Research has suggested that a lengthier course syllabus may increase positive impressions of instructor effectiveness. In this investigation, we disentangle the effects of adding restrictive course boundary information from the addition of course content information. Furthermore, we examine the role of instructor gender as a moderator of the…

We used Problem-Based Learning (PBL) as a new pedagogy in an intermediate composition course. Our course design was based in constructivist pedagogical practices, which suggest that knowledge is co-created through social interactions. Although professors have much to offer students, students can also learn important lessons through interactions…

Little information exists about the structure and content of grant writing courses offered in the United States. To fill this gap, we used multiple data sources, including a content analysis of syllabi from 93 graduate-level grant writing courses in the United States, and an online survey that sought insight into (a) the ways in which textbooks…

In this teaching reflection, the author discusses the benefits of incorporating learners' input into classroom content design, starting with the syllabus, to invite a more democratic learning process. She suggests four guiding questions teachers can employ throughout their courses, working with learners to create a collaborative classroom culture…

Over the past several years I have taught a career orientation course at St. John Fisher College. This course was designed to increase student awareness of potential careers following their undergraduate studies in our Biology program. Additionally, the course has also been used as a model for similar experiences in our Psychology, Chemistry,…

This article describes a travel course to New Orleans that allows students the opportunity to study a unique culture in the United States. Students in the course are able to study how the culture developed through its immigration patterns, its food, its architecture, and the development of jazz. Since the flooding following Hurricane Katrina, a…

In the 21st century, it is more important than ever to include global/international education as an essential component of teacher education programs. This paper showcases one Department of Education's journey to internationalize its teacher credential program. Components of the reform include: 1) shared conversations, 2) goal-setting, 3)…

College students will face a workplace transformed even from the one that existed five years ago. Public and private organizations presently require employees to possess highly developed core competencies. This shift in expectations, exacerbated by high unemployment among recent college graduates, has made accountability a hot issue for higher…

The mission of Minding Our Business (MOB), a service-learning course started in 1997 to meet community needs, is to advance the personal and vocational development of urban youth through entrepreneurship education and mentoring. This paper evaluates the long-term impact of MOB on the personal and vocational development of the alumni mentors…

Faculty members in higher education are challenged to meet the needs of an increasingly learning-diverse student body. Neuroscience research indicates that individual variations in brain function affect each learner's ability to process and express information. Using this research as a foundation, the theory and principles of universal course…

This paper is a user-friendly manual designed to minimize the growing pains associated with college-level teaching. Specific topics include syllabus development, classroom teaching methods, proper use of the initial class session, and advice related to answering student questions. Many new and adjunct instructors are met with unexpected challenges…

Three faculty members from three different professional disciplines outline strategies to engage first-year students in a team-taught, multidisciplinary first-year experience course. The theme of the discussed section is titled food for thought...and action. Assignments are grounded in theories of cooperative and experiential learning. Tentative…

Traditional lecturing has been shown again and again to be a less effective teaching method regarding student engagement and promotion in the sciences. Studies that compare different teaching methods often face limitations because, over time, courses are either substantially changed and/or are taught by different instructors. This article presents…

We describe a third-year undergraduate course that focuses on multiscale modeling and protein folding and has as its primary goal the encouragement of students to integrate thinking across and beyond disciplinary boundaries. The ability to perform innovative and successful research work in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics)…

Writing has an important role in science education and practice. Emphasizing the interdisciplinary collaboration between English rhetoric studies and biology, seemingly disparate disciplines, we describe a model for a scientific writing and communication course. The goals of the course were to prepare students for science-oriented careers, as well…