TDU Talk
ISSUE 1 ▪ MARCH 2009
CELEBRATING TEACHING EXCELLENCE
From the Appraisals Administrator
Trudy Harris
WCELfest08
Nigel Robertson
What is effective teaching?
Dorothy Spiller
Teaching through Failure
Mark Houlahan
The Highs and Lows of Teaching
Eva Collins and Debashish Munshi
Kia ora koutou
“
Happy New Year and best wishes for a year of teaching
that is satisfying and enjoyable for you and your
students. Welcome to the first edition of the TDU magazine for
2009. In this edition, our theme is celebrating teaching. This
theme was partly inspired by two major teaching events at the
end of 2008 which evoked enthusiastic responses from
participants. The first of these was the Celebrating Teaching
Excellence occasion when a number of award winning teachers
shared their teaching ideas and practices. The second event was the WCELfest
on December 11 which attracted many people and generated excitement about
and interest in eLearning.
This magazine affords us the opportunity to share with the wider academic
community the stimulating conversations about teaching and learning that were
generated by these two events. Some of the award-winning teachers have
written articles for this edition and we look forward to contributions from
others in subsequent editions. Additionally, Nigel Robertson from WCEL has
provided an overview of the WCELfest for those who could not make the day.
ISSUE 1: MARCH 2009
Teaching Development Unit
Wāhanga Whakapakari Ako
Office of Deputy ViceChancellor
Private Bag 3105
Hamilton 3240
New Zealand
Phone: +64 7 838 4839
Fax: +64 7 838 4573
[email protected]
www.waikato.ac.nz/tdu
It is vital to celebrate excellence and innovation in teaching and no better time
than in 2009. It promises to be a busy year for teaching quality. Preparation of
the quality portfolio for the Cycle 4 Audit has commenced. Work on the new
Teaching and Learning Plan continues. This plan will provide guidelines for
core aspects of teaching and learning at each level of the organisation;
individual, Department, School/Faculty/College and University. Many
members of the academic community have collaborated in drafting the text for
the Plan, the level of expertise offered has been inspiring and the associated
conversations were stimulating and enriching. Anna Bounds, Head of Human
Resources, has actively contributed to the development of the plan bringing
insights to the way in which our HR practices can recognise effective teaching.
We believe that when the draft Plan is shared with the university community in
the consultation phase, it will prompt the same levels of reflection and
collaborative discussion of teaching that were experienced by those writing the
text. It is this engagement in conversation about the nature and practice of
quality teaching that will ultimately lead to the attainment of effective teaching
and learning at Waikato.
Happy reading!
Best wishes
Dorothy, Trudy and Preetha
MARCH 2009 • TDU TALK
.”
•2•
From the Appraisals Administrator
“
Hello
everybody. Welcome to the first offering
from the Appraisal Administrator. In terms of
Appraisals, this year promises to be very exciting. The
Evaluation of Teaching and Papers Policy has been
ratified and can be found at:
http://www.waikato.ac.nz/official-info/
evaluation_teaching_policy.shtml
To support this document is a set of guidelines for the Review,
Evaluation and Continuous Improvement of Teaching and Papers. This
document can be also be found at the above link.
Academics often question the purpose and benefits of the appraisals
system and its relationship to effective teaching practice. This Policy
document has been developed to enable and encourage the enhancement
of teaching and ongoing professional development by maximising the
formative learning opportunities provided by the appraisal process. The
Policy requires that one or more evaluation methods be used to gather
data on teaching and paper quality. One of the data collection methods
must be the University‟s appraisal of papers and teaching, but staff will
also be encouraged to collect developmental data through use of
formative evaluation methods. This combination of evaluation methods
will allow for not only the institutional collection of appraisal data, but
also for a process of teaching/professional development, which will be
driven through the PGS process. The guidelines supports the policy by
providing information on the best methods of formative evaluation to
use, but also provides information on the summative appraisal process.
To support the implementation of the Policy and Guidelines documents a
series of workshops will be arranged which will highlight the key
additions to the Appraisal Policy and what they mean for teaching
practice. These workshops will be announced at a later date after
consultation with CODs and Deans.
I shall keep you informed of the progress of the policy and the
development of the Appraisals process and its implications for
teachers.
Have a good 2009.
Trudy
•3•
.”
MARCH 2009 • TDU TALK
WCELfest08
Nigel Robertson, Waikato Centre for eLearning (WCEL)
In 2007 our University initiated a project to deploy Moodle across the
campus so we could provide an internationally recognised and robust
eLearning environment for our teachers and learners. At the same
time the Waikato Centre for eLearning (WCEL) was created and
tasked with supporting and developing the use of eLearning across
the institution.
The Moodle project had several outputs, one of which was a report on
the current use of eLearning in the University. There were several
messages from this report, one of which was that staff can be very
unaware of what is happening elsewhere in the University in terms of
eLearning. This includes across Schools, within Schools and even
