Home » pedagogy (Page 12)

Category Archives: pedagogy

Mentoring Grad Students: A Revisit

Posted on by | Leave a comment

I was looking at my blog posts and see that this one from not quite two years ago is timely. I have taken the liberty of revising the post.

I have been having more conversations with graduate students about life after graduate school. Not all of them are interested in the traditional career path in academe. Can you blame them? The job market for full-time work in higher education is dismal. There is lots of work for contingent (part-time) faculty, but that doesn’t really provide a stable income. I know this well, as for most of my academic career, thus far, I worked part-time. Sometimes this work was between three different departments and most seasoned graduate students know this.

I do think that we need to be more responsible with our mentoring of graduate students and part of this includes not suggesting graduate school as a viable option to some students. There, I said it. Graduate school is not for everyone; however, some will figure this out on their own. I am referring more so to being honest about the psychic and financial instability of graduate school. Lately, I am seeing more undergraduates entertain what they are referring to more “practical” programs like advanced degrees in Public Administration and even a few are entertaining MBA programs. I think this is a good thing–let them branch out into different degree programs. An advanced degree in Political Science is useful, but it is not the only option.

I have been pleased to see an ongoing thread on Twitter under the hashtag #NewPhD. These short conversations are interrogating degree programs and what we think needs to change. These are important conversations. We also need to provide more support to graduate students. This includes support for when they need more help. And, this includes protecting them from yes-itis. You can say yes to too many project or overall commitments and then not give any of them the full effort they require.

We need to be more honest with our graduate students and make sure that our institutions offers different types of job training or workshops. And, if the student does want to go into higher education, we need to do a better job of training them to work with students. This can be tedious, but meeting one on one with the students is really worth the time. This is part of an ongoing train of thought for me. Graduate students also have to willingly want to learn and realize that professional development is important. This is the best case scenario–where their institution offers workshops and they have good mentors. We all have stories where things went awry. But, let’s try to make it better for the current cohort of students.

Organization Matters: Fri Fun Facts

Posted on by | 2 Comments

Recently I had a student in my office who had his next two years planned out–typed and ready for my review. I get this. I did this. OK, it was hand written, but I also planned like this. Today’s Friday Fun Facts is dedicated to planning your post-secondary education. And, here I assume that this plan is after the first year, so that the student has at least taken several course as they figure out what they like or don’t.

1. After you’ve met your undergraduate requirements for the degree review the requirements for the degree programs that you’re the most interested in for your major and or minor.

2. Related to the above point, I actually suggest to students that they at the very least have a major and a minor. Preferably, I’d suggest a double major. For some the preference might work best as a major, minor and co-op. The students who are focused on graduate school should look if the department has an Honors Program.

3. You should meet with the Undergraduate Advisor(s). This will vary at campuses. In some the office might be in the department (your major area) or there might be an Advising Center. Either way–these professional staff or faculty are there to help you. They can best help you when you are well informed and when you have questions for them.

4. Talk to other students to find out what they suggest. They will also be useful to find out which departments and professors you should look into for your degree program.

5. Remember that this is your education and you need to own it. You must be your best advocate in and out of the classroom. This means that you need to keep an eye out for deadlines and make meetings with the appropriate people or offices for information.

6. And, if you’re like the student from earlier this month and me, you can map out your courses for your degree program. It’s useful to actually see what you need and what you can take. Do it! It’s not in stone, but it makes you organize what you need to do.

May I suggest that you get a copy of the rules and add post its and highlight all the key information. Nowadays so much of this information is online and somehow you need to get familiar with the information regarding your degree program. Bookmark the appropriate webpages.

Seminar: Fri Fun Facts

Posted on by | Leave a comment

My Fri Fun Facts offers some suggestions for an undergraduate seminar. The department that I am affiliated with instituted a seminar requirement a few years ago. In this time I have noticed that interest in the seminar varies, but one thing is common for many students: anxiety about the seminar experience. I offer some helpful hints..

1. Come to class prepared with one question (or more) that you can offer the class. You need to participate and this thoughtful question can engage you in the discussion.

