adjunct faculty

What happened in online learning over the summer? [Parts 1, 2, and 3 by Tony Bates]

On 08/20/2013, in adjunct faculty, Canada, community colleges, faculty, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, global / globalization, MOOCs -- Massive Open Online Courses, online learning, society, universities, by Daniel Christian

What happened in online learning over the summer? – 2 — by Tony Bates

Excerpt:

MOOCs
Peters, M. (2013) Massive Open Online Courses and Beyond: the Revolution to Come Truthout, August 17

This is an excellent, comprehensive and thoughtful analysis of where MOOCs are going.

What Michael Peters does is to set MOOCs within ‘a wider set of socio-technological changes that might be better explained within a theory of postindustrial education focusing on social media as the new culture.‘

Also see:

What happened in online learning in the summer? – 1 — by Tony Bates
What happened in online learning in the summer? – 3 — by Tony Bates

64 Ed-Tech Lists for College Professors, Administrators and IT Professionals [Daly]

On 06/19/2013, in adjunct faculty, Daniel S. Christian, education technology, faculty, higher education, IT in HE, by Daniel Christian

64 Ed-Tech Lists for College Professors, Administrators and IT Professionals — from edtechmagazine.com by Jimmy Daly
The ultimate guide to technology and higher education.

Ultimate-Lists-for-EdTech-and-HE-June2013

Mad Professors: The adjuncts are at the barricades. [Burns]

On 06/07/2013, in adjunct faculty, higher education, by Daniel Christian

Mad Professors — from inthesetimes.com by Rebecca Burns
The adjuncts are at the barricades.

Excerpt:

That so many advanced degree-holders are toiling in poverty conditions flies in the face of the assumption that higher education is a path to prosperity. But low wages and precarity represent the new norm for what some adjuncts have termed “academia’s version of apartheid.”

Hired on a contract basis, adjuncts (who may include contingent full-time faculty) are paid by the course—the average rate is $2,900, according to crowd-sourced figures from the website the Adjunct Project. Most contingent faculty are also excluded from access to health insurance or other benefits, and are guaranteed neither a full teaching load nor a steady contract.

Tagged with: adjunct faculty • higher education

Interesting…”Hacking the Academy: A book crowdsourced in one week” [U of Michigan Press; Cohen & Scheinfeldt]

On 06/06/2013, in adjunct faculty, faculty, higher education, new business models, Uncategorized, by Daniel Christian

Hacking the Academy: A book crowdsourced in one week — from MPublishing/University of Michigan Press

On May 21, 2010, we posted these intentionally provocative questions online:

Can an algorithm edit a journal? Can a library exist without books? Can students build and manage their own learning management platforms? Can a conference be held without a program? Can Twitter replace a scholarly society?

We asked for contributions to a collectively produced volume that would explore how the academy might be beneficially reformed using digital media and technology. The process of creating the edited volume itself would be a commentary on the way things are normally done in scholarly communication, with submissions coming in through multiple channels, including blogs, Twitter, and email, and in multiple formats—everything from a paragraph to a long essay to multimedia. We also encouraged interactivity—the possibility that contributors could speak directly to each other, rather than creating the inert, isolated chapters that normally populate edited volumes. We then sent out notices via our social networks, which quickly and extensively disseminated the call for submissions. Finally, we gave contributors a mere seven days, the better to focus their attention and energy.

Preface | Dan Cohen and Tom Scheinfeldt

Excerpt from “About the Book“

MPublishing, the publishing division of the University of Michigan Library, is pleased to announce the open-access version of Hacking the Academy, The
Edited Volume. The volume is forthcoming in print under the University of Michigan Press digitalculturebooks imprint.

This volume was assembled and edited by Dan Cohen and Tom Scheinfeldt from the best of over 300 submissions received during a spirited week when the two editors actively solicited ideas for how the academy could be beneficially reformed using digital media and technology. For more on the unusual way this book was put together, please start with Cohen and Scheinfeldt’s preface.

Tagged with: adjunct faculty • career development • faculty • higher education • new business models in he • research • scholarly writing

Also, from Steve Wheeler’s Are you a meerkat or an ostrich?

Etienne Wenger recently declared: ‘If any institutions are going to help learners with the real challenges they face…(they) will have to shift their focus from imparting curriculum to supporting the negotiation of productive identities through landscapes of practice’ (Wenger, 2010).

We live in uncertain times, where we cannot be sure how the economy is going to perform today, let alone predict what kind of jobs there will be for students when they graduate in a few years time. How can we prepare students for a world of work that doesn’t yet exist? How can we help learners to ready themselves for employment that is shifting like the sand, and where many of the jobs they will be applying for when they leave university probably don’t exist yet? It’s a conundrum many faculty and lecturers are wrestling with, and one which many others are ignoring in the hope that the problem will simply go away. Whether we are meerkats, looking out and anticipating the challenges, or ostriches burying our heads in the sand, the challenge remains, and it is growing stronger.

