Gameful pedagogy is "an approach that takes inspiration from well-designed games to create learning environments that support student motivation" (Holman, 2018, p. 1). According to Self-Determination Theory (Ryan & Deci, 2000), students are intrinsically motivated when their basic psychological needs for autonomy (the need to make…

University life is widely publicized as an adventure--a chance to engage with new ideas, people, and opportunities. While these vibrant interactions can be part of the college experience, participation in a competitive, high-stakes academic environment like University of Michigan (U-M) can pose very real challenges. Students must learn to navigate…

The Transforming Learning for the Third Century (TLTC) initiative funds projects that seek to promote students' self-agency and their ability to innovate and take risks. The Provost Task Teams on Engaged Learning and Digital Instruction define this learning goal as follows: "Students must know how to observe the opportunities and capacities…

Students need to develop a variety of critical thinking and interpersonal skills in order to contribute successfully to today's increasingly globalized world. The Office of the Provost at the University of Michigan has implemented a plan known as Transforming Learning for a Third Century (TLTC) as part of its broader Third Century Initiative. This…

Students need to develop a variety of critical thinking and interpersonal skills in order to contribute successfully to today's increasingly globalized world. The Office of the Provost at the University of Michigan has implemented a plan known as Transforming Learning for a Third Century (TLTC) as part of its broader Third Century Initiative. This…

University of Michigan (U-M) students visit community-based organizations in Detroit on a weekly basis to work on projects aimed at improving the well being of children and their families, such as tutoring youth in after school programs. Their site visits are supplemented by relevant readings, class discussions and written reflections on topics…

The rapid proliferation of technology can have profound effects on the evolution of teaching, learning, scholarship, and governance in higher education (Katz, 2008). However, instructors report that simply "keeping up" with new instructional technologies, let alone integrating them productively into one's teaching, can be a significant…

There is wide demand for engineering graduates to be capable of working well in teams. The engineering accreditation body (ABET, www.abet.org) has responded to this need by requiring engineering programs to demonstrate that their graduates have "an ability to function on multidisciplinary teams" (Haag, Froyd, Coleman, & Caso, n.d.),…

Across campus, laptops and other mobile devices, such as iPads and smartphones, are appearing in greater numbers in the classroom. In a CTools survey of 1,415 U-M students conducted in Winter 2010, over 50% of respondents reported bringing their laptops to class at least once per week (USE Lab, Digital Media Commons, 2010). Many faculty see this…