News Roundup: Student Feedback for Course Design

This week, see how some colleges are using student feedback to help shape their courses.

How Students Can Shape the Design of Their Courses
At the University of Dayton, students helped redesign Principles of Oral Communication by providing reactions to readings, offering midsemester feedback, and participating in exit interviews about the content. Other institutions are also finding that faculty are receiving fresh ideas about content and delivery by seeking feedback from students. (The Chronicle of Higher Education)

On ‘Experiential Learning’
Traditional academic learning has greater long-term benefits than experiential learning does, John Kijinski argues. He contends that while the latter may be valuable, these experiences should not displace classroom time in which instructors equip students with the ability to grapple with intellectual challenges. (Inside Higher Ed)

The Difference Between Being Qualified and Being Prepared
Many students begin college with a surface-level proficiency in writing, but poor preparation, John Warner writes. Once they experience writing as a quest for self-discovery outside of the confines of a rubric or standardized test, he argues, students are able to enjoy the process more and improve their craft. (Just Visiting)

The Introverted Student Online
Citing studies on introverted learners, Oliver Dreon offers thoughts instructors should bear in mind when working with introverts. For instance, he suggests that online courses are the ideal environment for introverted student to be successful, because they have the opportunity to connect with similar learners and participate at their personal pace while enjoying the solitude they need. (The 8 Blog)

How to Reach Out to First-Generation Students
Recounting his own struggles as a first-generation college student, Brian Payne describes the benefits of mentoring programs like Old Dominion University’s First Gen to Faculty. In the program, students learn how to navigate higher education under the guidance of faculty, who, like them, were first-generation students. (The Chronicle of Higher Education)

This Is How a Scholar Behaves
According to David Gooblar, pedagogical goals should drive an instructor’s teaching persona. He writes that instructors should model their preferred intellectual virtues and search for ways to encourage students to follow suit. (Vitae)