Faculty Study Seminars

Faculty Study Seminars provide a means for faculty with common interests to learn more about a teaching-related topic. Each group meets four times a semester, at times mutually agreed to by participants, to read and discuss a teaching-related book (books provided by OID). Your only obligation is to read and to show up for discussion.

To sign up for a group, e-mail the facilitator noted below with your contact information (e-mail and phone) and a copy of your semester schedule (noting the times you cannot meet). You will be contacted once an initial meeting date is set. For more information about Faculty Study Seminars, contact Anne Kelsch , 777-4233.

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From Brain to Mind: Using Neuroscience to Guide Change in Education by James E. Zull (Stylus, 2011).

If you are familiar with James Zull’s 2004 book, The Art of Changing the Brain, you know he has both a keen interest in how the brain learns and a knack for making specialized research accessible and relatable to what we do in higher education.  In his latest book, Zull (Professor of Biochemistry and former Director of the University Center for Innovation in Teaching and Education at Case Western Reserve) considers how recent findings in neuroscience can inform our teaching practice.  Looking at how the brain receives and processes information, he gleans applicable insights about cognitive development and metacognition.  Zull argues that due to major social and economic change, a teaching and learning approach that is informed by cognitive science is increasingly necessary.  In an environment in which our students can expect to hold multiple jobs (some of which may not yet exist), where technology is constantly shifting, and where information and opinion seem infinitely available, the awareness of how and why we think as we do is essential to society’s well-being. 

If you are interested in participating in this FSS, please contact Anne Kelsch , 777-4233.

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How Learning Works: Seven Research-Based Principles for Smart Teaching by Susan A. Ambrose, Michael W. Bridges, Michele DiPietro, Marsha C. Lovett, and Marie K. Norman (Jossey-Bass, 2010)

From the publisher: Distilling the research literature and translating the scientific approach into language relevant to a college or university teacher, this book introduces seven general principles of how students learn. The authors have drawn on research from a breadth of perspectives (cognitive, developmental, and social psychology; educational research; anthropology; demographics; organizational behavior) to identify a set of key principles underlying learning, from how effective organization enhances retrieval and use of information to what impacts motivation. Integrating theory with real-classroom examples in practice, this book helps faculty to apply cognitive science advances to improve their own teaching.

If you are interested in participating in this FSS please contact Kathleen Vacek , University Writing Program coordinator, 777-6381.