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Tag: class discussion

Open Discussion & Classroom Participation: Fostering Academic Belonging

Young adults participating in a discussion.

By Matthew LaFevor, Geography. One of the ways I like to begin my classes is by asking students a very broad question: What’s going on in the world today?      Such a broad question has strong potential to fail, especially if students are too concerned with answering ‘correctly’. Students often come to class having skimmed the readings. They may only tenuously hold information in their heads. Beginning with such a broad question forces students to zoom out for a […]

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Using Flipgrid for Class Discussions: Tips and Precautions

outline of person doing a backflip

by Nathan Loewen, A&S Faculty Technology Liaison Melissa Green recently hosted a Blackboard RoundTable where she remarked that Flipgrid is now among the UA-licensed platforms. Anyone can use their UA email (username@ua.edu or username@crimson.ua.edu) on the Flipgrid Sign Up page to “Sign up with Microsoft.” My colleague Jennifer Roth-Burnette suggested I contact members of the Instructional Design Team at the College of Continuing Studies. Here are some excellent tips and precautions for successfully using Flipgrid from Miranda Webster, Alison Lewis, […]

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Remote Teaching, Difficult Topics, and the Cultivation of Political Judgment: Lessons From the Israel/Palestine Conflict

a red and a blue zipper running across each other

by Daniel J. Levine, Political Science and Religious Studies This post outlines a set of group assignments developed while teaching The Israel/Palestine Conflict (PSC 344) remotely in Fall 2020. I start by outlining the challenges that typically attend teaching on this topic. I then take up the circumstances faced when planning for it late last summer: the transition to remote teaching and an increasingly partisan political climate. Finally, I describe a set of assignments intended to address those challenges, assessing […]

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Guide to Managing Class Discussion in a Tense Atmosphere 

Insect floating on the surface of water

by Cassander L. Smith and Lauren S. Cardon, Department of English On February 18, 2019, the Department of English hosted a one-day symposium, “Teaching with Tension,” that addressed the extent to which attitudes about race and political environments produce pedagogical challenges for professors in the humanities. The day’s discussion included the presentation of a document about managing class discussions. Thanks to the work and permission of Drs. Smith and Cardon, you have the opportunity to review this important guide. Every […]

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Incivility in the Classroom

by Lisa Dorr, Associate Dean Over the past few weeks, we have witnessed concerning instances of bigotry and hate, and many may question whether it is possible to foster civil dialogue about the problems that face the nation and the world. While these events have been horrifying, as Michael Signer, the mayor of Charlottesville, wrote, “Democracy, like a muscle, needs to be worked out.” He identified the special role of universities in “instilling the values of deliberation and civility in […]

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How Padlet Can Help with Group Projects

by Lauren Cardon, Department of English During the Teaching Professor Technology Conference in Atlanta, I was a facilitator for a Strategy Swap session on group work. I met with two different groups of people for thirty minutes each, and we shared our strategies. Most of our discussion focused on group work in the classroom — that is, breaking students up into small groups to let them practice strategies we’re teaching them. However, in one of the groups, our conversation focused […]

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Quick Tips for Online Teaching

Student completing homework on a comptuer

Allison Hetzel, a professor in the Department of Theatre and Dance, shares how she manages her online courses and offers tips for connecting with distance learners. How do you reduce anonymity and build community in your online courses? I work to connect with my class as often as possible. I make sure that I am part of the class conversation in discussion and blog posts. I often send group messages to the class with any reminders and updates related to the class. How do […]

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