Amy Scott

We have access to Safe Assign and I've been told by colleagues that a remarkable number of students will simply cut and paste massive pieces of text from the internet and claim it as their own work. If you don't have access to Safe Assign, I would recommend it.

I really liked how this unit asked instructors to evaluate themselves and their teaching methods first. I see people blame students for not showing up, acting entitled, being disengaged in class and there never seems to be any self-reflection on the instructor's behalf. This was refreshing.

I know one instructor who goes over all of the objectives with the students at the beginning and end of the class to ensure that students "get their money's worth." I liked this idea of engaging the students in their own learning and encouraging them to hold us as instructors accountable.

Yes, I've read several books on this. I'd recommend the books Spark by Dr. John Ratey, The Brain that Changes Itself by Norman Doidge and Train your Mind, Change your Brain by Sharon Begley. Amazing reading for any teachers!

I'm reading a book right now that addresses the importance of movement/exercise when it comes to learning. It appears that it is valid for both young and mature learners - in fact, movement and exercise is really good for the brain. Does anyone integrate movement into their curriculum to assist with learning?

Have some more experienced instructors found that Millenials need more recognition and reward than previous generations?

In our program, we've tried to add a quarterly retention activity that will give students an opportunity to network in the community, meet other students/staff, and blow off some steam. Examples are going to batting cages in the middle of winter or a group bike ride in the spring. It is a nice way for students and staff to interact outside of the classroom and oftentimes creates mentoring relationships between students in the same degree program.

I have a co-worker who had a tough semester with a group of students. From that point on, whenever they had a class with her, they all sat in the back of the room with their arms folded across their chests. She was really frustrated and tried all kinds of seating arrangements to discourage this type of behavior. Do you have any other suggestions for things she might have done?

We are currently integrating service learning into our curriculum and I wondered if you've had success with that. I imagine having service learning on a course syllabus would be a way to attract students, knowing that they are going to have the opportunity to give back to their community. Would you agree?

Other than respectful, courteous written exchanges, do you have suggestions for modeling soft skills to students engaged in an online program? I currently work in a degree program that demands a great deal of interaction between students and clients. I'm really interested in your experience with integrating professional, verbal skills into an online environment. Thank you.