Dr. Penny MacCormack has been everywhere. From Los Angeles to Indianapolis to New York to Miami, she has traveled the country observing classrooms and speaking with subject matter experts through her role as ACUE’s chief academic officer.

Dr. MacCormack discussed her travels last month for the podcast Teaching in Higher Ed with host Bonni Stachowiak. Recounting what she and her team learned as they built ACUE’s Course in Effective Teaching Practices, Dr. MacCormack highlighted just some of the campuses, faculty, and experts she encountered along the way.

Here’s a recap of the episode:

At the University of Arizona, Dr. John Pollard and several faculty colleagues have spearheaded the Collaborative Learning Space Project, which is transforming traditional classrooms and library spaces into learning environments suited for classes centered on active learning approaches. Dr. Pollard is a featured expert in two modules, including Using Active Learning Techniques in Large Classes, in which one of his students shares how the class has affected her learning: “I’m awake in this class, because I’m engaged with everything we’re doing.”

John Pollard, associate professor of Practice, Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of Arizona, has helped transform traditional classrooms into active learning environments

In Indianapolis, Butler University’s Tara Lineweaver showcased a technique she calls the “Fishbowl Discussion,” which she used to launch discussions and increase student participation in her class. Dr. Lineweaver attributed a culture of accountability, created in part from Fishbowl Discussions, to the fact that all of her students regularly come to class prepared and having done the assigned reading. “They don’t want to let their peers down,” Dr. MacCormack explained.

Butler University’s Tara Lineweaver, left, looks on as students participate in a “fishbowl” discussion

In New York City, Goucher College President Dr. José Bowen spoke about the power of a growth mindset. When students believe they can learn, he said, they will actually become smarter. “The belief that you can learn is the most powerful tool on the planet,” Dr. MacCormack said. Dr. Bowen’s expertise is featured in three course modules, including Engaging Underprepared Students and Embracing Diversity in Your Classroom.

At California State University, Los Angeles, Kristina Ruiz-Mesa emphasized that many her students feel challenged by learning and underscored how important it is to reassure students that this is a normal part of the learning process. “Struggle in learning is natural,” Dr. MacCormack said. “That’s how we achieve at those higher levels.”

A new study finds that students prefer authentic instructors, and professors use current events and controversial rhetoric as teaching tools.

Study on Students and “Authenticity” in the Classroom
Students perceive instructors who share details about their personal lives, admit mistakes, and show concern for students as more approachable, passionate, attentive, and effective than those who don’t. (Inside Higher Ed)

ACUE’s Learning Design Earns Quality Matters Certification
Quality Matters (QM), a leader in quality assurance of online and blended learning, has awarded its nationally recognized Quality Matters Certification to ACUE’s Course in Effective Teaching Practices. (The Q Blog)

Pretense of Neutrality: Twitter, Digital Literacy, and First-Year Writing
In an effort to teach students to understand different viewpoints, Trevor Hoag had students analyze the rhetoric and arguments of people and groups representing a range of perspectives on Twitter. (Hybrid Pedagogy)

Combating Initiative Fatigue: Unifying Student Success Initiatives
Student success initiatives can be more effective when institutions define what student success means for them, create a path towards achieving it, establish clear goals and measures, communicate effectively, and celebrate progress along the way. (EdSurge)

In the News, and In the Classroom
Duncan Dobbelman encourages institutions to offer brief “pop-up” courses based on current and controversial events, which would promote cross-disciplinary skills such as research, analysis, collaboration, and creativity, give students a forum for sustained discussion, and encourage active engagement with world events. (The Chronicle of Higher Education)

You Can’t Automate Good Teaching
Technology can’t replace human instructors, because education isn’t predictable and requires instructors to adjust their lessons based on student’s reactions and interactions, Jonathan Rees writes. (Vitae)

Partner News

ACE: The Interrelatedness of Instructional Quality, Student Outcomes, and Institutional Finances (ACE)

University of Southern Mississippi: Faculty Recognized for Achievements at Awards Recognition Ceremony (Southern Miss Now)

Quality Matters (QM), a leader in quality assurance of online and blended learning, has awarded its nationally recognized Quality Matters Certification to the Association of College and University Educators’ (ACUE) Course in Effective Teaching Practices. Following QM’s in-depth evaluation process, ACUE earned an exemplary score across all criteria.

QM reviewers commended ACUE’s course design, noting that learning objectives, content, and activities progress from foundational to higher levels of learning with relevance to both novice and more advanced instructors. They noted that faculty must apply what they learn and think critically about the pedagogical knowledge and skills they acquire. The comprehensiveness and quality of course content and variety of teaching styles from different instructors presented in instructional videos were praised as a “great strength.”

