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Open Access Journal in Education

October 12, 2015 By Ayesha in PFP15F No Comments

One of the Open access journals in education is the Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (JoSoTL), founded in 2001 and housed at Indiana University. The journal is published six times a year and its main focus is to provide a forum of education sharing for a community of teacher-scholars. It is peer reviewed and its objective is to publish data- driven articles that are both quantitative and qualitative (literature reviews, case studies, essays…). Its goal is to promote scholarship of teaching and learning of investigations that are supported by theory and evidence based.

The journal promotes an open access policy and states their policy on their website:

Open Access Policy

This journal provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge.

The journal aims to provide quality information as well as promotes credible information sharing practices. It positions itself in the open access movement by promoting effective practices as well as knowledge base in teaching and learning. Additionally, the aim is to provide free access to knowledge for everyone.

Know Your Biases…

October 12, 2015 By Ayesha in GEDI15F 13 Comments

As mentioned in my previous post that meeting students and knowing your audience is important. As a teacher, professional and a human being it is important that we know who we are, what good and bad we bring with us where ever we go (especially in to the classrooms) and that we are aware of our biases…and I believe we all have them, but we may not know or want to know them.

If you have not seen this TedTalk: I highly encourage you to watch “Verna Myers – How to overcome our biases? Walk boldly towards them”. I watched this video as part of an implicit bias training for my assistantship at the Student Success Center this semester. What I learned from video is that we are all hard wired to see certain things and act a certain way without even knowing that we are doing them, because from a young age we have been trained to do it that way. Myer calls it personal biases (implicit or explicit). These biases can impact the way we view students (who performs well and those who do not even before they are given a chance to perform) – Steele also calls it Stigmatization. She encourages us to get “uncomfortable before you get comfortable).

So here are few aspects I believe are important in knowing who you are and what you bring to the classroom:

1) Be reflective: before you even get to the classroom-reflect on who you are, what do people see when they see you and what can you do about it (certain aspects we can control but others we can’t- know what they are). Find out what your biases are: towards what you teach and towards the people who are in your classroom.

2) Be observant: how do people react when you speak, are you using inclusive language or do you always favor one gender, race or group over another when providing examples (who are you including and who are you excluding).

3) Be transparent: if you recognize that you bring certain biases, acknowledge them and be open and honest with the students and ask them to help you learn (like: hey-I speak as a woman but you may have different experiences, I have always done it this way, but that does not mean this is the only way…etc.). When you are transparent and honest, students begin to see you as them, as humans, as individuals and are more willing to give you chances.

Change Towards the Culture of Peer Review…

September 28, 2015 By Ayesha in PFP15F 1 Comment

I read this interesting article in the Chronicle of Higher Education titled “Academic Social Network Hopes to Change the Culture of Peer Review” . The article focuses on creating a peer review network for journals, to be released soon to the public. Its aim is to replicate what already happens at conferences (reviewing scholarly journals), but this will allow more timely feedback, less time spend on traveling and a larger audience that can provide feedback to the authors.

Although there are many critics of this system, I believe that it’s a new and innovative way of connecting young scholars to others. Additionally, not everyone can afford to go to conferences (monetarily and time restrictions), so this allows for cheaper, quicker feedback.

Do you buy into Academia.edu’s peer review culture shift ?

My Teaching Style…

September 28, 2015 By Ayesha in GEDI15F 5 Comments

Not everyone can teach well. Many people believe that if you have the right credentials and mastery of subject, then you can teach others. I disagree, I believe that teaching is a skill and like any other skills if you practice it the right way , you get better at it. One may not start of well, but with appropriate training, knowledge about the teaching practices and opportunity to practice can make anyone a good teacher (including self awareness).

For the past year I have been teaching a class at VT and reflecting back on how I am in a classroom setting has given me a slight Idea of what kind of a teacher I am and ways in which I am changing. I have learned that listening is as important in the classroom as teaching. Actively listening to my students (within the classroom and outside) has allowed me to get informal feedback about what they are learning and what they are not learning. Professor Fowler’s- “Passion, Preparation, and Energy” really resonates with me as I continue to develop my presence in my classroom. Before I enter my classroom I always think of “choose your attitude”. One’s attitude has an impact on others and in a classroom setting I am always a role model (whether I agree or not)  and if my attitude is negative, towards what I am teaching, than subconsciously it will transfer to my audience.

Early last year I struggled with some of same questions that Sarah Deel posed (How do I create a professional relationship with my students? Can I maintain authority and treat students fairly while striving for them to like me? Where should the boundaries be? How do the students see me?…) I soon realized that it was not just about the students and the ways in which they viewed me as a teacher, but it was more about how I viewed myself as one. If I am comfortable with who I am as an individual then it is easier to not think about the rest.

