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CELT Newsletter
Summer 2010 
  

Linda Jarvin

Letter from
the Director
Welcome back to all returning faculty, and a warm welcome to any new faculty joining us this fall! We hope that your summer was that ideal mix of relaxing and productive, and that you feel ready for a new academic year. I spent a good deal of time in Africa this summer with colleagues from Tufts' health sciences schools, getting ready for the second year of implementation of the RESPOND project. A great opportunity to meet with, and learn from, faculty at different institutions.

This year marks the 5th offering of the CELT Faculty Fellows Seminar which will begin in September.
This program has now served almost 50 Tufts Faculty, and has become one of our signature programs. Visit the CELT website to read more about it!

We are excited to begin a new semester, and look forward to learning more with you.

Linda Jarvin

 
 Upcoming Events

Mark your calendars now, and check our website for details as the date approaches:

Annual Tufts University-Wide Teaching Conference, Medford campus, December 10th

Annual Tisch Library Tools for tenure workshop, Medford campus, November 5th

TUSM Workshop:

Giving and Receiving Constructive Feedback: How to Provide Learners with Useful Feedback While Receiving Useful Feedback on Your Teaching

Mon., Nov. 15, 1-3 pm
Contact Sharon Freeman for more information or to Register.
In the News

Refreshing or Creating a Syllabus
 
"Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?"
"That depends a good deal on where you want to get to..."

(Alice in Wonderland, Chapter VI, p. 64, Carroll, 1960)

Summer is drawing to a close, and it's time to dust off last year's syllabus and try to remember all of those enhancements to your course that were going to be brilliant. What were they again? In this issue of the newsletter we touch on a few ideas for how you might enhance your syllabus. The cyclical nature of teaching offers faculty continuing opportunities to strengthen their teaching, and this is often reflected in the evolution of the course syllabus. These improvements are informed not only by experience but also through interpreting student feedback.

While in the past, the syllabus was often viewed as a contract, most faculty today view it as another teaching tool. When well-designed, it can be used to shift your course from teacher centered to  learner centered.

Developing a Syllabus for the First Time

building blocks
For those who are new to teaching, it is helpful to review the process of developing a syllabus. The basic design of a syllabus is rather simple, though the style and specific elements included might vary somewhat by school or discipline. On the CELT website there is a single page reminder of the basic elements of a syllabus. 

Also on the CELT website, there are some sample syllabi from Tufts faculty. In addition, some Tufts faculty who have taught the Tufts University Seminars have developed online syllabi, with links to the readings, videos and other useful resources as well as weekly postings by students. You can contact us at CELT if you would like more information about those courses.

It can also be helpful to ask faculty in your department for their syllabi, and to look online for other courses similar to yours. Sources like Open Course Ware (OCW) make it easier than ever to compare readings as well as teaching and assessment strategies. Why reinvent the wheel?

 
Common Syllabus/Teaching Dilemmas

"Students just don't do the required reading"

One of the most common concerns we hear from faculty is how to get students to read course materials. Some research (link below) shows that undergraduate students read about 30% of the materials on the syllabus. How can we increase this number? Some of the strategies that Tufts faculty have found effective are:

1. limit the number of pages per week to 100
2. list readings in order of importance rather than list all as "required"
3. vary the types of reading that you assign
4. create either online or in class discussions or activities that force students to reflect on, or respond to, the readings

Click on the following link for more tips for increasing reading compliance.

"Should I grade participation or not?"

This is often debated - while some think that assigning a percentage, often between 10 and 20% of the grade for class participation will promote participation, others are not at all convinced. There are pros and cons to each argument. At CELT, we would recommend that you think about what constitutes participation, and that you explicitly define it for your students, including your rationale for expecting it. The more varied the opportunities for students to participate, the more equitable this requirement will be. For example, a shy student, or a student whose first language is not English, might have a good bit to contribute, but thinking on the spot is not easy for him or her. Some alternative forms for participation might be:

  • on line responses to the readings
  • small group conversations
  • allowing students a few minutes to write down their responses before calling on the "first responder."
"I get stuck doing the same thing every year - lecturing."

Another common struggle is how to create active learning opportunities in the classroom. Sometimes we get stuck in "lecture mode." It can seem like a lot of work to develop new learning activities in the classroom, but there are many simple ways to switch gears and to facilitate learning in new ways. For some ideas on how to create more active learning opportunities in the classroom,  open our tip sheet on active learning.
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For some more tips for improving your syllabus, read this Chronicle of Higher Education article.

And to see some lectures by some of the world's foremost scholars,  look at these "Syllabus Samplers"  highlighted in the New York Times.

While in the space available we can only pique your interest, the CELT staff is always happy to consult with you or provide you with more information. Please email us at [email protected].
________________________________________
Carroll, L (1960.) Alice's adventure in wonderland and through the looking glass. New York: Penguin Signet Classic.

Annie

The Center for the Enhancement of Learning and Teaching (CELT)  is a division of the Office of the Provost,  and is a resource for teaching-related initiatives on all three campuses at Tufts University. Please visit our website or email us to find out more about what we offer!  For an up-to-date listing of seminars and workshops, as well as other resources, please visit our website.
 
Annie Soisson, Senior Teaching and Learning Specialist