Where’s the professor? Unfortunately, this is not an unfamiliar question on the first day of   class when a young-looking instructor is at the helm.  In this episode, Reba Wissner joins us to discuss ways of shifting student perceptions in order to get to the real work of learning. Reba is an Assistant Professor of Musicology at the Schwob School of Music of Columbus State University. She is also the author of a chapter in the Picture a Professor collection, edited by Jessamyn Neuhaus.

A transcript of this episode and show notes may be found at http://teaforteaching.com.

What does a professor look like? In popular culture the professor is white and male—a sage on the stage. In this episode Jessamyn Neuhaus joins us to discuss the role context, employment status, and embodied identity play in our teaching realities and experiences.

Jessamyn is the Director of the SUNY Plattsburgh Center for Teaching Excellence and a Professor in the History Department at SUNY Plattsburgh. She specializes in the study of pop culture, gender studies, and teaching and learning. Jasmine is also a recipient of the State University of New York's Chancellor's Award for Teaching Excellence, and the editor of Teaching History: a Journal of Methods. She's the author of Geeky Pedagogy: a Guide for Intellectuals, Introverts, and Nerds Who Want to be Effective Teachers. And Jessamyn is the editor of Picture a Professor: Interrupting Biases about Faculty and Increasing Student Learning, which will be released by West Virginia University Press this fall.

A transcript of this episode and show notes may be found at http://teaforteaching.com.

Students generally enter college to advance their employment prospects. In this episode, Jessica Kruger joins us to discuss how explicitly embedding career competencies in the curriculum can engage and motivate students. Jessica is a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Community Health and Health Behavior and is the Director of Teaching Innovation and Excellence at the University of Buffalo.

A transcript of this episode and show notes may be found at http://teaforteaching.com.

Since the start of the pandemic, there has been much discussion about student disengagement in their classes, but little discussion about why student engagement has declined. In this episode, Karen Costa joins us to discuss the role that ongoing trauma has on students and all members of the academic community.

A transcript of this episode and show notes may be found at http://teaforteaching.com.

Students sometimes see our courses as abstract, irrelevant, and separate from their lives. In this episode, Bill and Elizabeth James join us to discuss a teaching approach that explicitly connects literature with contemporary culture and students’ lived experiences. Bill and Elizabeth are both public high school teachers in Stockton, California, and the authors of A Sea of Troubles: Pairing Literary and Informational Texts to Address Social Inequality.

A transcript of this episode and show notes may be found at http://teaforteaching.com.

Faculty everywhere have been observing an increase in student reports of mental health issues during the last few years. In this episode, Katherine Wolfe-Lyga and Kyle Dzintars join us to discuss how faculty, counseling centers, and institutions can work together to better support our students during challenging times. Kate and Kyle are both New York State Licensed Mental Health Counselors. Kate is the Director of the Counseling Services Center at SUNY Oswego and Kyle is a Senior Counselor and coordinates the Counseling Outreach Peer Educators program at SUNY Oswego.

A transcript of this episode and show notes may be found at http://teaforteaching.com.

Traditional grading systems can encourage students to focus on their grades rather than on their learning, and favor continuing generation students who are more familiar with the hidden curriculum of higher ed. In this episode, Kristen Blinne joins us to discuss grading strategies that promote equity and encourage learning.

Kristen is an Associate Professor and Chair of the Communications and Media Department at the State University of New York at Oneonta. Kristen is also the editor of Grading Justice: Teacher Activist Approaches to Assessment. Judie Littlejohn, the Instructional Designer at Genesee Community College and a frequent guest on the podcast, joins us again as a guest host. 

A transcript of this episode and show notes may be found at http://teaforteaching.com.

The informal culture of some academic departments can facilitate an atmosphere of mutual mistrust between faculty and students. In this episode, Cate Denial joins us to discuss how a culture of suspicion can be replaced by a pedagogy of kindness. Cate is the Bright Distinguished Professor of the History Department and the Director of the Bright Institute at Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois. Cate is the 2018 to 2021 Distinguished Lecturer for the Organization of American Historians and the recipient of the American Historical Association’s 2018 Eugene Asher Distinguished Teaching Award. She is the author of A Pedagogy of Kindness, which will be released as part of the West Virginia University Press’ superb series of books on teaching and learning.

A transcript of this episode and show notes may be found at http://teaforteaching.com.

Faculty who have spent the past 18 months teaching during a global pandemic often report that they are experiencing burnout. In this episode, Kristin Croyle joins us to discuss the causes and symptoms of burnout and strategies that individuals and campus leaders can use to reduce faculty burnout.  Kristen is a psychologist and the Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at SUNY Oswego.

A transcript of this episode and show notes may be found at http://teaforteaching.com.

Student use of mobile technology can enrich student learning experiences, but can also interfere with the focused attention that is essential for learning. In this episode, Michelle Miller examine how we can talk to students about technology in ways that will help them become more efficient in their learning and professional lives.

Michelle is a Professor of Psychological Sciences and a President's Distinguished Teaching Fellow at Northern Arizona University. Dr. Miller's academic background is in cognitive psychology research. Her research interests include memory, attention and student success in the early college career.

Michelle is the author of Minds Online: Teaching Effectively with Technology, and has written about evidence-based pedagogy in scholarly as well as general interest publications. She's currently working on her newest book, Remembering and Forgetting in the Age of Technology: What the Science of Memory Tells us about Teaching and Learning in a Wired World, scheduled as part of the West Virginia University series on teaching and learning.

A transcript of this episode and show notes may be found at http://teaforteaching.com.