Over the time I also realized that it is good to be flexible; flexible with the ways in which I teach, the content I hope to cover in a given class session and flexible in the ways that I evaluate each of my students. I have also realized that students have varying needs and some are more involved and invested than others. Therefore, I need to invest differently in each student based on their needs. I recognize that I am really good at building one on one relationships with individuals as opposed to large group settings. Therefore, each semester I have all of my students meet with me at least once a semester. This allows me to learn about them, their interests outside of the classroom and learn from them. As a result my students are more engaged in class and some stay after class to talk to me or discuss information further. In summary, my teaching style involves flexibility, actively listening, building relationships, remaining passionate, prepare in multiple ways and choosing my attitude.

Know Your Audience!

September 22, 2015 By Ayesha in GEDI15F 13 Comments

Is there such a thing as a perfect classroom? I argue that there isn’t. Partly because the type of students’ attending colleges and universities is constantly changing and so are their needs.  College and universities are more diverse now than they have ever been. So I think one of the most important aspects in classrooms is to know your audience. Who is in the classrooms? What backgrounds, SES (socio economic status), experiences and exposures are the students’ in the classrooms bringing? And I am certain that each semester the classroom makeup looks different. So how is it ok to have the same content, teaching styles, lectures or materials, be taught each semester as if everyone in the room is the same, learns the same way and is bringing the same preparation to the classroom.

I believe that one way teachers/faculty can make classrooms inviting, engaging and learning environments is by remaining flexible, creative and open minded instead of coming into the classrooms with a prescriptive/ set curriculum. There is a difference between goals and learning outcomes for the classroom and pre set (class by class) lectures/ teaching methods by the teachers.  By understanding who is in the classroom, the teacher should co-develop classroom materials that best meets the needs of the students each semester. Some thing they should consider is: What if there are more student in a classroom with learning disabilities or students who are introverts and engaging in group work causes them additional anxiety/ stress and they cannot learn, what if there are students who don’t play games because that is not the best way they learn for them. So how can I (the teacher) develop a curriculum that meets the diverse needs of the students at least half way …if not all the way.

So Is there value in knowing your classroom audience? Is it possible to create classrooms that meets the needs of diverse students ?

A Means to an End…

September 14, 2015 By Ayesha in GEDI15F 4 Comments

Prior to starting my PhD work at VT, I worked full time at a private, elite four-year institution. One of my roles was to serve as an academic advisor. I met with freshman and sophomore students’ multiple times a semester until they declared their major (all undergraduate students except for “engineering track”-who come in to college undecided (no prescriptive classes, instead all must take diverse classes, and other requirements, until they declare a major in their second year (sophomore year)). If I could get a penny for every time I heard from the students that, “my undergraduate education is just a means to an end”, I would have several dollars by now. Anyway, what most of the students meant was that the way they view undergraduate education is that it is a stepping-stone for the next important thing that is waiting for them. For a majority of that student population it was: Medical school, Law school and or some other professional degree. Most of them were high achieving students and the way they experienced their classes, they way they engaged on campus (clubs and organization) and the people they networked with, all connected back to the question of “What do I need to do to get to that next step?”

From the beginning of their educational careers (high school or undergraduate), they have been trained (by family or teachers) to keep the end goal is mind, stay competitive, get the highest grades as you will be competing with other talented students (nationally and internationally) and find ways to give you an edge on others. That is not a terrible mentality, but what this process misses or lacks is the conscious involvement and imagination that Eric Liu and Scott Noppe-Brandon discuss. These students come in with too much focus on the next step, and not enough on the daily experiences. Some of these students miss out on all the other experiences that are thrown at them, or if they do engage it is not because they enjoy them but it is because these experiences will look good on the resume. For most of them college GPA is everything, because that number measures their success in college and their path to that end goal depends on how their grades reflect their intellectual capacity and if they will be able to get to that medical school or law school. This tunnel vision and competitive mentality forces them to see each class, each lecture and each experience as “get it done well now and you will never have to think of it again”.

This raises the question of – How do you engage students in classes and challenge them to learn for the sake of learning and not just for a high GPA that will get them in to the next step?

Mission Statements…

September 7, 2015 By Ayesha in PFP15F No Comments

The first mission statement is from Duke University, located in Durham, North Carolina. Duke is a private, liberal, research institution founded in 1838, with approximately 15,000 students (undergraduate and graduate). Duke University’s mission statement is clear and focuses on providing high quality education for both undergraduate and graduate student populations. The statement emphasizes a focus on students’ (undergraduate and graduate) intellectual development, ethical development and providing opportunities that will allow the students to develop as leaders within their communities. The mission includes promotion of health, open inquiry, developing active professionals, instilling a sense of commitment and citizenship and creating life long learners.

I was surprised to learn that Duke has more graduate students (8,379) than undergraduates (6471) and has  eleven schools that offer both undergraduate and graduate degrees in Law, engineering, medicine, public policy, nursing, business, divinity, and environmental sciences, to name a few. This explains the reason why both populations and their development is explained in the mission statement. Additionally, it was refreshing to read that the institution also believes in (as per the statement) in choosing outstanding individuals to work for the institution: officers, trustees and faculty. As these groups are important constituents in supporting, practicing and furthering the institutions mission. Something that stood out to me further was that the statement indicates the institutions desire to cure disease, and promote health, through sophisticated medical research (I did not expect the mission statement to be so specific).

