Enhancing Faculty Development Through ACUE Program at Salem State University
Faculty at Salem State University participated in the ACUE Program, resulting in significant improvements in teaching practices and student engagement. The program focused on incorporating new teaching techniques and fostering a supportive learning environment. Participants reported increased confidence, enthusiasm, and adaptive teaching strategies, leading to enhanced student experiences and academic success.
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The ACUE Experience Salem State University Amcoa Team September 28, 2018
ACUE Program at Salem State Fall 2017 first cohort of 19 newer faculty, 89% completed Spring 2017 second cohort of 12 teaching FYS, 58% completed AY2018-19 third cohort of mid-career faculty teaching General Education
Faculty experience Learned an average of 51 new practices and learned more about 85 Implemented an average 23 new practices and planned to implement 50 more All would recommend course All reported modules were helpful in refining their teaching
Faculty pre/post improvements in: Their use of educational research to inform teaching Willingness to adapt their teaching based on student responses to activities, etc. Students receptiveness to teaching methods Frequency of speaking with colleagues about teaching Enthusiasm about teaching Confidence in their teaching
Pre/post increases in faculty who report: Teaching students how to reflect on their learning is part of their role Recognition that their instructional choices impact how students perform in class They can influence how students perceive their intelligence Belief that all students can be successful in their course
Faculty comments concerning specific ACUE modules and techniques learned
After implementing the Jigsaw activity, student presentations ended up being a big success. In the past, student presentations have been boring, dry, and the rest of the class is uninterested. But by dividing up the lesson plan into segments, reinforcing the message of developing one's skills, and encouraging students to focus on explaining the material to their classmates through active engagement (rather than presenting it in a passive manner) students really seemed to work together and throw themselves into the material.
The techniques in this module helped me to rethink my assignments that are missing course objective mapping. So I added the course objective mapping into the assignment and I feel confident now that the assignment that I am asking them to do is actually fulfilling the course objectives that are set forth.
I had an epiphany! For the longest time, I have started my class with a conceptual road map that divides up all the concepts & theories in the course into distinct categories. But this module showed me what has been missing at the end - concentric concept circles! I think that it would be a great idea to use these circles at the end of this exercise to hammer home the main point: a visual display of how all these concepts are related.
In general, what students, underprepared or not, need the most is to learn how to learn. In this sense I really love the idea of the Semester Performance Prognosis Inventory as a concrete tool to address this common challenge. I confess I have never thought about it in a so organized and interactive way. The scoring scale is a creative and engaging manner of asking the student to evaluate his/her actions towards learning.
Now, I am a big fan of the Stop-Start-Continue method! I have used it for a few years and love it. This module, however, showed me a few details about it that will help me revise my way of using it. First, I love the idea of using a short prompt on each word: Stop What do you wish we would stop doing in class? , Start - What do you think we should start doing in class?, and Continue - What is working well and should be continued? I have never shared with the students my new approaches or changes in teaching due to the results of the Stop-Start-Continue . I can t wait to do it from now on
One topic I keep coming back to is how to provide students with all the necessary tools to successfully complete their assignments. This semester I have focused on sharing with students how each assignment relates to the course learning outcomes, providing students with examples of former students work, and giving students opportunities to submit earlier drafts for feedback and/or submit revisions after the assignment has been graded. This particular module encouraged me to consider another issue at hand: providing a roadmap for completing major assignments that includes component dues dates along the way.