2. Come to class with one comment to add or share to the discussion in the seminar. The goal is that eventually you won’t have to prepare with your comments and that you will automatically participate.

3. Talk or email the instructor if you have any anxiety about participation and maybe work  out a plan with the professor. You might ask her/him to call on you if you haven’t particpated.

4. Your query or comment is probably not dumb.

5. Stop thinking that everyone else knows more than you do. A few might, but everyone else is not more knowledgeable. They might be faking it!

Hopefully these five points will get you thinking and int he mood to participate more in your seminar!

Presenting/Public Speaking

Posted on by | 2 Comments

After attending Word Camp #WCV12  a few weeks ago, I’ve been thinking lots about the talks that I attended and all the great information that I learned. There were lots of points shared that validated what I already knew from my reading and my own use of social media. But, there was one thing that I’ve been thinking about lots. Part of it stems from a good conversation that I had with my colleague and good friend, Dr. Raul Pacheco-Vega. Raul is known as Hummingbird604. He is also a Political Scientist and is what I refer to as a power user of social media. He blogs, tweets, teaches, and shares his love of Vancouver with the masses via his blog.

Raul also explained after Word Camp that he had consulted with a keynote couch, who gave him tips on presentation skills and public speaking. We were recapping the events and chatted about his presentation and others. After our chat I thought more about this and  realized that the talks that I liked best really were the ones that offered a dynamic presentation style. It’s not just the information, but also the way the information is shared. I have now heard Raul present on at least four occasions and this last talk was great, but I did notice that the talk was seamless. Whatever the keynote suggested–it worked. Again, his other presentations were strong. He’s a natural public speaker.

As an academic, I live in the world of public speaking–I am an educator. I am constantly “on” and giving presentations in classes, in the community, at conferences, and to the media. It is very important to feel comfortable speaking in front of people. But, you also have to be able to distill information in ways that is understandable to the group that you’re speaking to. And, this point is at times forgotten by some as they ruminate in the tiniest details or computer code and lose the audience. You have to gear your talk to your audience and make the presentation dynamic.

If you have not presented lots, practice, practice, and practice. Practice in  front of a mirror or at home. Practice in front of friends, so that the real presentation goes as smoothly as possible. And, when you practice in front of friends–try to get someone who is unfamiliar with your topic. This will allow you to see how you’re pitching your talk. Do they understand the information?

Then, once you’re giving your talk–breath. I like to walk around, but it’s important to not pace too much. Smile and if you feel you cannot look directly into eyes–look at the eyebrows! If you are prone to blushing or breaking out in hives, then wear a higher collared shirt. Eventually you won’t have a physical reaction and you’ll enjoy giving your presentation. If you can, have a friend attend the talk so that you can get feedback from someone who knows you.

When I first started attending conferences back in 1991, I had my presentation triple spaced and included notes to self that read: take a breath, smile, look around. I only had to do this a few times, but, I swear it helped. Now, I put together my skeleton bullet points or Slide Rocket presentation the night before typically. If it’s an academic presentation, it could be the same day, but I have the research completed well before the conference! I do think that public speaking skills is a tangible transferable skill. And, a skill that we all should have. Now, if all the presenters would remember this–is a completely different story!

Fri Fun Facts: Reading

Posted on by | Leave a comment

Today’s Fri Fun Facts is dedicated to one of my favorite habits–reading. How do you organize your reading for efficiency? For students and other academics this is a constant concern. We are always juggling several articles/books.

1. I balance this via setting up time to work on particular assignments. I might dedicate half the day or just an hour, but this keeps me on top of my reading list.

2. I have books, articles, or magazines in several locations and will juggle them accordingly.

3. Mix it up! I am not always reading just work related reading. I will mix it up and add fun reading, too.

4. Don’t cram. This is not the best way to allow your ideas to form and as I say, “marinate.” You want to have some time to think about what you’re reading–so keep abreast of the reading.

Decompress with fun reading. This might vary for you. I have all sorts of genre that I read for fun–mystery, cop thrillers, young adult literature.

