Faculty Learning Communities
Call for participants
The deadline to apply for 2012/13 Faculty Learning Communities is Friday August 24. To apply, please complete the online application.
Faculty Learning Communities (FLCs) are cross-disciplinary groups of faculty, numbering roughly 8 to 12 members, engaged in active, collaborative learning throughout the academic year around a specific theme and toward defined outcomes. At MSU Denver, FLCs vary by theme or by cohort, but they all have in common a connection to the University’s teaching mission along with a commitment to taking scholarly approaches toward meeting that mission. Please visit the page Highlights From Past FLCs to get a taste of what past FLCs have accomplished. Additional general information about FLCs, including references to the scholarship supporting their effectiveness, is found here.
Below is a list of ongoing FLCs offered for the 2012/13 academic year. By clicking on the titles you will open full descriptions and details for each.
2012/'13 MSU Denver Faculty Learning Communities:
Early Career Faculty
Facilitator: Mark Potter, Center for Faculty Development
Open to all tenure-track faculty, members of this FLC will collaborate to establish the groundwork for their long-term and systematic professional growth and development. Participants in this FLC will select a “focus course” during both fall and spring semesters in which they will apply and assess approaches to scholarly teaching. Participants will decide on a culminating project, which might be a series of course portfolios or annotated syllabi showcasing the intellectual work that goes into their teaching, conference presentation(s), or article(s).
Meeting times are from 10-noon at the CFD on the following Fridays (please note the planned location change for the CFD between the first and second meeting. All subsequent meetings will be in the CFD classroom) 9/7, 9/28, 10/19, 11,9, 11/30, 1/25, 2/15, 3/8, 4/5, 4/26.
Universal Design for Learning
Facilitator: Elizabeth Kleinfeld (English) and Lunden MacDonald (Modern Languages)
Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is one of the newest buzzwords in best practices for college teaching. There is a lot of confusion around the concept, however: UDL is often mistaken only as a set of pedagogical strategies aimed at providing access for disadvantaged or differently-abled students. In fact, UDL strategies are intended to enhance engagement and content access for all students. In this FLC, we will explore UDL applications across disciplines, and we will implement and assess UDL strategies in our classes. Scholarly outcomes, which might include journal article(s) or conference presentation(s), will be determined by the group.
Meeting times are from 11am to 1:30pm on the following Fridays: 9/14 (Auraria Library), all future meetings will be in the CFD classroom or conference room: 10/5, 11/9, 12/7, 2/1, 2/15, 3/22, 4/12.
Service Learning
Facilitators: Ana-Maria Medina (Modern Languages) and Sheila Rucki (Political Science)
Service Learning is a powerful instructional approach that combines learning in and out of the classroom, community engagement, and reflection. The potential for disciplinary learning, growth, and development are strong when students are engaged in well designed service learning experiences. Members of this FLC will work together to deepen their understanding of service learning, develop or enhance service learning components within their course(s), and produce a syllabus and service learning assessments for a course to be offered in AY 2013/14. Scholarly outcomes, which might include journal article(s) or conference presentation(s), will be determined by the group.
Meeting times are from 9am-11am on the following Thursdays: 9/6, 9/27, 10/18, 11/8, 11/29. September meetings will take place in the upstairs conference room of the Golda Meir Center. Beginning in October the FLC will meet in the CFD classroom. Spring dates TBD.
Teaching for Lifelong Learning
Facilitators: Carol Jensen and Michelle Tollefson (Health Professions)
Many college teachers seek to cultivate the skills and mindset for lifelong learning among students. Sometimes this goal is perceived to be at odds with competing pressures like covering content and meeting external accreditation demands. Yet there are evidence-based approaches that will allow us to accomplish both in our classes without setting up the false choices of a zero-sum game. Members of this FLC will explore, apply, and assess course design options and specific teaching techniques that deepen learning while building appreciation for the subject matter. Group members will have the chance to determine the format and venue(s) in which results will be shared.
Meeting times are from 1-3pm on the following Wednesdays: 9/5 (location TBA), 9/19 (location TBA), all future meetings will be in the CFD classroom: 10/3, 10/31, 12/5, 1/23, 2/20, 3/20, 4/24.
Science Literacy in Introductory Science Courses
Facilitator: Keah Schuenemann (Earth and Atmospheric Sciences)
Members of this FLC will explore scholarly approaches to teaching science literacy in college science classrooms. What if we taught our lower-division introductory science courses as the LAST science course our students will ever take? How can we prepare our non-science majors to use science, logic, math, technology, and skeptical, critical thinking in their everyday lives as citizens? We will explore these questions through scholarly inquiry, while each participant will integrate a new method of teaching science into their courses and assess the results.
Meeting times are from 10-12 on the following Fridays: 9/7 - SI 2049, 9/21 - SI 2049, all future meetings will be in CFD conference room: 10/12, 11/2, 11/30, 1/25, 2/15, 3/15, 4/12, 5/3.