Also see:

The Nature of the Future: The Socialstructed World — from nextberlin.eu by Marina Gorbis, Institute for the Future
Marina Gorbis, Executive Director of the Institute for the Future (iftf.org) discussed the evolution of communication and its consequences at NEXT13. She analyzed the perks and challenges of the new relationship-driven or “socialstructed” economy, stating that “humans and technology will team up”. Her new book ‘The Nature of the Future: Dispatches from the Socialstructed World’ was published in early 2013. Watch her inspiring talk on April 23, 2013 at NEXT13.

From DSC:
My best take on this at this point:

Give students more choice, more control of their learning
Help them discover their gifts, abilities, talents, passions
Help them develop their gifts, abilities, talents, passions
Provide content in as many ways as possible — and let the students work with what they prefer to work with
Implement story, emotion, creativity, and play as much as possible (providing plenty of chances for them to create what they want to create)
Utilize cross-disciplinary assignments and teams
Integrate real-world assignments/projects into the mix
Help them develop their own businesses while they are still in school — coach them along, provide mentors, relevant blogs/websites, etc.
Guide them as they create/develop their own “textbooks” and/or streams of content

Tagged with: adjunct faculty • change • curriculum • customized learning • dangers of the status quo • Daniel S. Christian • education reform • engaging students • future • future of higher education • hearts -- matters of the heart • higher education • homeschooling/homeschoolers • K-12 • Keeping students engaged • learning ecosystem • more choice more control • motivation • passions • personalized learning • real-world assignments • reinvent • staying relevant • student-related • teachers • teaching & learning

The folks needed to create the next generation of learning: Computers can’t touch this. [Christian]

On 05/03/2013, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, A/V -- audio/visual, accessibility / UDL, adjunct faculty, analytics, animation, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, Augmented Reality (AR), Bring your own device (BYOD), collaboration, content development, aggregation, repositories, creativity, Daniel S. Christian, data related items, design, digital audio, digital learning, digital photography, digital storytelling, digital video, education technology, educational games / serious games, elearning, emerging technologies, engagement / engaging students, entrepreneurship, experimentation, faculty, global / globalization, graphics, innovation, instructional design, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, interaction design, interactivity, interface design, internet, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning preferences, machine-to-machine communications, mobile learning, mobile technologies, multimedia, music, Near Field Communication (NFC), new media literacies, online learning, online media, online tutoring, participation, personalized/customized learning, photography, play, reinvent, research, second screen apps, simulations, smart/connected TV, social learning / networks, social media, society, story, storytelling, streams of content, teachers, telepresence, television, transmedia, trends, user experience (UX), user interface design, using teams, videoconferencing, Virtual Reality (VR) / worlds / learning, virtual tutoring, web design and production, web-based collaboration, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:
What we need is a major hackathon — or an organization with deep pockets — that can bring together folks from a variety of disciplines including:

Subject Matter Experts
Instructional Designers
Cognitive Psychologists
Computer Scientists and/or those exerienced with learning analytics/data mining, Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Those gifted in film/media/videography/photography
Great storytellers/writers (including writing for transmedia-based learning experiences)
Folks who can create engaging, educational games
Designers
- Web
- Graphic
- Interface
- User experience
- User interaction
- Those gifted in creating multimedia-based content
Musicians
Human Computer Interaction (HCI) experts
Mobile learning experts
Those knowledgeable with second screens/M2M communications
Animators
Illustrators
Social media experts
Accessibility experts
Researchers
Those gifted in creating augmented reality-based apps
Legal/copyright experts
& others

We need for these specialists to collaborate in order to create the next generation of learning. Anyone who can bring these skillsets together and experiment with creating materials will have significantly contributed something to the current generations and to future generations!

And, in the words of M.C. Hammer, computers “can’t touch this!” Why? Because “learning is messy!”

What fields did I miss?
Please leave your thoughts and
feedback in the comments section.

Scientific articles accepted (personal checks, too) [Kolata]

On 04/10/2013, in adjunct faculty, career development, faculty, higher education, open courseware and systems, research, the downsides of how people use tech, by Daniel Christian

Scientific articles accepted (personal checks, too) — from the nytimes.com by Gina Kolata

Excerpt:

The scientists who were recruited to appear at a conference called Entomology-2013 thought they had been selected to make a presentation to the leading professional association of scientists who study insects.

But they found out the hard way that they were wrong. The prestigious, academically sanctioned conference they had in mind has a slightly different name: Entomology 2013 (without the hyphen). The one they had signed up for featured speakers who were recruited by e-mail, not vetted by leading academics. Those who agreed to appear were later charged a hefty fee for the privilege, and pretty much anyone who paid got a spot on the podium that could be used to pad a résumé.