Academics on Academia: Power of Pedagogy

Posted on by | Leave a comment

I have read and re-read Liana’s post and realized that this is shared experience for many in higher ed. It also made me realize that one person who can combat this is the professor and the pedagogical tools that s/he employs in the seminar. One of my mentors artfully kept things under control in seminar by assigning weekly writing assignment due a day before seminar met. This made us demonstrate in less than three pages analysis or thoughtful reaction to the reading. He would then refer to our comments without naming us and then we would discuss the readings and the student analysis. His seminars became a mostly bull-shit free zone. I will always thank him for teaching this way and I have shamelessly borrowed from this with some of the seminars that I lead.

There is something about grad school that makes students feel insecure and it causes bad behavior. Part of it is the trickle-down effect of pettiness from more established academics and what they way about colleagues or other fields of study. Grad students see the ways in which certain areas of research are referred to and this influences the climate in the discipline or in the department. From my view point, I saw that each cohort of grad students wanted to differentiate themselves from undergrads and this sometimes translated into mediocre performance as a Teaching Assistant via the constant complaining of how stupid their students were. I’m not exaggerating here. I shared offices with three other grad students for several years and hung out with other grad students. It is one thing to kvetch about a particular student, but some grads loved to loathe their students.

What I am getting at is that pedagogy is an issue. The professor can set the tone for how the grad students think about the class, the materials, and if they are a Teaching assistant—the students. We need to train faculty to be better mentors and this includes how to mentor in the classroom.  Perhaps it is just part of good pedagogy and teaching? I don’t think so. I think that some faculty are just better at teaching, research, or mentoring. So, what do we do?

We need to be help one another. And, I do think that if Liana had a better experience in her seminar she might have stayed in Comparative Literature at the most, but at the least she might have had a better time in graduate school. My fear is that we lose lots of women and people of color due to the alienating environment in graduate schools. Granted the grad school experience can be dehumanizing for all, but I think that some are more vulnerable.

I am thankful that I found some very supportive women and men in cohorts ahead of me. I think that one reason for this is that we were not competing for funding against one another. Years later—these are the same people that I am still in contact with from graduate school. Based on my individual experience, I can attest to how important peer mentoring was in the department, as well as via the women’s graduate peer mentoring group that I was involved with for several years.

What do we do? We have these conversations. And, I have been in contact with the Director of the Learning and Teaching Centre on the campus where I work making suggestions. Most of the time, the Director, Dr. Teresa Dawson, is already ahead of the curve and offering workshops and training for the graduate students. But, as we have chatted about—that doesn’t mean that the graduate students actually attend them! I know in the department where I work one cohort of students complained about the pro-seminar. My sense of their complaints is that some of the students did not understand how priceless the seminar was, but that might be a different post! My point is that I think that grad students in the department I work in have lots of resources—if they seek them out.

Where do we go from here? We need to change the atmosphere of higher ed so that more faculty want to mentor and help their students network. This helps. But, there is more work to be done!

Grad Schol Applications: Revist

Posted on by | Leave a comment

Yes, it is that time of year, when professors are writing students letters of reference for graduate school. Thus, it’s worth my re-post of this Oct 2010 post with some additional comments. Just a few words of advice to students: Be organized. Don’t be a tyrant! My experience is that 99.9% of students are earnest and really want the help. What happens is that poor time management adds stress to an already stressful endeavor.  So, this photo is shared with lots of smiles. And, I realize that college students are not children. The quote was one that made me smile. That is all.

1. Ask professors weeks before the letters are due. And, please don’t be offended if we decline.

2. Provide us all the information we need. Where is the letter going? When is it due? Do we need to complete an applicant assessment form? Can we upload the letter online? Please fill out any forms and try to avoid asking the letter writer to do so (your name and SIN or SSN info)

I ask for a copy of your letter of intent and cv/resume. I might even meet with you and ask what your motivation is for continuing your education.

3. Remind us. Send an email a few days before a due date.

4. Thank us. This can be an email or a note. It’s not necessary to do more. Remember that your tenure line faculty actually get paid to mentor and do things like write letters. Keep in mind that part-time faculty do not get compensated for this extra work. Remember to thank them profusely–a card, bottle of wine or a face to face thank you is nice.