within departments. To begin to address this, we decided to organise
WCELfest08, a one day conference to share some of the practice
happening here at our own University.
Our Deputy Vice Chancellor, Professor Doug Sutton, opened the
proceedings with a welcome to all present. The audience included
several people from regional tertiary institutions that we had invited
in the spirit of the conference themes of communicate, collaborate
and co-operate. We were then honoured to have Peter Mellow deliver
the inaugural keynote address (http://tinyurl.com/dhvdl3). Peter was
one of the first Flexible Learning Leaders in New Zealand
(FLLinNZ), a community envisioned by the late Nola Campbell.
Peter addressed issues of enhancing student learning in the 21st
century and argued that it is incumbent upon teachers to combine
"If we continue
to teach our
students today,
as we taught
them yesterday,
we rob them of
tomorrow.”
John Dewey
MARCH 2009 • TDU TALK
•4•
their subject expertise with a deep knowledge of technology so that
they can fully exploit the opportunities offered by eLearning. He
didn't argue that we should be using cutting edge technologies but in
fact technologies that have been widely available since last century.
These are technologies that students have reported that they would
find useful and that we know are under utilised here and in many
other places. His final quote was from John Dewey,
"If we continue to teach our students today, as we taught them
yesterday, we rob them of tomorrow.”
We must remember that the world develops and the learning
landscape changes and we must progress with it too.
Peter Mellow was the keynote
speaker for the inaugural WCELfest
on 11th December.
Peter is a Senior Lecturer at
Auckland University of Technology
and divides his time between Sports
Science and the Centre for
Educational and Professional
Development. Peter has a strong
connection with University of
Waikato having studied under Nola
Campbell and we were fortunate to
have Peter contribute his expertise
and enthusiasm to the WCELfest.
Peter has strong eLearning
credentials and has particular
interests in mobile technologies and
integrating technology and learning.
In 2004 he was one of the first
Flexible Learning Leaders in New
Zealand and in 2007 he was
recognised in the national Tertiary
Teaching Excellence Awards with an
award for sustained excellence in
teaching. He is also an Apple
Distinguished Educator and
developed the groundbreaking
StudyTXT service.
•5•
When we started organising WCELfest, to be honest, we had no idea
of what response we would get in terms of people offering to present
and audience numbers. We tentatively decided that if we could get
an audience of 60 then we could run 2 parallel strands and reckon
that we had made a successful start. Of course that would still rely
on having enough presenters to offer two strands! In the end, and as
a mark of some of the great teachers at our University who use
eLearning, we were able to run 3 parallel strands of four sessions
each and could have run more if the day was longer! As for an
audience, we finally had 144 people register, an absolutely great
figure and well beyond our expectations.
After morning tea, we split for the presentations in the parallel
strands. The presenters who used slides have made them available
and we also managed to have many sessions recorded as well. I can't
detail all the sessions that took place, however, there was a diverse
and stimulating range of talks. These included some based on formal
research and some that were more experiential. Topics covered the
use of specific tools such as online discussion forums and blogs;
experiences of learning and teaching online; design considerations;
and the use of mobile technologies.
Before lunch, we were addressed by Ruth Peterson, the Co-ordinator
for the Northern Hub of Ako Aotearoa. Many people are still
unaware of the existence of Ako Aotearoa and Ruth took the
opportunity to make sure that we knew what it's role and purpose is,
as well as the fact that it is a grant making organisation! The
Northern Hub of Ako Aotearoa very kindly sponsored lunch for the
conference and I think that many people thought that it was some of
the best food they had had at such an event. Kudos to Stellar
Catering for the fare they prepared.
MARCH 2009 • TDU TALK
Lunch was also the occasion
to meet with people and
there were many hubs of
conversation. In fact it was a
bit of a job to get folks to
return to their seats for the
start of the afternoon
sessions! These sessions
also had a good mix of
topics. Some looked at new developments for the University such as
plagiarism checking and connecting video and discussions; new
ways to use tools such as lessons and podcasts for learning;
changing paradigms with students creating course content; and
strategies to manage workloads when using online environments.
We were very lucky to have Stephen Bright from
BTI and Toni Twiss from Waikato Diocesan
School present two of the day‟s sessions.
Communicate, collaborate, co-operate
The day closed with Marcia Johnson from Student Learning Support
leading the closing plenary session. She recapped the day, again
noting the ubiquity of technology and internet access and why it is
imperative that we accept this in our teaching lives and don't ignore
it.
All in all, we are very happy with the whole day. The numbers
attending outstripped our expectations, the presentations were
excellent and we have had some terrific and supportive feedback on
the day. We feel that we met our objectives of, "Communicate,
collaborate and co-operate" and that it is a good foundation for
continuing to share between ourselves throughout the year.
