FACET and the Mack Center are proud to announce the recipients of this year's FACET/Mack Center Travel Grant for Fall 2021.
This year's recipients are:
Julie Mendez, IUPUC
Presentation title: "Grading - Is There a Better Way?"
Brief Abstract: "The last few years have seen a rise in nontraditional grading practices. One such method is specifications grading, in which instead of using points or partial credit, assignments are scored pass/fail according to whether the assignment met the provided requirements. The grader can relatively quickly determine if the assignment specifications were met; with less time spent on determining partial credit, more time can be devoted to providing feedback. A student’s course grade is determined by the number of assignments successfully completed. Students have the opportunity to revise and resubmit some assignments. In this express workshop, the presenter will provide an overview of specifications grading with examples from courses in a range of disciplines. Participants will have the opportunity to work individually and in small groups to write specifications for assignments. Attendees may find it helpful to bring their course learning outcomes. The presenter will provide guidance in creating a plan to use specifications grading in your course."
Pamela Connerly, IUS
Presentation title: "Let's take a minute: mindfulness during class time"
Brief Abstract: "Interest in mindfulness practices, such as reflective writing, yoga, self-compassion, meditation and others, has grown in recent years, and many people have found these approaches helpful during the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic. While we may think of mindfulness practices as individual activities for self-care and personal growth, they are also well-suited to group endeavors. For the past several semesters I have been incorporating short mindfulness practices, such as moments of silence, guided meditations, and reflection exercises, into my courses. These techniques are easily adaptable to both face-to-face and online modalities. For many students (and faculty), a moment of silence at the start of a class may be their first chance to pause and take a deep breath all day. In this session, participants will directly experience several of the mindfulness practices I have used in my classes, with opportunities for feedback and discussion. The session itself will hopefully provide participants with a moment of rest within the broader retreat, as well as providing information, context, and discussion about utilizing mindfulness practices within courses."
Adam Smith, IUK
Presentation title: "Best practices for teaching with simulations: Addressing criticisms and student concerns"
Brief Abstract: "Instructors are constantly searching for innovative techniques and approaches to bolster student learning. With a history spanning several decades, simulations have garnered significant attention as educators seek to infuse the classroom with realism, rigor, and richness. Drawing on the broader literature and our own experience, we discuss the recurring criticisms students provide as feedback for simulations generally, and our courses in particular. We also discuss some potential pedagogical responses to the criticisms stemming from the extant literature on case methodology, experiential exercises, lecture, and simulation best practices."
Deborah Miller, IUE
Presentation title: "Does Using TikTok in Online Courses Increase Student Engagement and Sense of Community?"
Brief Abstract: "Students are generally more successful in environments that keep them engaged with the course material, each other, and their instructor (Kuh, 2001). Students also tend to be more successful and feel more satisfied with courses when they feel a stronger sense of classroom community (Rovai & Whiting, 2005). In online courses, engagement and community can be difficult to build and sustain. We theorize that using TikTok assignments will improve engagement and community in online courses due to the students' ability to creatively express their personalities and engage with each other and their instructor in fun and casual discussions about their videos and the course content. For this study, two undergraduate psychology instructors both taught two sections each of either Abnormal Psychology and Psychology of Everyday Life, creating control and experimental sections each taught by the same instructor. The control/experimental courses were identical except for the addition of 5 TikTok-based assignments to the experimental sections. At the end of the Spring 2021 semester, students will complete instruments measuring engagement (Dixson, 2015) and classroom community (Rovai, 2002). Differences between the control and experimental groups in these variables (engagement and community) will be analyzed after data collection. We will present these results as well as recommendations for using TikTok in class."