5. Remember that your organization makes this process easier. You will fill less anxiety and provide your reference writer ample time and information.

6. Keep us informed with the good news or what your Plan B or Plan C is.

Good luck with this process!

Fri Fun Facts: Organizing Writing Time

Posted on by | Leave a comment

At Word Camp Victoria 2012 ( #wcv12 ) @Miss604 (Rebecca Bolwitt) shared how she manages her time blogging. And, as a a teacher/instructor/professor it made me think not only of my time management, but also my students’ time management with writing. This post is dedicated to organizing writing and thinking time. And, like so many of my posts the targeted reader is students or others who work with students. I look forward to your input.

Bolwitt gave some great advice. She blogs typically in the morning for a few hours and during this time she will compose 3-5 posts. Now, for students I would like them to think about earmarking time for thinking about writing. Yes, it’s part of the process. Thinking about what you want to say and what sort of research you want to engage in for the assignment. Is the paper an investigative piece or argumentative? What does the assignment requirements explain? You need to organize what the requirements are with what you want to do with the assignment.

If you merely think about writing as the actual writing, then you will not have enough time to “marinate” with your topic. I have found that placing “Janni Writing or Thinking Time” in my calendar necessary to successfully work on writing projects. Some of your ideas will undoubtedly hit you when you’re commuting in to campus or perhaps in another class. It is important to jot down these ideas, as you might not remember them later. Likewise, it’s also good to chat with classmates or your professor about the assignment.

Then, set time aside to begin your writing in earnest. You might start with pulling together facts and quotes and what you hope to find. Whatever method you use–make sure that you attempt to organize your thoughts. But, you must set realistic goals with your writing time and set time aside to get your writing completed. Bolwitt noted that the morning is a good time for her to write. When is your most productive time of day?

One Take Away from #WCV12

Posted on by | Leave a comment

This will be the first of a few blog posts about Word Camp Victoria 2012 ( #wcv12 ). This was my second Word Camp in Victoria and I have to say that I definitely enjoyed this camp more than the last one. And, no, it’s not because #UVIC was a site sponsor! I got more out of the sessions and part of this is that I chose more wisely and frankly that I have fiddled more with Word Press. Yes, Word Camp is a Word Press Blogging conference, er camp for users or those who are interested in the platform.

This post is going to speak to Craig Spence’s presentation, “Why WordPress works so well as a Dynamic Creative Writing Environment.” Spence is a writer and the way he interacts with the Word Press platform is informed by his writing philosophy. I liked that he shared the Cosmic Chicken, his speculative writing series that allows readers to add to the story. And, did I mention that he was such an honest, humble presenter? He hooked me in and made me want to listen to his presentation. Sure, I live tweeted too, but I also have about a page of notes from his presentation.

What really struck me is that he views his writing on line as similar to his offline writing and this is something that I am trying to explain to my students, who are completing blogging assignments. I’ve said that their 1000 word post is like a paper in terms of coherency and organization, but the platform allows them to add images and video and make the post theirs via their analysis and the look of the blog. They have more opportunity for creativity and Spence’s talk reminded me of this point.

Fri Fun Facts: Advising

Posted on by | Leave a comment

Today’s Fri Fun Facts is about Advising on college campuses. I want to students to remember that students should look to the various Advising offices on campus as a place to not only get questions answered, but the first step in their success.

1. Good Advising is community building.

2. Seek out advice and advising. The official university policy is on line and usually available as a hard copy. Double check the requirements, but also ask others for advice. It’s good to confer with trusted classmates and then check in with an advisor. Don’t rely merely on students or your peers, as they might not have the most recent information.

3. Check in with your advisor once per year–at the least! It’s like an oil change or bike tune up! This is your education and you need to “own it.”

4. Remember that there is the rule of thumb and the requirements. Distinguish between the two. Don’t always think of the minimum requirements. Also think about what you want to take and how your plans or dreams can change. Here is why taking a minor, honor’s, co-op (internship) or double majoring can be helpful.

These are some quick ideas about best practices or needs for advising.