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Colleagues,
MFS TOPICS 2006-2007
St. Ambrose (through
the Center for Teaching Excellence) is an institutional
member of the Midwest Faculty Seminar that is administered
out of the University of Chicago. This year the seminar is
sponsoring 4 presentations as described below. The Center
pays just about all expenses for a faculty member to travel
to and attend a seminar at the University of Chicago. The
seminars are held from Thursday evenings to Saturdays at
noon. This year's schedule includes the following four
seminars at the mentioned dates. Consider whether you would
like to apply to attend one of these seminars. The formal
application process will be announced in the News from
the Center about 8 weeks before each of the four
seminars. Consider whether you would like to apply.
Hurricane Katrina and
Contemporary America - November 2-4, 2006
We may imagine that natural disasters
strike indiscriminately, yet Hurricane Katrina brought home
that natural disasters do not level but rather exacerbate
extant inequalities and injustices. This seminar will use
Katrina and its aftermath as a lens through which to analyze
a wide range of topics in contemporary American society and
politics. These topics range from the impact of the disaster
on both the public and the academic imaginary, the roles of
political leadership and civil society in the contemporary
U.S, deep divisions in American political opinion, the
relationships between media and political institutions, and
the cultural representations of race and the South.
Contemporary China - January
18-20, 2007
The Economist
recently projected two possible, and equally plausible,
futures for China: a booming economy and an increasingly
liberal political system, or, social, political, and
economic crisis. Given China's role in our global economy,
its future matters to us all. This seminar will explore the
challenges facing contemporary China, focusing on topics
like migration and stratification, nationalism and the
problem of ideology, and the impact of China's economic
strengths and weaknesses both at home and abroad. Along with
political scientists, historians, and economists, we will
turn to film, cultural, and art historians, in order to
explore the current explosion of artistic and cultural
productions that seek to interpret and comment on this
rapidly changing country.
John Rawls' A Theory of
Justice - March 1-3, 2007
Since its publication in 1971, A
Theory of Justice has sold more than 200,000 copies and
been translated into some two dozen languages. The seminal
work of the most significant moral and political philosopher
of the twentieth century, A Theory of Justice has
profoundly shaped contemporary discussions of social,
political, and economic justice, democracy, liberalism,
constitutionalism, and international justice. This seminar
will consider Rawls's contribution to these crucial
theoretical and practical concepts. It will also examine
Rawls's often controversial relationships with feminism,
utilitarianism and communitarianism, the development of his
thought from A Theory of Justice to later works like
Political Liberalism, his place in the long history of
liberalism, and the continuing legacy of his work,
particularly in an era of both ethnically and religiously
diverse societies and of economic globalization.
Epidemics in the Era of
Globalization - April 26-28, 2007
This seminar will draw on
disciplines including the health sciences, anthropology,
history, sociology, public policy, and area studies to
consider how health and disease are distributed and
determined in an era of unprecedented globalization. How
have the historical, cultural, scientific, and political
issues surrounding the spread and impact of infectious
diseases changed in an era of globalization? Topics to
consider will include: connections between infectious
disease and national security, potential conflicts between
human rights and public health regulation, and the global
movement of and responses to epidemics like HIV/AIDS, SARS,
and avian flu.
WORKSHOP ON USING
JOURNAL WRITING IN THE CLASSROOM
On Tuesday,
September 12, 2006 from
3:00 to 4:00 p.m. in the
Ambrose Hall Boardroom (3rd
floor, west end), Dick Hanzelka, Education Department, and
Michael Hustedde, Director of Writing, will offer a writing
workshop dealing with the use of journal writing in the
classroom. The program is open to all faculty, but new
faculty are especially encouraged to attend. Michael
Hustedde will speak briefly about some conventional uses of
journals in the classroom and share his use of them in his
basic writing class. Dick Hanzelka will share his rather
more innovative approach, ideally suited for content
classes, which provides learning value to students while
placing minimal time demands on the instructor.
TEACHING PROFESSOR CONFERENCE
The Teaching Professor Conference mentioned in the News from
the Center last week is scheduled to be held May 18-20 in
Atlanta. The Conference organizers are interested in
receiving suggestions for papers and poster presentations
from faculty like us.
The Teaching Professor
newsletter and Magna Publications
invite presentation, panel discussion, and interactive
poster session proposals for the fourth annual Teaching
Professor Conference. The goal of the conference is to
produce substantive work upon which teaching professors can
act as change agents for building legitimacy, scholarship,
and respect for their roles on campuses and in society.
If you have a teaching strategy that you would like to
share/present at the conference and it is selected for
presentation the CTE will help to cover your expenses to the
conference. Talk to Paul Jacobson if you would like to
consider this possibility further.
TEACHING CIRCLE NEWS
The next teaching circle meeting on Alternatives to
Lecturing will be held on October 11th at
4pm in Ambrose Hall 231. Prioritized topics for this
semester include: Engaging Students, Using Technology, and
Critical Thinking. On October 11th at
4pm we will meet to discuss Engaging Students. Each person
is asked to bring an idea that has effectively engaged
students in the learning process. Please contact Carol Lyon
or Jessica Gosnell for more information. More information
closer to the date.
THE
PROFESSOR IN THE CLASSROOM
The Professor in the Classroom Vol. 13, #2 arrived this
week. It considers techniques to keep everyone thinking when
you ask questions. The practical suggestions included here
are outstanding and very well expressed. The first for
example, is to consider accepting several different
responses before reacting to any individual response. Invite
multiple students to respond to the answer given by the
first student. There are four more suggestions. This number
is worth a look over a cup of something in one of the three
wall pocket locations or in the College of Business or at
ACCEL.
CTE PERIODICAL SUBSCRIPTIONS AVAILABLE
The Center subscribes to
College Teaching and
CHANGE: The Magazine of Higher Learning.
Back issues of both of these publications are in the Ambrose
Room, 3rd floor of the library.
Three other publications subscribed to by the Center are
available in several places on campus. The
Teaching Professor,
The Professor in the Classroom
and the National Teaching and
Learning Forum are available
as they arrive in three wall pocket locations: in the old
snack bar area in Ambrose Hall, in the Cosgrove Hall private
dining room near the drink dispenser, and in the coffee shop
on Harrison St.-- as well as in ACCEL and through Allison
Ambrose in the College of Business.
Back issues of these publications are kept in the Ambrose
Room on the third floor of the Library along with the
Center's book collection. Stop at the library director's
office to have the Ambrose Room unlocked for you.
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Please contact any member of the CTE Advisory Committee with your suggestions or evaluations of our sponsored events, publications and programs. The members of the Center's advisory committee for the 2006-2007 school year are:
It's a beautiful day at the Center for Teaching Excellence! |
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