2009 Featured Presenters
John Dirkx
Michigan State University
Teaching by "Listening:" A Dialogical Approach to Helping Adults Learn
Abstract: To be effective in helping adults learn, we must, as Jane Vella suggests, learn to listen deeply. That is, we need to frame our teaching as a form of dialogue. Teaching through dialogue incorporates the key elements of instructional design, instruction, and assessment that are critical to facilitating adult learning. But it also reflects an environment that fosters the adult's active engagement in the learning process and the importance of deep listening by the teacher. In this presentation, we explore several principles and strategies that foster a dialogical approach to our teaching.
Bio: John Dirkx is a professor of higher, adult and lifelong education. His primary research interests focus on teaching and learning in higher and adult education, including education for the professions, education for work, continuing professional development for teachers in higher and adult education, and education for academically under-prepared adults. Within these contexts, his research has addressed the psychosocial, transformative, and spiritual dimensions of adult learning, and the role of imagination, feelings, and emotion in these aspects of adult learning. In addition, recent research has focused on teaching and learning in online environments and students’ experiences of online collaborative group work.
L. Dee Fink
Fink Consulting
The Joy and Responsibility of Teaching Well
Abstract: We will examine our traditional responses to four central issues of teaching: WHAT we teach, HOW we teach, How we GEAR UP as teachers, and WHO we are as educators. If we can re-think and revise our responses to these four issues in ways that will improve student learning, then we can experience the deep Joy that comes with doing something very important – and doing it very WELL!
Bio: L. Dee Fink is a nationally recognized expert on college teaching and faculty development. After receiving his doctorate from the University of Chicago in 1976, he accepted a faculty position at the University of Oklahoma. In 1979 he founded the Instructional Development Program at the University of Oklahoma and served as its director until his retirement in May 2005. He was president of the Professional and Organizational Development (POD) Network in Higher Education (2004-2005), the primary professional organization for faculty developers. At the present time he works as a national consultant in higher education. He is the author of Creating Significant Learning Experiences: An Integrated Approach to Designing College Courses (Jossey-Bass, 2003) and co-editor of Team-Based Learning: A Transformative Use of Small Groups in College Teaching (Stylus, 2004). More information can be found on his website: www.finkconsulting.info
Tamara Rosier
Grand Valley State University
Teaching that Unlocks Student Potential
Abstract: We, as educators, can unlock student potential if they believe what they are learning is important. We can unlock student potential by creating environments that are safe, but challenging. We can develop relationships with students and set high, but reasonable expectations. Unlocking student potential does take a great deal of energy and commitment. This session will discuss approaches to teaching that will inspire the learners we encounter.
Bio: Tamara Rosier is the Assistant Director of Assessment in the Pew Faculty Teaching and Learning Center at Grand Valley State University. She received her Ph.D. in Higher Educational Leadership from Western Michigan University in 2004.
