Reading Time: < 1 minuteIn this episode, Dr. Rob McDole and Jared Pyles discuss the value of clear communication with Professor Jim Leightenheimer. Check out this episode to hear about the benefits of communicating well with your students. Podcast links Show notes Basic communication involves a sender, a receiver, the content, and the medium by which the content travels. However, communication can travel in many different modalities, and various hindrances can arise and muddle the message. Communication struggles are still present in education, so how can we model communication that seeks to benefit both sender and receiver? One way is to set the tone early. The first week of class—even the…
-
-
Transform Your Teaching: Back to the Basics – Instructional Management
Reading Time: < 1 minuteIn this episode, Dr. Rob McDole and Jared Pyles discuss instructional management and the importance of building mutual respect in your course. Check out this episode to hear the foundational principles and recommendations on how to apply them with your students. Podcast links Show notes Instructional management involves all of the variables that make up a learning environment. A foundational principle is that instructors and students need to treat one another with respect. Instructors can demonstrate that respect by setting and maintaining clear expectations early. This can be done through setting the foundation (policies and procedures of your class) and adhering to that. The responsibility…
-
Transform Your Teaching: Back to the Basics – Assessments
Reading Time: 2 minutesIn this episode, Rob and Jared continue the series on the basics of education by discussing assessments. Check out this episode to hear them use their road trip analogy once more to explain the differences between formative and summative assessments. Podcast links Show notes In this episode, Rob and Jared discuss how objectives relate to assessments, including four important terms. All four terms work together to create a properly aligned course structure. A good assessment is directly tied to an objective. Consider using your objective verb in your assessment to emphasize the connection between the two. Formative assessments serve as opportunities for students to try, to practice,…
-
Transform Your Teaching: Back to the Basics – Objectives
Reading Time: < 1 minuteIn this episode, Dr. Rob McDole and Jared Pyles start a new series titled “Back to the Basics,” beginning the conversation with a discussion on objectives. Check out the episode for an acronym to help instructors identify areas for improvement. Podcast links Show notes Objectives are the targets for every course. Jared and Rob provide an easy-to-remember acronym (DRIVE) to help instructors create or refine their course objectives. Objectives must be: Designing courses with these steps helps instructors identify areas that need refinement and provide students with resources to ensure success in reaching their end goal. We would love to get your feedback! Please…
-
Transform Your Teaching: A Conversation with Professor Jeff Simon
Reading Time: < 1 minuteIn this episode, Dr. Rob McDole and Jared Pyles talk with Jeff Simon, Associate Professor and Assistant Chair of the Department of Communication at Cedarville University. Check out this episode to hear about student learning, creative assessments, and tech integration. Podcast links Show notes Professor Simon shares how he has adjusted his teaching practice over his 13 years in higher education to match the learning needs of his students. He creates more open-ended assignments focused on concepts and processes so students obtain a set of tools that will aid them to be creative problem solvers. In this process, he assesses students based on their proposed solution so…
-
Transform Your Teaching: Adopt, Adapt or A(d)bandon
Reading Time: < 1 minuteIn this episode, Rob and Jared discuss options for implementing ChatGPT into instruction. They share some questions educators can ask to help them make their own decision. Check out the episode to hear how they would include ChatGPT. Podcast links Show notes Rob and Jared propose three options for using ChatGPT in instruction: Jared and Rob agree that “Adapt” fits best for how they would use ChatGPT in instruction. For educators considering how they will use ChatGPT, Rob and Jared recommend considering teaching style, needs of students, resources available (accessibility), and their personal comfort level with technology. Contact us at ctlpodcast@cedarville.edu with any questions. We would love to…
-
Transform Your Teaching: Education in the Age of AI – Professor Roundtable, Part II
Reading Time: < 1 minuteIn this episode, Dr. Rob McDole continues his conversation with Jared Pyles, Dr. Chris Miller, and Dr. Dan Sterkenburg about ChatGPT and OpenAI. Check it out to hear the panelists discuss challenges with student usage of ChatGPT, resources the tool can provide, and potential policies that can be implemented into courses to set clear expectations for the students. Podcast links Show notes The panelists discuss some of the challenges associated with student usage of ChatGPT as well as appropriate uses. Every course has different learning objectives, so instructors should be careful to match ChatGPT usage with their objectives for the course. They also discuss ChatGPT 4.0…
-
Transform Your Teaching: Education in the Age of AI – Professor Roundtable, Part I
Reading Time: < 1 minuteIn this episode, Dr. Rob McDole talks with Jared Pyles, Dr. Chris Miller, and Dr. Dan Sterkenburg about ChatGPT and OpenAI. Check out this episode to hear the panelists discuss their own experience with ChatGPT, describe their understanding of its capabilities, and give advice for instructors for interacting with the tool in the future. Podcast links Show notes Each of the panelists has had varying experiences—both positive and negative—with ChatGPT over the past several months. Some encountered students using ChatGPT to complete their homework, while others had more personal negative experiences with the tool. Regardless of these, Jared Pyles, Dr. Miller, and Dr. Sterkenburg all can…
-
Transform Your Teaching: AI meets AI –Artificial Intelligence and Academic Integrity
Reading Time: < 1 minuteIn this episode, Dr. Rob McDole and Jared Pyles discuss the intersection of artificial intelligence and academic integrity. Check out this episode to hear them confront the issues that educators (and students) will encounter as AI grows and evolves. Podcast links Show notes While ChatGPT/AI does have many benefits for educators and students, it’s important not to dive headfirst into it. There are several issues that can surface (or have already surfaced) when incorporating it into teaching practices. First, AI carries the risk of eroding trust between student and educator. Because ChatGPT exists and because plagiarism-catching tools are struggling to keep up, educators may feel…
-
Transform Your Teaching: A Conversation with Professor Eric Mishne
Reading Time: < 1 minuteIn this episode, Dr. Rob McDole and Jared Pyles take a break from their series on ChatGPT and OpenAI to talk with Eric Mishne, Assistant Professor of Communication and Director of Forensics at Cedarville University. Check out this episode to hear about making content more accessible to students and using different methods for instruction. Podcast links Show notes Professor Mishne embraces a flexed learning model in his classroom. Prior to class, his students will read an article, listen to a podcast, or watch a video that “primes the pump” for student engagement in class. Students bring this new knowledge that they obtain outside of the classroom…