WCElfest 2008 Organising Team
Many thanks must go out to all the presenters on the day for sharing
their experiences of teaching and learning with technology, to Peter
Mellow for his excellent and thought provoking keynote; to Stephen
and Toni for coming in to share their expertise with us; to Ako
Aotearoa and Ruth Peterson for their support of the conference; to
our guests and visitors from outside our University; to Doug Sutton
and Marcia Johnson for their opening and closing remarks; to the
teams from the School of Education and Waikato Management
School for recording so many of the sessions for us; to Stellar
Catering for the excellent and well organised food; and to Campus
Catering for the drinks throughout the day. Finally, but not least, the
day wouldn't have happened if not for the hard work and enthusiasm
of the organising team of Tracey Morgan, Monica van Oostrom,
Teresa Gibbison, Dean Stringer and Derek White.
The Waikato Centre for eLearning is looking forward to organising
WCELfest 2009.
MARCH 2009 • TDU TALK
•6•
What is effective teaching?
Dorothy Spiller
...teaching
and learning is
not only an
intellectual
endeavour,
but a human
encounter with the
same potential for
shared growth and
enrichment as
other human
relationships, but
equally the same
possibilities for
miscommunication,
untested
assumptions and
breakdown.
•7•
In an edition that celebrates teaching it seems apt to revisit this question
and acknowledge immediately that it is extraordinarily difficult to answer.
Effective teaching is so difficult to define, partly because of the many
variables that are at work in the complex interaction between teachers,
learners and subject. There are broader social norms and expectations that
help to determine what we see as valuable and these are also culturally
influenced. Academia is rife with its own historical traditions and
mythology about
what constitutes
effective teaching
and learning and
there are contested
theories about the
optimum conditions
for learning. Each
academic discipline
has its own norms
and conventions and
methods of inquiry
which inevitably
influence what is
considered to be
effective teaching.
Every learner steps
into the learning
environment with a unique personal and cultural history and prior
experience of learning, orientations to and reasons for study; these factors
will play a large role in influencing the way students engage with and
evaluate their learning experience. Moreover, teaching and learning is not
only an intellectual endeavour, but a human encounter with the same
potential for shared growth and enrichment as other human relationships,
but equally the same possibilities for miscommunication, untested
assumptions and breakdown. This relational dimension is complicated by
the fact that as Palmer (1998) reminds us, teaching is delicately poised at
the interface of the public and the personal, and part of the teacher‟s role is
to negotiate and manage the boundaries of these roles. Palmer argues that
“Good teaching always takes place at the crossroads of the personal and the
public, and if I want to teach well, I must learn to stand where these
opposites intersect” (p.63). Many academics simply choose to bypass
complexity by focussing entirely on the transmission of content and this
MARCH 2009 • TDU TALK
may feel safe and manageable. But I would argue that if we want our
students to undertake the risks and challenges associated with real learning
and intellectual growth, we cannot stand in a safe place ourselves. Our
students can read about our subject, but as teachers we can directly share
our unique way of engaging with our subject. It is our ability to enable our
students to share in the processes, methods of inquiry, ideas and excitement
that are part of our involvement with our subject that vivifies learning for
us and for our students. As Frego (2006) expresses it, she engages in a
relationship with her students “not as the ultimate authority on my
discipline, but as a committed, enthusiastic practitioner who personally
welcomes and guides the student into the discipline‟s community” (p.42). It
is my view that effective teachers invite their students into a living
relationship with the discipline and with themselves. Not all students will
or can respond to this invitation, but we can hold out the possibility in the
best way that we can.
At our celebration of teachers on 10 December many participants
commented on the range of personalities among the award-winning
teachers and the differences in teaching styles and strategies. But each
teacher gave us a glimpse of a personal and discipline-specific way of
engaging with their subject and their students. Briefly, we were invited to
participate in the learning communities that they create, and the excitement
in the room was palpable.
In spite of the unique attributes of each teacher and the complexity of the
teaching and learning encounter, there are some widely agreed on basic
elements that provide a good foundation for facilitating learners‟ initiation,
engagement and maturation in relation to a particular academic discipline,
its processes and modes of inquiry. As Trigwell (2001) argues these
elements go far beyond the methods, approaches and strategies on which
teaching evaluations often focus.
Here are some attributes that I see as foundational:
An engagement in ongoing learning about teaching. As Ramsden (1995) notes “Good teachers
are also good learners; for example they learn through their own reading, by participating in a
variety of professional development activities, by listening to their students, by sharing their ideas
with their colleagues, and by reflecting on classroom interactions and students‟
achievement” (1995, p.24).


