Three teaching things: week of March 7
This week: the impact of syllabus tone on students' intention to seek help; flux pedagogy; and Mozilla hubs (it's Second Life all over again?)
Issue #39
1. The paper
Syllabus Tone, More Than Mental Health Statements, Influence Intentions to Seek Help.
Course outlines are more than just a punchline for frustrated faculty, with the literature suggesting they serve at least three purposes: acting as a contract, as record, and as a learning tool. I’m obviously most interested with the idea of the course outline as a learning tool (I’d say they’re so key that the culminating assignment of a graduate course on University teaching and learning I taught was to develop a learner-centred course outline).
This week’s paper focuses on student mental health, specifically the tone of the course outline has on student intent to ask for help from a faculty member. Tone here being either classified as warm (“…included using positive or friendly language, providing a rationale for assignments, using humor, conveying compassion, sharing personal experiences, and showing enthusiasm for the course…” p.2) or cold.
With kudos to the authors for sharing the major finding in the title of the paper, it does offer some further thoughts on where statements supporting students’ mental health should appear in the syllabus (hint: not in the middle of policy boilerplate).
Gurung, R. A. R., & Galardi, N. R. (2021). Syllabus Tone, More Than Mental Health Statements, Influence Intentions to Seek Help. Teaching of Psychology, 009862832199463. https://doi.org/10.1177/0098628321994632
2. The resource
The Educator’s Playbook: Flux Pedgagogy
This webpage opens with the following question: “How can we shift our practice to support our students’ whole selves as they work their way through the rest of the semester?” and answers this question by describing Dr. Sharon M. Ravitch’s concept of flux pedagogy, “…the integration of relational and critical pedagogy frameworks into a transformative teaching approach in times of radical flux.”
While that may sound abstract, the balance of the post includes a host of suggested practices to apply this approach and consider for your classroom practice.
3. The tool
hubs by Mozilla
Remember Second Life? In the late oughts, Universities staked claims and created virtual campuses (today, largely abandoned). hubs allows you to create a virtual room and interact with guests in that environment. And while it gives off Second Life vibes, it’s simplicity (no app to install) seems to be a selling feature.
While VR has matured since 2007-2008 (making these environments more immersive with a headset), I don’t think we’re at a point where virtual campuses or classrooms will take off again. But, then again… 🤷🏻♂️
Three Teaching Things is a weekly newsletter compiled by Gavan Watson, which shares three different teaching and learning resources (papers, resources or tools) worth your attention.
Thanks for reading!