Recently I noticed that some of my graduate students were sharing questionable sources in their online discussion posts. It’s not that the websites or videos were completely inaccurate or unreliable. In fact, many students posted peer-reviewed scholarly sources about philosophy and education that contributed significantly to the quality of discussion. But others posted user-generated content from sites like YouTube and SlideShare without considering the authority of the sources, probably because these sites appeared near the top of Google’s search results. In order to determine the reliability of online sources, students of all levels, from P-16 and beyond, need lessons in digital literacy and “crap detecting” for the twenty-first century. (Click on blog title to continue reading)
The EEC Model of Student Achievement: Using Engagement, Enthusiasm and Collective Work to Inspire Your Students to Rise to the Next Level
..."To help someone succeed" is at the core of my work history, a factor in my subject happiness, and a main element in my teaching philosophy. Helping someone accomplish a goal, learn a new task, and develop self-efficacy is rewarding. I attribute this attitude to Trinity Services, Inc., the first organization I worked for after receiving my undergraduate degree. Trinity encouraged us daily to build strong relationships with our coworkers, work collectively to achieve our goals, and commit to a lifestyle of servant leadership. More importantly, it was through this profession that I grew my passion for positive organizational psychology, teaching, and committed to pursuing a doctorate degree in hopes of helping others succeed. It is my mission to provide the highest quality teaching and supports to students so that they may flourish and live accomplished lives. I base my teaching and mentoring on three key concepts: creating engagement, instilling the enthusiasm I have for success and drive for achievement into my students, and encouraging students to work collectively to reach higher levels of success. (Please click post title to continue reading)
Teaching and Learning Strategies Drawn from Exploring Parental Needs in the Special Education Process
Have you ever sat on the other side of the table as a parent at a meeting with a Committee on Special Education (CSE) for a child with special needs? The process does not always work as it is intended. Often, the parents are relegated to the task of receiving information about their child’s social/emotional behavior, etc. The parents are expected to listen to it not just hear it – process it not just understand it – and trust the speakers without having seen the data (every moment of every day) yourself – to name a few. This process can be challenging in many ways. (Click blog title to continue reading)
Strategies by Recipient of 2019 Presidential Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award
I was recently honored with receiving the Presidential Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award, and because of this was asked to describe some of the teaching strategies I use in this blog forum. Considering that I don’t have an advanced degree in education, I don’t feel qualified to pontificate about best practice teaching strategies, but I can share about my motivations, the resources and strategies I’ve found helpful, and reflect about what I think is really working in my classroom. (Click blog title to continue reading)
Breaking Down Professional and Cultural Barriers in the Classroom: Our Experience and Recommendations
The Introduction to Cultural Competency course that we offer for first year medical (TouroCom) and pharmacy (TCOP) students on the Harlem campus is a unique offering. We recently learned from a national survey conducted by the Health Disparities and Cultural Competency Special Interest Group of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) that our course is the only one taught at an interprofessional education (IPE) setting. The World Health Organization (WHO) describes IPE as “when students from two or more professions learn about, from, and with each other to enable effective collaboration and improve health outcomes.” (Click blog post title to continue reading)
Student-Faculty Success
Upon reviewing the thoughtful practices of fellow colleagues within this community, I have been inspired to share some additional teaching and learning strategies. Each approach should advance course objectives and learner engagement. These applications can be exercised in both graduate and undergraduate programs. (Click blog title to continue reading)
Some Notes on Students’ Personal Agency
“Professor, I don’t know what’s going on!” I had just approached one of my students at the Graduate School of Education about her having fallen behind on one of our course assignments. I won’t say I was entirely surprised by her response: students usually take this course during their first semester when they are often still acclimating to a number of novel responsibilities and the nature of the assignment in particular was one that is unfamiliar to many new graduate students. In truth, I appreciated the student’s candor and readiness to receive help – once it was offered. What did surprise me – and what has surprised me on several occasions over seven years of teaching graduate level courses – is the reluctance of some experienced students to initiate the conversation or to seek any form of assistance on their own. (Click blog title to continuing reading)
Select Journal Articles on Learning & Teaching
It has been my pleasure to once again put together several articles on the topic of teaching and learning in higher education. For a previous bibliography, click here. All of the articles below can be found on the Touro College NY library online portal. If you are trying to access this content from a Touro College NY professional school/ TCUS campus, kindly search in your respective library online portal and reach out to your librarian for any assistance. (Click blog title to continue reading)
Raising Awareness of Implicit Biases
Recently the mainstream media has taken an interest in the idea of “implicit bias”, bringing it into the popular discourse. Implicit biases, as the name implies, are preconceived notions of which we are unaware, but nonetheless guide our emotions and actions. This unconscious mindset often affects our decisions and behaviors pertaining to race, religion, age, etc. In a world where people have become increasingly more polarized, the need to address biases, explicit and implicit, has made it imperative for educational institutions to be pro-active in addressing issues of discrimination, especially those arising from latent inclinations.
Facilitating the ACUE course on Effective Teaching in Higher Education
Please allow me to first give you some background information. I served as Dean of the College of Education and Health Sciences (CEHS) for ten years at Touro University California (TUC). The CEHS included the Physician Assistant program, the Public Health program, the Graduate School of Education, and the School of Nursing. At the end of the 2016-17 academic year, I chose to step down as Dean and become Director of the Center for Innovative Learning and Teaching (CILT) for the Touro Western Division, which is TUC and Touro University Nevada (TUN). (Click on blog post title to continue reading)
TOURO COLLEGE LEARNING & TEACHING EXCHANGE 