Reviewers also praised the course’s technical design, noting its engaging structure and how all course elements have a clean and consistent feel that keeps learners focused and progressing through the content. Video streams were found to be of an appropriate length. Interactive elements, such as faculty group discussions, aided in enhancing instruction.

“It’s an honor to earn the Quality Matters Certification. It represents ACUE’s continued commitment to providing college and university educators with the highest quality preparation to teach well and help their students succeed,” said ACUE’s Chief Academic Officer Penny MacCormack. “We carefully designed ACUE’s course on the latest research in cognition and adult learning. In the course, faculty collaborate and gain feedback from an expert in instruction. Also, engagement triggers and surveys activate prior knowledge. Discussions of virtual classroom observations prompt higher order thinking. Final assignments ensure that faculty both know about and implement proven instructional techniques. QM’s review provides an important benchmark that the course meets the quality design standards.”

Deb Adair, executive director of QM, said, “Congratulations to ACUE for their achievement in developing a quality learning experience for their educators. The QM Certification is the successful result of a quality peer review process based on rigorous quality standards. ACUE’s course certification for Effective Teaching Practices represents a commitment to continuous improvement, to openness, and to excellence.”

About Quality Matters

Quality Matters (QM) is an international non-profit organization that provides tools and professional development for quality assurance in online and blended learning. When you see the QM Certification Mark on a course or a program, it means that course has successfully met QM Rubric Standards for Course Design in an official course review.

About ACUE’s Course in Effective Teaching Practices

ACUE’s Course in Effective Teaching Practices prepares college educators to implement the evidence-based teaching approaches shown to improve student outcomes. This comprehensive offering includes 25 learning modules that address over 200 evidence-based teaching practices, organized into five units of study: designing an effective course and class; establishing a productive learning environment; using active learning techniques; promoting higher order thinking; and assessing to inform instruction and promote learning. Educators who satisfy course requirements earn a Certificate in Effective College Instruction endorsed by the American Council on Education (ACE). Visit acue.org/course to learn more.

Both new and longtime instructors share their tips for other educators, and one professor offers advice for reducing fail rates.

Five Things I Wish I’d Known in My First Semester as a Professor
A seasoned professor shares suggestions for new instructors, including the importance of learning about campus culture and forming relationships with colleagues, students, and others in the community. (Robert Talbert)

Who Chose to Fail?
Kevin Gannon writes about the importance of effective pedagogy in the teaching of introductory history classes to reverse typically high failure rates.  (The Tattooed Prof)

First Time Teaching
A first-time instructor describes techniques to ensure success as a teaching assistant. (GradHacker)

Do Your Students Learn by Rote? Or Do They Recognize Patterns?
Professors at Washington University in St. Louis developed a method of identifying patterns in students’ thinking that could predict their performance in STEM subjects. (The Chronicle of Higher Education-Paywall)

Teams: Lessons Learned
Margaret Andrews shares lessons her students learned from a teamwork assignment, such as the reality that there will always be conflict and the need to pay attention to one another. (StratEDgy)

Washington Prisoners Get a Chance to Pursue Two-Year Degrees
Citing research that shows adults who receive postsecondary education while incarcerated are less likely to recidivate, Washington state is expanding an initiative to offer prisoners associate’s degrees and certificate instruction funded by the Department of Corrections. (Campus Technology)

The Trouble with Summer
As she describes how she shifts gears for the summer, Bonni Stachowiak recommends reading that has informed her teaching, including Stephen Brookfield’s Becoming a Critically Reflective Teacher. (Teaching in Higher Ed)

Partner News

Housatonic Community College Spearheads CSCU System Initiative to Promote Student Success Through Instructional Excellence
This month, HCC faculty earned a first-of-its-kind Certificate in Effective College Instruction, a nationally recognized credential endorsed by the American Council on Education (ACE). They are among the first educators across the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities (CSCU) system to complete the program, which includes participation in a comprehensive pedagogical training course offered through ACUE. (HCC News)

The Interrelatedness of Instructional Quality, Student Outcomes, and Institutional Finances
On June 15th, ACE will hold a webinar to discuss its latest white paper, which examines how improvement in instruction leads to better student outcomes, which in turn can lead to increased revenue for institutions. (ACE)

[This news release originally appeared on Housatonic Community College’s news site and is being published here with permission]

Commencement Day for Housatonic Community College is around the corner, but students aren’t the only academics to earn distinction.

This month, HCC faculty earned a first-of-its-kind Certificate in Effective College Instruction, a nationally recognized credential endorsed by the American Council on Education (ACE). They are among the first educators across The Connecticut State Colleges and Universities system to complete the program, which includes participation in a comprehensive pedagogical training course offered through ACUE.