Conceptualisation of teaching as an activity that is planned and delivered with a focus on the
students‟ learning.

Mindfulness about context which includes the learning environment, the particular students and
other broader contextual factors such as the likely vocational destinations of the students
(Ramsden, 1995; Trigwell, 2001).
MARCH 2009 • TDU TALK
•8•

A recognition of the importance of the relational dimensions of teaching and learning.

Evidence of careful preparation and command of the subject.

An enthusiasm for the subject which is communicated to the students.

Communication of the subject in a language and style which is accessible to students.

Evidence of interest in the personal wellbeing and academic development of the student.

A well-designed structure for the paper and for each class which is based on precisely articulated
learning outcomes.

Ongoing explicit discussion of course learning outcomes and the connection of particular
sections of the course to the paper outcomes.

Enough flexibility in the structure to accommodate feedback on the students‟ learning progress.

Space in the teaching programme to ascertain students‟ prior knowledge.

Regular opportunities for student participation and feedback so that teachers can be in touch
with students‟ learning and adapt accordingly.

Modelling of the approaches to the subject and methods of inquiry that the lecturer wants the
students to develop.

Guiding students to draw on their academic learning to inform and evaluate their understanding
of society.

Assessment tasks which are congruent with the paper learning outcomes and clear alignment
between outcomes, teaching approaches and assessment.

Formative assessment tasks that enable the students to practise and develop the kind of learning
that is core to the paper.

Feedback on assessment tasks that enables the students to see what they need to do in order to
attain the learning outcomes.