The second mission statement is from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech), located in Blacksburg, Virginia. Virginia Tech is a large, research, public, land-grant university, founded in 1872, with approximately 30,000 students (undergraduate-23,000 and graduate-7,000). Virginia Tech’s mission statement states the purpose of the institution (to serve the state of Virginia, the nation and world community). It emphasizes that discovery and research of new knowledge, teaching and learning, and outreach and engagement are important to the institution.  Lastly, the statement indicates that VT “creates, conveys, and applies knowledge to expand personal growth and opportunity, advance social and community development, foster economic competitiveness, and improve the quality of life“. Virginia Tech’s statement is really broad. It states a desire to be leaders locally, nationally and globally through discovery, research, teaching and learning, outreach… The statement uses a lot of loaded words that can mean different things to different people. These words/ statements are vague and ambiguous.

I understand that both the institutions (Duke and VT) are unique (one private, one public) in their own ways, suited for their environments and the populations they serve, but both have mission statements that place a value on serving multiple communities through learning (which should not be a surprise as the purpose of the institutions is higher education). Additionally, both institutions have a research focus and believe in creating new knowledge. A major difference in the mission statements is that Duke’s mission statement is detailed, it addresses the various constituents of the university and their needs/ development. On the other hand, Virginia Tech’s mission statement is broad and one can assume that it addresses the same needs yet it does not explicitly mention undergraduates and graduates in the statement. I believe that it is difficult to have highly specific statements in the mission statements,partly as the statement should highlight big goals, aspirations and directions that institution wants to pursue. Although, I am more attracted to Duke’s statement, I believe the VT statement hits on all the major areas that makes VT unique from other institutions.

Learning the basics…

September 7, 2015 By Ayesha in GEDI15F 2 Comments

Learning the basics is important but the bigger questions is what basics are we talking about? Learning the basics is necessary when we are learning certain subjects (may be math and chemistry or a certain language). I don’t believe that this rule applies universally to everything. It is not a simple black and white concept in my mind. It is not an all or nothing approach. It really depends on what one is learning. It is crucial to first agree on the definition of what learning means. Some people consider learning just happening in formal institutions (K-12, college, graduate school), in my opinion, learning can happen at any time and anywhere as long as one is willing and ready to engage with something new that they are interested in (or it is needed). Learning can be skills (like communication and listening and there are no pre-defined basics or methods that one needs to follow). There are appropriate ways of learning but it is not a one size fits all concept. The simplification of learning the basics takes away from the learning process and imposes that if one does not follow a certain path to learning, then some how the learner is deficient or so how the learner is missing out on pertinent information. The bigger question for me is what is the end goal? where is one trying to go with the learning and what is to be achieved or accomplished? Who is responsible for learning?

Langer poses the question if text books inform mindful learning? I agree with her that textbooks help in ones learning process and the way one writes these books can impact the ways in which people learn, but I believe there is more to textbooks. Books are written by those who are some sort of experts in their fields and believe that the information provided is what one needs to know about a given subject. I believe that just because you have the knowledge (credentials, some expertise about a topic, issue or subject) does not automatically mean that you are a good teacher. Similarly, just because the experts write the books in the way they learn, communicate in the form of textbooks does not necessarily mean that these books can teach an individual everything they need to learn. Textbooks are a starting point for learning, they are not the end, especially now with the information one can find on the web about any subject, text books are just a way to start the thinking process, they cannot and should not be the only way one engages with the materials presented. Additionally, textbooks are important for learning but it is equally important to know why one is engaging with the textbooks, what are the motivations, intentions and needs one is trying to fulfil with utilizing textbooks? It also means that teachers need intentionality on their part to find creative ways to engage the students in the learning process other than textbooks (mindful teaching is equally important).

Connected Learning…

September 1, 2015 By Ayesha in GEDI15F No Comments

This is the first blog I have ever written (I hope I am using the right term…and I must admit, I am slightly intimidated by the process, I do hope it gets easier with time). In reality I have had limited experiences with blogging. In some ways I have been making assumptions that blogging is just journaling but in a public forum. That is one reason why I have been so skeptical about blogs, but with that said I am up for the challenge for trying some thing new and different and that’s what learning is all about anyway.

So here is what I have gathered from the readings/ video from this week: Blogs are not as scary as you think. There is a good reason why so many people across the globe are doing it. Blogging like other social media avenues (when done in appropriate ways) connects you with other people globally. If you are intentional, you will get better at it over time (YES! There is hope), you don’t have to be afraid to have an opinion, in fact it will help you to find your voice as long as you stay open-mined, be intentional, be an active listener (How blogs changed everything) and learn to communicate through your writing (not just verbally). Additionally, it is important to know that many people (including myself) have favored ways of thinking, we continue to do what we have always done but it is never too late to try new ways to engage with others. Lastly, I understand that in academia, blogging is allowing students to be creative with their thinking and their writing and it is opening up new ways to  communicate ideas and concepts.

Hello world!

August 30, 2015 By Ayesha in Uncategorized 1 Comment

Welcome to Blogs@VT Sites. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!

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