Director’s Column
Written by: Nardina Mein
It’s been a busy semester at the OTL! I would like to take a moment to thank members of the WSU faculty who have devoted their time and insight by presenting on a variety of topics. The OTL is dedicated to providing the best and most relevant programming to support teaching and learning at Wayne State, and we are very pleased to enrich our offerings with presentations from our distinguished faculty. I’d like to use this issue’s column as an opportunity to highlight the wonderful work being presented by WSU faculty and encourage you to attend future sessions.
On February 5th, Dr. Mame Jackson of the Art and Art History Department gave an inspiring talk entitled Opening Doors Between the Classroom and the Community, and provided attendees with practical information about incorporating community-based projects into courses. Dr. Jackson offered insights on how Service Learning and community engagement can be embedded into the scholarly curriculum of the university. Dr. Heather Dillaway from the Sociology department presented Thoughts on How to be Both Rigorous and Flexible in the Classroom, on February 19th. Dr. Dillaway explained the many ways she engages students, including requiring students to participate in a number of activities and complete multiple writing assignments throughout the semester.
Recordings of both Dr. Jackson’s and Dr. Dillaway’s talks and a schedule of future faculty presentations are available on the OTL web site. On March 19th, Dr. Abigail Butler, from Music will explain how she motivates students with student-centered teaching. April 4, Dr. Tim Spannaus from the Instructional Technology Program will discuss Simulations for Classroom Use. And to wrap up the semester, on April 8th, we are welcoming Dr. Michael Barbour from the Instructional Technology Program. He will present Today’s Student: Deciphering What’s Real.
To complement our emphasis on the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL), we are also bringing in an outside speaker, Dr. Tara Gray, Professor of Criminal Justice and Director of the Teaching Academy at New Mexico State University. Dr. Gray will be conducting a speical workshop for faculty: Publish and Flourish: Quadruple Your Productivity in Just 15-30 minutes a Day. Response to this offering has been overwhelming and we are very excited about Dr. Gray's workshop!
We look forward to seeing you at the presentations planned for the rest of the semester!
Nardina N. Mein, PhDDirector, New Media & Information Technology
Interim Director, Office for Teaching & Learning
dina.mein@wayne.edu
(313) 577-6512