Excerpt of some recommendations/suggestions from Mr. Steve McMullen, Assistant Professor of Economics, Calvin College:

Only publish in journals that you know are legitimate and long standing.
Only go to conferences hosted by an institution or association that you respect.

These two rules immediately rule out all the suspect journals and conferences, but they do so by granting power to the traditional gatekeepers. I recognize that if everyone behaves this way, it might be difficult for the open-access movement, which is sometimes laudable, to take off in our field.

Another observation: It is probably important for departments to have some statement written into their scholarship statements/guidelines that indicate the sort of journals that count and those that don’t, and a process for evaluating publication outlets.

Tagged with: adjunct faculty • career development • faculty • higher education • journals • open • research • the downsides of technology

A seat at the table at last [Barbour]

On 01/24/2013, in adjunct faculty, Bring your own device (BYOD), digital learning, faculty, generational differences, higher education, innovation, IT in HE, leadership, MOOCs -- Massive Open Online Courses, new business models, strategy, teaching & learning, by Daniel Christian

A seat at the table at last — from campustechnology.com by Andrew Barbour
One result of the Year of the MOOC is that IT is finally getting a say in the strategic direction of the institution.

Excerpt:

It’s interesting that it took an external force to propel IT into this inner circle. I can’t recall how many stories CT has run proposing strategies for how CIOs could win a place at the table. At the end of the day, though, changing an institution as hidebound as the average college is not easily tackled from within. In contrast, there’s nothing like a little existential angst to shake things up.

But MOOCs aren’t the only drivers of this change. We often think of BYOD as stripping IT of control but–on the broader stage–it may be playing its own part in elevating IT’s profile on campus. For years, faculty resisted IT recommendations on how technology could improve teaching and learning. Saying no was easy–preserving the status quo always is. That’s changing now. BYOD is a force that faculty can’t resist. It is, after all, their customers bringing the devices to school. Suddenly, faculty are faced with demands for new styles of teaching that accommodate student preferences for technology and much more. Enter IT and a host of others who see the potential of tech in education.

Also relevant/see:

The University’s Dilemma–– from strategy-business.com by Tim Laseter; with thanks to Ross Dawson for the recent tweet on this

Tagged with: adjunct faculty • Bring your own device (BYOD) • digital learning • faculty • future of higher education • generational differences • higher education • IT • leadership • new business models in he • strategy • teaching & learning • vision

The Lesson of Grace in Teaching — by Francis Su

On 01/22/2013, in adjunct faculty, faith, hearts -- matters of the heart, mathematics, teaching & learning, teaching online, by Daniel Christian

Per Jim Bradley (Mathematics, Emeritus) at Calvin College:

Francis Su is a Christian teaching at Harvey Mudd, a secular liberal arts college. He was recently selected to receive the Haimo Award*, one of the mathematics community’s highest teaching honors. Receiving the award entails giving an address at the annual math association meeting, going on now in San Diego. In writing his talk, Francis asked himself, “What does the gospel have to say to this large, mostly secular group of mathematicians?” He answered, “Grace.” Here’s a link to a written copy of his talk. I think it’s quite an inspiring and enjoyable set of reflections on teaching by an obviously great teacher.

http://www.facebook.com/notes/francis-su/the-lesson-of-grace-in-teaching/10151372450043217
(From DSC: Facebook deleted the above original posting by Franic Su — not sure why)

Per Francis’ new blog:
After giving this talk, I had so many requests for the text that I
shared it on Facebook. But Facebook deleted it.
So I created a blog just for this. I hope you find it helpful.

It was the hardest thing I ever had to write:
because it is deeply personal, truly me,
and about my biggest life lesson… given at a
conference in front of hundreds of people who,
I’m sure, struggle with the same things that I do.

The Lesson of Grace in Teaching
From weakness to wholeness, the struggle and the hope
Francis Edward Su
MAA Haimo Teaching Award Lecture
Joint Math Meetings, January 11, 2013
An audio file is available: bit.ly/W4gyD0.

Excerpt:

Knowing my new advisor had grace for me meant that he could give me honest feedback on my dissertation work, even if it was hard to do, without completely destroying my identity. Because, as I was learning, my worthiness does NOT come from my accomplishments. I call this

The Lesson of GRACE:

Your accomplishments are NOT what make you a worthy human being.
You learn this lesson when someone shows you GRACE: good things you didn’t earn or deserve, but you’re getting them anyway.

I have to learn this lesson over and over again.
You can have worthiness apart from your performance.
You can have dignity independent of achievements.
Your identity does not have to be rooted in accomplishments.
You can be loved for who you are, not for what you’ve done—somebody just has to show you grace.

