Click here for Zoom link to this session!
Moderator: Paula Rees, UMass Amherst
Caralyn Zehnder, University of Massachusetts Amherst
Cynthia Alby, Georgia College
Julia Metzker, The Evergreen State College
Karynne Kleine, Georgia College
Too often we open courses by reviewing the syllabus and end them with a final exam. In both cases, we squander opportunities to engage learners, build relationships, and reflect - all of which can invite more joy into teaching and learning. In this interactive workshop, the facilitators will help translate ideas from Priya Parker’s The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why It Matters to education, and participants will apply those ideas to course design. Participants will plan course introductions that welcome and build community and course conclusions that allow for looking inward and looking outward.
In these times when students and faculty are dealing with uncertainty, burnout, and anxiety, we need to intentionally build connection and community in our courses and provide students with opportunities to reflect on their learning. The first and last days of a course can be memorable “book ends” to a transformative learning experience. By the end of this session, participants will be able to design introductory learning activities that build community and create course conclusions that help students make sense of their learning and carry forward what they have learned. An engaging, community-building course introduction can increase students’ sense of belonging, build anticipation, and generate excitement. Ending a course with reflection and meaning making supports students in developing their metacognitive skills and can be a joyful, rejuvenating experience for both faculty and students. In each of the three rounds, participants will engage in small group discussions and provide feedback to each other. Participants will be provided with accessible materials that will allow them to take a deeper dive into these ideas later with further examples and support. The workshop itself will model how to create a gathering space where everyone experiences a sense of belonging and purpose.