The habit of ongoing reflection on and refinement of practice on the basis of personal
observations, collegial conversations and feedback, student feedback and the research literature
on teaching and learning (Brookfield, 1995).
In conclusion, I want to share some of the ideas from the Celebrating
Teaching day that have stayed with me. The first of these is the notion of
how teachers can use their mistakes or „failures‟ to inform their growth and
development. The second is an observation made by Roger Moltzen based
on his own research on the attributes of high achievers who noted that a
very recurrent trait was their constant asking of questions. The third was
the role student mentors can play in the development of students‟ learning
as demonstrated by Mike Duke. It is worth reflecting on the implications of
all of these ideas when we consider the notion of effective teaching.
•9•
MARCH 2009 • TDU TALK
References
Brookfield, S. (1995). Becoming a critically reflective teacher. San Francisco:
Jossey Bass.
Frego, K. A. (2006). Authenticity and relationships with students. New Directions
for adult and continuing education, 111, 41-50.
note to chair
persons &
new appointee
s
Palmer, P.J. (1998). The Courage to Teach. San Francisco: Jossey Bass
Ramsden, P., Margetson, D. , Martin, E., & Clarke, S. (1995). Recognising and
rewarding good teaching, Canberra: AGPS.http: //online.anu.edu.au/caut/
commproject/rrgt/Chapter2.html#2.6
Trigwell, K. (2001). Judging university teaching. The International journal for
academic development, 6 (1), 65-73.
Survival Strategies for
new teachers will begin
on 09 April 2009.
This session is designed to
equip staff new to teaching
with basic teaching strategies.
Contact
[email protected] for
details.
Upcoming Key Dates for New Staff
08/04/2009
8.45-12.20
Introductory Session for New Staff
09/04/2009
TBA
Starter Strategies for New Teachers
22/04/2009
10.00-12.00
New Staff Morning Tea
28/04/2009
8.45-4.30
Kanohi ki te Kanohi
29/04/2009
10.00-12.00
Building a University
05/05/2009
10.00-12.00
ICT Induction for New Staff
Book through iWaikato (My Work > Staff Development > Coming Events)
MARCH 2009 • TDU TALK
• 10 •
Make a space at your place for teaching
Some of the best learning happens
through conversation and most of the
working life of academics is focused
around the department. So why not make
the occasional space for conversation
about teaching in your department?
• 11 •
MARCH 2009 • TDU TALK
Teaching through Failure
Mark Houlahan (Senior Lecturer, English Section, Department of Humanities)
Late last century, I was awarded the Vice Chancellor‟s Medal for Teaching
Excellence. At first this paralysed me; and then it set me free. Here I will
describe one paper that has resulted from this “freedom”.
The award was announced late in the year. I taught summer school that
year, with the first classes beginning just weeks after the award. Summer
school has its trials. Who wants to be in class in early January? Shouldn‟t
you be working on quality research outputs, or at least at the beach? In this
case both instructor and students had to overcome the slow, heat-drugged
start of the paper. I‟m sure most of the students had no idea an “award
winner” was before them. I was acutely aware, not to say embarrassed.
When things did not unfold quite as hoped, or practical sessions were not as
alive as they should be, I would castigate myself. „Call yourself a teacher?
More like a dufus.’ In that case, it would have been better without the
medal which hung around my neck, as it were, like the albatross around the
ancient mariner.
...with willing
students and
supportive
colleagues I have
learnt to fail, over
and over again.
Through failure we
learn what
works...
MARCH 2009 • TDU TALK
Later that year, however, I noticed a curious double medal effect amongst
students and colleagues. Students sometimes mentioned the award. They
came to class prepared to learn from this “excellent” teacher. It did not
matter then whether or not the teacher was any good. They were excellently
prepared and open to “learning”, and so they learnt well. Amongst
colleagues there were signs of resentment (of course you‟re an excellent
teacher), but also signs of acceptance. When I proposed a new paper, or
was trialling a new model of classroom practice there was no opposition. If
the medal guy said so, it must be good. In later years this openness has
been encouraged by those of my colleagues genuinely interested in new