From DSC:
Powerful messages…often times, it’s hard for me to get my arms around the lessons/messages that Francis addressed — especially seeing as we live in a world that constantly measures us by our performance, our achievements, and/or our productivity.

* From The Deborah and Franklin Tepper Haimo Award for Distinguished College or University Teaching of Mathematics web page:

In 1991, the Mathematical Association of America instituted Awards for Distinguished College or University Teaching of Mathematics in order to honor college or university teachers who have been widely recognized as extraordinarily successful and whose teaching effectiveness has been shown to have had influence beyond their own institutions. In 1993, the MAA Board of Governors renamed the award to honor Deborah and Franklin Tepper Haimo.

List of Recipients

2013
Matthias Beck, San Francisco State University
Margaret Robinson, Mount Holyoke College
Francis Edward Su, Harvey Mudd College

Tagged with: adjunct faculty • faculty • faith • hearts -- matters of the heart • math • teachers • teaching & learning • teaching online

Thanks LORD for the teachers, professors, and trainers out there!

On 11/21/2012, in adjunct faculty, art, career development, creativity, Daniel S. Christian, faculty, hearts -- matters of the heart, relationships, student-related, teachers, training / L&D, by Daniel Christian

Tagged with: adjunct faculty • art • career development • creativity • Daniel S. Christian • faculty • relationships • student-related • teachers • training

Praying for jobs [Jaschik]

On 11/13/2012, in adjunct faculty, faculty, religion, by Daniel Christian

Praying for jobs — from insidehighered.com by Scott Jaschik

Since 2008, academic job openings in religion have dropped sharply — and the positions that do exist are more likely than in the past to be non-tenure-track.

Joint report here.

Tagged with: adjunct faculty • faculty • religion

A request from King David to the Master Teacher — show me, teach me, guide me

On 10/31/2012, in adjunct faculty, adult learning, Daniel S. Christian, ethics, faculty, faith, hearts -- matters of the heart, higher education, K-12 related, pedagogy, teachers, teaching & learning, by Daniel Christian

Conflicted: Faculty and Online Education, 2012 [Allen, Seaman, Lederman, Jaschik]

On 07/11/2012, in adjunct faculty, face-to-face, faculty, online learning, teaching & learning, teaching online, by Daniel Christian

Excerpt:

The study was based on a pair of related surveys about online education, co-designed by Inside Higher Ed and administered and analyzed by the Babson Survey Research Group, which has studied online education for more than a decade. The surveys garnered responses from representative samples of 4,564 faculty members (of about 60,000 who were sent invitations to participate) and 591 academic technology administrators, from all types of institution. The surveys asked a wide range of questions of both groups about their perceptions of online quality, institutional support and training in instructional technology, and compensation, among other things. The response rates for both surveys were below 10 percent.

A PDF copy of the study report can be downloaded here. To read the text of the report, click here.

From DSC:
I urge faculty members to give online learning a try — not only for your students’ sakes, but for your own career’s sake:

Take a course from an organization that has a good reputation for their online courses
or
Take a course re: instructional design for teaching online
or
Try your hand at teaching your own course online.

I don’t mention this piece of advice as a threat or to come across as a scaremonger. Online learning has been — and continues to be — reality. In Christensen’s terms, face-to-face classrooms practice sustaining innnovations but online learning is a disruptive technology that keeps gaining ground. [When either mode are done well] it’s now not only at least as good as face-to-face learning, but the powerful tools that keep being added to online learning will take it far beyond what we are able to currently offer in a face-to-face classroom.

One comment at the end of the article stood out for me as well:

“In a capitalistic society consumer demand dictates the products it will provide and sell.”

For those interested in this topic, take a moment to check out the other comments as well.

Tagged with: adjunct faculty • face-to-face • faculty • online learning • teaching & learning • teaching online

Previous Entries Next Entries

Learning Ecosystems

What happened in online learning over the summer? [Parts 1, 2, and 3 by Tony Bates]

64 Ed-Tech Lists for College Professors, Administrators and IT Professionals [Daly]

Mad Professors: The adjuncts are at the barricades. [Burns]

Interesting…”Hacking the Academy: A book crowdsourced in one week” [U of Michigan Press; Cohen & Scheinfeldt]

Preface | Dan Cohen and Tom Scheinfeldt

Scientific articles accepted (personal checks, too) [Kolata]

A seat at the table at last [Barbour]

The Lesson of Grace in Teaching — by Francis Su

Top 12 Teaching and Learning articles for 2012, parts 1 & 2 [Bart]

Are we moving more towards a world where professors represent their own brands…?

Praying for jobs [Jaschik]

Conflicted: Faculty and Online Education, 2012 [Allen, Seaman, Lederman, Jaschik]

Categories

Tags