“Our exceptional faculty and staff embrace any opportunity to ensure HCC students acquire the skills and knowledge they need in the workplace and as lifelong learners,” said Michael B. Brown, academic dean at Housatonic Community College. “I commend their enthusiastic participation in ACUE’s program, which once again demonstrates their deep commitment to student success.”

HCC is one of four state institutions that piloted ACUE’s Course in Effective Teaching Practices this semester as part of CSCU’s system-wide initiative to promote student success through instructional excellence. CSCU’s initiative to scale effective instruction for all 85,000 of the system’s students is based on decades of research that show evidence-based teaching practices help students engage in their studies, learn more, and graduate.

The program brought together HCC faculty across a range of disciplines, from engineering, to journalism, to psychology. The cohort of faculty not only learned about research-based instructional practices; they also worked together to implement the practices in the classroom, which faculty said immediately impacted student learning and engagement.

Laura Turiano, an assistant professor of psychology and course participant, said she implemented a “jigsaw” technique to create a more active learning environment in her class. Not only were students more engaged during the lessons, but they also performed better on assessments.

“It was amazing! The classroom was abuzz with lively discussions and you could really feel that vibe in the classroom,” said Turiano, a recipient of the CSCU Board of Regents 2017 Teaching Award. “Their mini-presentations were comprehensive and informative and they performed better on this chapter quiz as a result compared to students in the course last semester.”

To earn a Certificate, faculty completed over two dozen modules across five major units of study aligned to ACUE’s Effective Practice Framework. The Course addresses over 200 evidence-based practices on topics including syllabus design, student motivation and persistence, active learning techniques, higher order thinking, and the effective use of assessments.

“As the facilitator for the course and the college faculty development coordinator, I was excited to see faculty not only trying new strategies but also engaging in meaningful discussions about their classroom successes and challenges,” said Steve Mark, professor of English and director of the Center for Teaching at Housatonic Community College. “This was true for both our newer teachers and the more seasoned professors. These conversations spilled out of the online course and into our interactions on campus, helping to support ongoing professional development through our Center for Teaching and our commitment to making good teachers great.”

Professor Laura Turiano knew she needed to try something different.

Turiano and the students in her human services class at Housatonic Community College (HCC) were about to begin a unit on social welfare programs. In past semesters, the unit left many students overwhelmed with the amount of information they needed to retain.

“I used to stand up in front of the classroom and lecture about all these programs,” Turiano recalled in an interview on campus this month.

This spring, Turiano decided to “make students the experts.” Applying a jigsaw exercise she learned from ACUE’s Using Active Learning Techniques unit, Turiano broke students into small groups and assigned each group a social welfare program to research and present to their peers in class.

“The classroom was alive,” said Turiano. “It became this lively discussion with the students recording all of this information. There was this voracious quest for knowledge.”

Turiano is among the founding faculty cohort at HCC to earn a Certificate in Effective College Instruction. Click here to learn more about ACUE’s partnership with HCC and the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities system.

Watch the full interview with Turiano below:

For Loretta Lloyd-Ebron, one of Turiano’s students, the approach was “totally different” from what she was used to in her other classes.

“It was amazing,” said Lloyd-Ebron. “The classroom changed. We were talking, discussing, writing, piggybacking off of each other. It was a really great experience.”

This week, a report highlights how culturally responsive teaching techniques can boost student achievement, and one professor describes the benefits of using music in the classroom.

Delivering an Effective Lecture Through a Student’s Lens
Stephen Brookfield describes a variety of methods for engaging students through lectures. (The Q Blog)

Educating the Public on the Value of a College Degree
ACE President Molly Corbett Broad encourages the higher education community to remind the public of the benefits of a college degree, pointing to studies that suggest that college graduates are more economically and socially successful than their peers. (The Chronicle of Higher Education—Paywall)

Culturally Responsive Developmental Education
A new report shows that using culturally responsive teaching techniques and incorporating an integrated curriculum may boost student achievement in developmental courses. (Inside Higher Ed)

Indiana’s Active-Learning Mosaic Expands
An initiative at Indiana University gives instructors more freedom to use active-learning techniques to bolster engagement and encourage student collaboration. (Inside Higher Ed)

How to Cut Time to Degree
Leonard Cassuto discusses various universities’ approaches to helping doctoral students finish their degrees in shorter time spans. (Vitae)

Music in the Classroom
Doug McKee suggests that instructors incorporate music into their classrooms, noting that even when the songs don’t directly connect to the course content, they can still improve the overall mood and increase students’ energy. (Teach Better)

Partner news

University of Southern Mississippi: USM Faculty Members Complete Development Institute for Spring 2017 (Southern Miss Now)

University of Nevada-Reno: The Innevation Center Fosters Community, Promotes Entrepreneurialism (Nevada Today)