By Beverly Makhani, Undergraduate Education
PULLMAN, Wash. – The Washington State University Teaching Academy will host guest-expert lectures on Oct. 27 and workshops Oct. 28 to give faculty hands-on experience with an educational approach that has been proven to help students learn better.
Seating for the Friday workshops is limited; register at https://wsu.co1.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_aYuXQyGZfksfvRr.
“The Focus on Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL) Extravaganza” (https://pogil.org) will help educators guide students to work in small groups with individual roles to ensure they are engaged in the learning process, said Laura Lavine, Teaching Academy (https://vpue.wsu.edu/teaching-academy/) member and event planner.
Guiding the workshops and delivering presentations will be Susan Shadle, director of the Boise State University Center for Teaching and Learning and professor of chemistry and biochemistry, and Melinda Kalainoff, colonel, professor and director of the general chemistry program at the U.S. Military Academy (USMA).
Thursday, Oct. 27, lectures, broadcast live to WSU regional campuses:
“Stimulating Change in STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) Education: Engaging Faculty at the Department Level” will be presented by Shadle at 10 a.m. in Biotechnology Life Sciences Building 402. Shadle is part of a National Science Foundation grant for Widening Implementation and Demonstration of Evidence-Based Reforms. She will explain how WIDER is helping BSU engage STEM faculty to explore and adopt evidence-based instruction.
“Sky to Ground: Designing for Instruction Using a Teaching/Learning Model” will be presented by Kalainoff at 2 p.m. in Avery Hall 111. She will trace how the USMA implemented guided inquiry learning in general chemistry to align curriculum with the aspirational goals of the institution.
Friday, Oct. 28, in-person workshops:
The 8-11:45 a.m. session is geared toward POGIL beginners; the 12:45-4 p.m. session will go into POGIL activity structure and classroom facilitation. Both will be in the CUB junior ballroom. The sessions are not available for live streaming or rebroadcast.
WSU faculty must register online for one or both of the workshops at https://wsu.co1.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_aYuXQyGZfksfvRr. Registrants can elect to receive a boxed lunch and participate in a mid-day discussion.
WSU cohosts of the extravaganza include the Office of Research; ADVANCE at WSU; the College of Agricultural, Human and Natural Resource Sciences; the College of Arts and Sciences; and the Voiland College of Engineering and Architecture.
For more information, contact Lavine at lavine@wsu.edu, Chuck Pezeshki at pezeshki@wsu.edu or Andrea Aebersold at andrea_campub@wsu.edu.