ways of engaging students. In this environment, with willing students and
supportive colleagues I have learnt to fail, over and over again. Through
failure we learn what works, and much more drastically from failure than
from success.
My home field is English. I come to the world through texts. I have not
mastered the technical language of pedagogy nor assimilated the tertiary
teaching research so readily available now. Rather, I use the texts I cherish
to guide my way, using key phrases in the way a scholar in the Renaissance
would keep a commonplace book filled with sage thoughts. Famously,
then, William Goldman describes the movie industry: “NOBODY KNOWS
ANYTHING”. Nobody knows why some movies take and others don‟t. He
• 12 •
explains further: “Every time out it‟s a guess-and if you‟re lucky, an
educated one” (Goldman 39). As a teacher, you recall what worked with a
specific cohort, and you repeat (like movie bosses rolling out numbered
sequels: teacher man II, III, and IV); you need to be ever alert though, as
what worked in one class will often fail with the next.
Here I refer often to Samuel Beckett‟s paradox: “Ever tried. Ever failed. No
matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better” (Beckett 89). If you fail, try
again. If you try, you will fail again, only this time better. But how do you
fail better? If you fail better are you closer to succeeding? Or are you
failing better in failing more and more? And thus “succeeding” by being
worse at, say, teaching? Or is it “getting better all the time” as the Beatles
put it? In this sense also teaching is a paradoxical activity, riddled with
unpredictable ratios of failure and success. We all know the bravura lesson,
with stellar multimedia and so on. Yet we know too the realisation that
however powerfully you may have taught, little or no learning took place.
The presentations recorded here all emphasize the necessity of dynamic
interchange between “teacher”, “students”, and their chosen subject. In the
course I will now describe, the boundaries blur constantly as to who is
“teaching” and who “learning”.
English 316: Literary Theory is offered to third year
English and Communications majors. After two years
of considering forms and genres from a range of
historical and national traditions, the paper is a
chance for students to place those reading practices in
a theoretical context, challenging assumptions around
key post-modern questions. What is a text? What is
an author? Who is privileged by certain readings of
texts, and who is silenced? In his Confessions
Augustine famously relates how he was moved to
take up the Bible: “ …I heard a voice from a nearby
house chanting…and repeating over and over again
“Pick up and read, pick up and read” (Augustine 8.28,
p. 152). In the postmodern era, we have lost
Augustine‟s certainties about how we should read and
what texts are worth our attention, yet in Humanities
subjects, we persist with following the invitation,
“tolle, lege” (pick up and read), picking up and
reading fictions, plays, poetry, of course, but also
computer games, dvds and hypertexts.
• 13 •
MARCH 2009 • TDU TALK
The theory readings in the paper are designed to lead students away from
the reading protocols in which they are already skilled, and show them new
ways of reading. Each week they need to grasp a certain key approach
(structuralism, psychoanalysis and so on), and then realise the limitations of
each. The aim is to induce panic. Which is the “right” way of reading? I
don‟t have the answer myself, but even if I did, would not disclose it in
such a forum. What I want instead is for students to become confident in
moving from one uncertainty to the next. They too need to learn to fail, and
then fail better (that is more eloquently) the next time. We spend some
weeks mid-semester considering deconstruction, via Roland Barthes,
Jacques Lacan and Jacques Derrida. With such readings, as Eagleton archly
describes them, “victory is achieved by kenosis or self-emptying: the
winner is the one who has managed to get rid of all his cards and sit with
empty hands” (Eagleton: 127). By “winner” in the classroom I would
understand those students brave enough to describe on paper or in
presentation that which they scarcely felt they grasped.
Students used to relishing “literary” texts find reading “theory” texts hard.
Most of them have no experience of reading philosophy. Here I use three
key strategies to help them:

All the theories are played out through one key “literary” text. Currently
I use Jonathan Safran Foer‟s excellent post 9/11 novel, Extremely Loud
and Incredibly Close. The novel is a kind of quest, as the narrator, nine
year old Oskar, tries to divine what happened to his father, last heard of
phoning from the South Tower just before the second plane hit. His body
was not found. Oskar journeys throughout New York looking for traces,
signs of his father. He is like a skilled reader or theorist, reading the
“signs” of literary text in a parallel to the “real” world. Reading the
novel then gives us a firm basis for the theory discussions. The text is
accessible, contemporary, and very playful in the way it uses the form of
the book, with colour pages, pictures, varying type faces. It is a
hypertext in book format. As a recent novel, students can be free to
interpret in their own fashion, and not bow down to centuries of critique,
as you might say for a Shakespeare play.

Class work revolves around workshop discussions and group exercises.
There is one “lecture” a week, surveying the main issues in the theory
concerned, but the most effective “teaching” and “learning” takes place
in quite free-flowing group sessions. Here it is key that students come to
class having read the material set for a week, and especially ready to
share their confusions. Together we try to make a little more sense of the
theories we are reading together.
FYI
Did you know that as
part of the new
induction
programme all new
staff may be assigned
a ‘buddy’ to support
them in their
transition into the
university culture?
MARCH 2009 • TDU TALK
• 14 •
The core of the coursework assignments are a series of regular,
short, focus topics. Students might be asked to define a term, explain a
sentence or debate a specific issue. They may not write more than 500
words, and have only a week to turn in the assignment. They receive
the homework back the week following. They can easily track their
progress, and I can identify those who need extra support. Students find
these “annoying but really useful”.

