Blog
Change Topics (Working Groups)
Target Audience2023 Transforming Institutions Conference Takeaways
Posted: Aug 15 2023 by
Target Audience: Graduate Students, Post-doctoral Fellows, College/University Staff, Teaching/Learning Assistants, Tenured/Tenure-track Faculty, Non-tenure Track Faculty, Institution Administration
Program Components: Professional Development:Diversity/Inclusion, Institutional Systems:Incentive/Reward Systems, Supporting Students:Learning Communities, Professional Development:Accessibility, Supporting Students:Student Engagement, Institutional Systems:Evaluating Teaching
The 2023 Transforming Institutions Conference was held June 12-13, 2023, in Minneapolis, MN. With this most recent convening, we are proud to have brought together change researchers and change agents for 12 years. The meeting was made possible by the efforts of a conference planning committee consisting of 10 change agents convened by NSEC (Network of STEM Education Centers) and ASCN (Accelerating Systemic Change Network), supported by 40 reviewers from the systemic change community. Now that the dust has settled, we would like to share some key takeaways, attendee feedback, and future conference plans to continue to build momentum for our community to thrive with change. More
Flying with Sankofa: Moving forward by learning from the past
Posted: Aug 23 2022 by
*All authors contributed equally to the document.
Target Audience: Graduate Students, Post-doctoral Fellows, Institution Administration, Teaching/Learning Assistants, Tenured/Tenure-track Faculty, College/University Staff, Non-tenure Track Faculty
Program Components: Professional Development:Diversity/Inclusion, Cultural Competency
It is important to celebrate the heroes in our society who spoke up, and who took action to change systems and improve the lives of many. For instance, our nation celebrates heroes like Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., whose legacy continues to inspire civil rights initiatives and advocacy for equitable opportunities. The living legend Shirley Malcom, director of the American Association for the Advancement of Science's (AAAS) SEA Change program, was recently celebrated when her name was recognized on a building at her alma mater, Penn State University. Over her career, Dr. Malcom has tirelessly advocated and brought attention to the challenges of intersectionality, specifically the challenges faced by women of color in the sciences. More
Are we Gatekeepers or Groundskeepers? Being a good introductory STEMM instructor in a pandemic and beyond
Posted: Feb 1 2022 by
Target Audience: Tenured/Tenure-track Faculty, Non-tenure Track Faculty, Teaching/Learning Assistants
Program Components: Supporting Students
Georgia was a confident high school student. Despite the pandemic she continued to earn high marks in her science courses, motivating her to pursue a science major as she began college. She entered her first year at Perpetual University taking introductory biology and chemistry, along with participating in ROTC and community service learning. Although she had many commitments outside the classroom, she believed she could manage all her obligations on her own. But when she began failing quizzes and exams, instead of seeking out resources on campus right away, she put off reviewing her work and intended to address the concerns later. By the end of her first semester, she was facing academic suspension. In her view she felt ashamed for being in this position and couldn't bear to face the issues even though her professors, advisor, and academic support staff reached out to her and offered to help. Although Georgia was able to continue her college studies, she turned away from the science track because she could not envision success in these courses in her future. More
Instructional Change Teams: An Exploratory Model
Posted: Aug 24 2020 by
Target Audience: Institution Administration, Teaching/Learning Assistants, Tenured/Tenure-track Faculty, Non-tenure Track Faculty, College/University Staff
Program Components: Institutional Systems:Interdepartmental Collaboration
Over the past several years, our research team has been investigating factors that influence how instructional change teams collaborate to improve undergraduate STEM instruction. Our research revolves around a model we have developed to examine and interpret the effectiveness of instructional change teams in higher education. We define an instructional change team as a group of three or more instructors or other stakeholders who come together regularly to work on course design or redesign. This post will discuss the development and current state of our instructional change teams model. More
COVID-19 Recommended Resources from ASCN
Posted: Mar 25 2020 by
Program Components: Professional Development:Pedagogical Training, Curriculum Development, Accessibility, Institutional Systems:Technological Infrastructure
Updated: 6/4/20
We know that many of you are dealing with changes at your institutions as we all come together to flatten the curve. Many organizations have been sharing resources and guidance for remote work, online teaching, and more. In this post you'll find links to some recommended resources that we have collected. Our regular events (webinars, working group meetings, etc.) are continuing -- please contact us if you would like to get involved!
We will continue to update this post as needed. More
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