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The First Fifteen Minutes

Posted by stephanie rogers on November 24, 2020 in News

Course Description

What a joy to start each class on the edge of your seat.  Those first few minutes really matter: they set the stage for our collective learning experiences.  They send signals about who belongs, what is expected, and most importantly, what is possible in your class or course. 

Our time matters.  In this studio course, we focus on how you can make the first fifteen minutes of your class meaningful for you and your students.  We’ll work on building a toolkit of engagement hooks and focusing activities and we’ll develop your confidence in getting your classes started.

Course Learning Outcomes

By the end of the course, my expectation is that you will be able to:

  • skillfully use at least two different structures for designing the first fifteen minutes of class;
  • demonstrate competence in facilitating at least three focusing activities;
  • harness and convey your enthusiasm for your course subject material and students by designing opening exercises around an engagement hook;
  • plan braver classes that are more responsive to the students in them; and
  • effectively give and receive feedback about your teaching and learning experience.

Schedule

The course will be offered online and synchronously.  It has been designed to support your (likely online) teaching.  Put another way, participation in the course should help you prepare for the classes you are teaching:  it should not create (entirely) new work.

The course will be highly interactive.  The instructor will offer an overview of some of the scholarship of teaching and learning that supports our activities, but most of the course will be spent designing, delivering, and receiving and providing feedback on teaching and classroom experience. 

Class

Date & Time

Activity

1

December 7,
5–7 p.m.

introduction to the course; introduction of participants; discussion of focusing students’ attention and generating enthusiasm, the ‘hook’, and diverse students and learners

2

January 11
5–7 p.m.

full class practices – 3 or 4 volunteers; group discussions

3

January 18
5–7 p.m.

everyone prepares and practices a 15 minute introduction for a class they are teaching (or will teach)

4

January 25
5–7 p.m.

everyone prepares and practices a 15 minute introduction for a class they are teaching (or will teach)

5

February 1
5–7 p.m.

everyone prepares and practices a 15 minute introduction for a class they are teaching (or will teach)

6

February 8
5–7 p.m.

reflective class discussion; social

Enrollment

The course will be capped at 16 students. It is expected that students attend all sessions.

Evaluation

Preparation of at least three, and possibly four or five, “first 15 minute” teaching and learning sessions. Submission of a maximum three page reflection essay, due February 8.

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