By these small steps, the most engaged students learn to fail (and succeed
at failing) better, and better, and better….
Works Cited
Augustine. Confessions. Trans. Henry Chadwick. (Oxford: World‟s Classics,
1992)
Beckett, Samuel. Nohow On (New York: Grove Press, 1996)
Eagleton, Terry. Literary Theory: An Introduction (Anniversary Edition). (Oxford
Blackwell, 2008)
Goldman, William. Adventures in the Skin Trade: A Personal View of Hollywood
and Screenwriting (New York: Warner Books, 1983).
Technical Moodle Workshops
18/03/2009 12.00-1.00
TurnItIn for Existing Moodle Users
06/04/2009 1.00-3.00
Easter Moodle Digest 1 – Resources & Paper Settings
07/04/2009 1.00-3.00
Easter Moodle Digest 2 – Communication & Assessment
Contact Teresa Gibbison ([email protected]) or book through iWaikato (My Work > Staff Development > Coming Events)
• 15 •
MARCH 2009 • TDU TALK
The Highs and Lows of Teaching
Eva Collins (Strategy and Human Resource Management Department)
Debashish Munshi (Management Communication Department)
At the TDU Celebrating Teaching event, Eva Collins from the
Strategy and Human Resource Management Department and
Debashish Munshi from the Management Communication
Department facilitated a session on the highs and lows of teaching.
The objective was to learn from the individual and collective
experiences of teaching staff, regardless of academic discipline.
Interestingly, the break-out groups tended to spend more time
discussing the lows of teaching rather than the highs. There seemed
to be two reasons for this: first, good teachers are often reflective and
self-critical; and, second, when teaching fails in some way, it often
leads to a re-thinking of what and how we teach. The animated
discussions developed into a key theme of the session: a willingness
to learn from “failure” and to experiment with new approaches
sometimes turned a teaching low into a teaching high.
Another theme that emerged from the lows of teaching was the
challenges created by diversity in the classroom. Making sure
classroom learning was effective and safe for students from a variety
of backgrounds raised a range of issues, including acknowledging
how our own background and experiences shaped our approach to
teaching. By sharing snippets of their own experiences of teaching,
Eva and Debashish showed how an emphasis on the articulation of
lived experience can help students to get to know themselves and the
contexts within which they live, study, work, and play.
Finally, there was a lively discussion on the vulnerability of
teaching. Sometimes we are not at our best, physically or
emotionally, but in front of the classroom, there is no place to hide
from those vulnerabilities. Participants agreed that we sometimes
struggle to develop strategies to deal with the days when we do not
feel like being “on stage”.
Hearing students
say, “Ever since I
had your class I…” is
what keeps us all
motivated.
MARCH 2009 • TDU TALK
While most agreed that experimentation and innovation in our
teaching is essential, participants acknowledged that the risk of such
an approach often leads to another type of vulnerability. That is
when we tried something in our classroom that we thought would
add to the learning, but instead absolutely fell flat. It takes courage
to try something new after a failure; there is nothing worse than
looking up at a sea of glazed eyes.
• 16 •
Many in the group admitted that they spent a lot of time preparing and
reflecting on their teaching. Keeping materials fresh and interesting
and being well prepared were priorities. But the highs of teaching
clearly centered on teachers feeling that they had made a difference.
Sometimes the teaching had changed the life of one particular student
and sometimes it inspired an entire class of students to modify their
perspective on a topic. Hearing students say,
“Ever since I had your class I…” is what keeps us
all motivated.
Upcoming Professional Development Opportunities
10/03/2009
9.00—12.00 Time Management for Enhanced Effectiveness
11/03/2009
10.00-11.00 Microsoft Word 2007 Smart Art and Flowcharts
11/03/2009
2.00-4.00 Microsoft Word 2007 Working with Long Documents
17/03/2009
10.00-12.00 Microsoft PowerPoint 2007
17/03/2009
2.00-4.00 Microsoft Excel 2007 Basics
19/03/2009
24/03/2009
24/03/2009
9.00-12.30 Elements of Design and Desktop Publishing
2.00-3.00 Microsoft Office 2007 General Update
9.00-12.00 Effectively Managing Change
25/03/2009
10.00-11.00 EndNote Essentials
25/03/2009
10.00-12.00 Strengthening Research-Teaching Linkages to Create Graduates for the 21st
Century—Professor Ray Land
27/03/2009
31/03/2009
31/03/2009
3.30-4.30 Research Conversations: An action research model for the Waikato Pathways
College
10.00-11.00 Microsoft Excel 2007 Graphs and Pivot Tables
2.00-3.00 Microsoft Excel 2007 lookups, Filters and Auto Filters
Book through iWaikato (My Work > Staff Development > Coming Events)
• 17 •
MARCH 2009 • TDU TALK
The Teaching Development Unit & Teaching Quality Committee present...
Professor Ray Land
Director of the Centre for Academic Practice and Learning Enhancement
at the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow
Strengthening Research-Teaching
Linkages to Create Graduates for
the 21st Century
Ray Land is Professor of Higher Education and Director of the
Centre for Academic Practice and Learning Enhancement
(CAPLE) at the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow UK. His
research interests include academic development, threshold
concepts and troublesome knowledge, research-teaching
linkages, and theoretical aspects of digital learning. He is the
author of Educational Development: Discourse, Identity and
Practice (Open University Press 2004) and co-editor of
Education in Cyberspace (RoutledgeFalmer 2005), Overcoming
Barriers to Student Learning: Threshold Concepts and
Troublesome Knowledge (Routledge 2006), Threshold Concepts
within the Disciplines (Sense Publishers 2008) and ResearchTeaching Linkages: Enhancing Graduate Attributes (QAA 2008).
Key Dates for Teaching Development
25/03/2009
10.00—12.00 Strengthening Research-Teaching Linkages to Create Graduates for the 21st
Century—Professor Ray Land
26/03/2009
9.00– 12.00
Professional development consultations with Professor Ray Land
(by appointment)
09/04/2009
TBA
Starter Strategies for New Teachers
16-17/04/2009 TBA
Mentoring training
8-17 June
TBA
Teaching development workshops
3 December
TBA
Celebrating Teaching Day
Contact Preetha Pratapsingh ([email protected]) or book through iWaikato (My Work > Staff Development > Coming Events)
MARCH 2009 • TDU TALK
• 18 •
Produced by:
TEACHING DEVELOPMENT UNIT | W ĀHANGA W HAKAPAKARI AKO | OFFICE OF DEPUTY VICE-CHANCELLOR | UNIVERSITY OF W AIKATO
Private Bag 3105 | Hamilton | New Zealand
Phone: +64 7 838 4839 | Fax: +64 7 838 4573 | [email protected] | www.waikato.ac.nz/tdu