Episode 4
We find our way together.
Drew Casper is another trained expert, a psychologist, who left his practice to go into teaching the community. In my conversation with Drew, you can hear the myriad subtle and deliberate ways he's observing his classes and individual students and responding to needs as they arise. The humanist base of Drew's teaching philosophy is crystal clear: the humanity of his students comes first - and his own humanity is present with theirs. As we talk, you'll hear how his habits of reflection and inquiry allow him to better reach his students. He's also willing to talk about handling mistakes in the classroom and handling student crises, which college instructors are often witness to. His years in the classroom have lead to big changes in his teaching methods as he's discovered who he wants to be as an instructor and how he finds his students learn best.
The resources on this page are a mixture of philosophy and practice. Below, you can find out more about Drew's reference to the "I-and-Thou" approach to relationships as well as activity plans for critical thinking debates and a mid-semester survey you can easily deploy to to gauge student needs.
Come spend some time with Psychology.
Episode four
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Connecting in the Classroom
Drew mentions in our conversation that his training leads him to use Martin Buber's principle of "I and Thou" to connect with his students and to foster a trustworthy classroom community. If you're new to Martin Buber, here are a video and an article that introduce Buber and his philosophy. For Buber, an Austrian Jew who fled his country in the 30's after Hitler came to power, perceiving and responding to the humanity of other people was essential to an ethical life. How might his ideas affect how we create classroom communities?
I-and-Thou in Relationships
In this video, clinical psychologist and therapist Dr. Jennifer May explains Martin Buber's concept of the I-Thou relationship and how it deepens our experience and our understanding of the humanity of others.
I-and-Thou in the World
Here is a brief written summary of Martin Buber's philosophy that argues that we must see others as full humans not "its" that don't share our humanity, needs, and feelings. For Buber, " I-Thou is a relationship of mutuality and reciprocity." Are our classrooms places of mutuality and reciprocity?
Critical Thinking Through Debate
Drew talks about helping his students think critically by asking them to debate a current and possibly divisive topic: right now, it's Covid-19 vaccines. Instead of letting them choose their position, he assigns them one. They have to research the tenants of that position, which requires them engage a bit more deeply in something they may have been avoiding or not thought through. Here are his guidelines.
Mid-Semester Student Survey
A quick but powerful tool Drew uses is a simple class survey. It allows him to assess how a particular class is responding to instruction and to make targeted changes nimbly. It's a chance to customize instruction in important ways based on student needs and check in on the classroom community culture. Here's the survey that he offers in D2L to his students that you can adapt for your classes.
Drew's Flipped Classroom
Spring of 2022 is Drew's first major foray into a flipped classroom style of teaching. The CTE can support you if you're interested in exploring this mode of teaching but if you'd like an overview, Drew recommends these three videos as starting points.
What Is It?
An overview that makes the case for flipping the classroom.
How Can It Work?
This is a clear and succinct illustration of how to use the McCammon Method to teach a flipped class.
The Student Experience
Here is a student's experience of the flipped classroom and can be used to prepare a new student for this different learning method.
Acknowledging Stress
Drew mentions the importance of his unit on stress in his introductory course. Here is the evaluation he asks his students to take. This is a tool you could use with your students, if you feel it would fit well into what you're teaching or benefit your students. Also, you as an instructor could use this tool to evaluate your own stress. Our stress as faculty has a huge impact on our private lives as well as our work. Perhaps you could take this evaluation yourself and take action on what it shows you.
Non-Academic Student Support
Although Drew is a trained therapist, he is simply a professor for his students. He is careful to refer students in need of emotional support to Counseling Services and students in need of accommodations to Disability Services. Below are their contact links if you'd like to consult with either service about the students you're teaching. Better understanding of what kinds of needs these services can address can put a professor in a better position to be supportive. Connecting sooner can be essential to some student success.
Student Accommodations
Disability Services support students. Professors can also consult with them whenever needed. Disabilities can be innate, permanent, or transitory and it's worth a professor's time to find out more from each student and more about these services.
Counseling Services
Counseling Services can make a difference for students under stress for many reasons. Professors should consult with Counseling to better understand how to support students and connect them with these services.
MTC Faculty