative learning; one instance of this kind of learning involves peers learning from one another. But can this method work in a large class setting? Alan Slavin, an instructor at Ontario's Trent University, says it can. See his suggestions.

Announcements - CELT Events
Register via AccessPlus > HRS Training > Continue > Courses.
Contact us at 294-5357 or celt@iastate.edu if you have difficulty using AccessPlus.

• Learn to use PowerPoint to improve student learning at PowerPoint 2007 I: Creating Effective Presentations for the Classroom, Tuesday, Sept. 30, 1:10-3 p.m., in 1230 Communications.
• A session specifically for graduate students, Graduate Student Programming: Preparing for Academic Interviews, will be held Thursday, Oct. 2, from 3:30-5 p.m. in 169 Hamilton Hall.
• What is Scholarship of Teaching and Learning? Find out at a brown-bag session, Monday, Oct. 6, from 12:10-1:30 p.m. in 2030 Morrill.

FYI - Joan Williams, Expert on Work-Life Conflict, on Campus October 9; ISU Museum Events

• Don't miss Joan Williams' presentations on work-life balance, Thursday, Oct. 9. Dr. Williams, who will be on campus for the ADVANCE conference, is a law professor and author of Unbending Gender: Why Family and Work Conflict and What to Do About it (Oxford, 2000). Please register via AccessPlus by Monday, Oct. 6 for these events, all to be held in the Memorial Union Pioneer Room:
• 8:30-10 a.m. -- Work-Life Issues for Post-docs at Iowa State: A Workshop, or, “How to Have a Successful Career that Doesn’t Devour Your Life!”
• 10:30 a.m.-12 noon, or 1:30-3 p.m. -- Work-Life Issues for Graduate Students at Iowa State: A Workshop, or, “How to Have a Successful Career that Doesn’t Devour Your Life!”
• 3:30- 4:30 p.m. -- “Why Family and Work Conflict and What to do About It”
• Creative Process: The Relationship Between Images and Language, featuring poetry readings related to the current Ramos Rivera exhibit, today, Thursday, Sept. 25, 7 p.m., Christian Petersen Art Museum.
  Also, bring your family to the Brunnier Art Museum, Christian Petersen Art Museum, or Farm House Museum Saturday and Sunday, September 27-28, from 1-4 p.m., to view Sculpture by Priscilla Sage, Paintings, Prints, and Art Books by Gustavo Ramos Rivera, and Farm House Fun. Choose one work of art to vote on as your Family Favorite. Each participating family will be entered in a drawing for a family year-long membership to University Museums.

Weekly News and Tip, August 21, 2008

What's This?
The CELT Weekly News and Tip email is sent each Thursday during the academic year. It contains a teaching tip, often related to issues that arise at a particular point in the semester; announcements of workshops and seminars; and other information useful for your teaching life. If you are receiving the Weekly News and Tip for the first time, welcome to Iowa State! If you wish not to receive this email or to receive it via a different email address, please contact celt@iastate.edu.

Tip - Be Ready for the First Day
As you assemble syllabi and prepare opening-day notes, be sure to note these ways of creating a positive learning environment at the start of the semester. These are CELT tips that have been linked by college and university teaching centers across the U.S. See:

• Create a positive learning environment on day one of the semester
• Course Planning

Announcements - Revised TA Handbook is Online and in Print; New CELT Workshops To Be Online Soon

• New TAs received a new edition of the Teaching Assistant Handbook: Advice for New Teachers, which has been brought up to date by CELT program assistant Karen Bovenmyer. Other TAs and their supervisors can access an electronic copy, including expanded information for international TAs.
• Some of CELT's Fall 2008 workshops are already on line, and more are on their way.

FYI - FERPA Reminder
As the year begins, keep in mind your students' right to privacy under the FERPA act. Learn what ISU faculty and staff need to know.

Invigorate Your Classes with Interactive Activities and WebCT

You can enhance large lecture classes by incorporating small-group interactive activities to supplement your instruction and energize students. Dr. Jim Colbert, Associate Professor of Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology, aims to provide one or two such activities per class.

Watch the 12-minute clip to see Dr. Colbert lead an interactive small group activity in Biology 202.

See how the activity boosts student involvement, while helping the students develop critical thinking and teamwork skills.

Also learn how to take the discovery process one step further by using WebCT to share students' ideas with the larger group, and to acknowledge and reward participation.

Note: You will need RealPlayer to view these video clips. If you do not have RealPlayer, you can get a free download at www.real.com.

If RealPlayer does not automatically launch these clips, they may have been downloaded to your desktop.