Getting the most out of your introductory courses

Virtual workshopMarch 10-12 and 17-18, 2014

Conveners: Anne Egger and Cathy Manduca

One of a series of workshops on Teaching Introductory Geoscience in the 21st Century

Why I’m here

• San Juan College– Science Gen Ed that wasn’t biology or

chemistry– Very low basic skills

• Stanford University– Desperately trying to recruit into the major– Serve needs of engineering programs

• Central Washington University– Gen Ed and recruitment– Pre-service teachers a large part of the

audience

Why you’re here: Themes from essays and applications

• You strive for relevance

• You strive for engagement with all students

• You are incorporating a range of active learning strategies

• You are considering where to go next

Goals for this workshop I:On the Cutting Edge and NAGT

• Help you get the most out of your introductory course(s) by making them better

• Develop web-based resources to help all of your colleagues who could not attend make their courses better

Goals for this workshop II:What we hope to accomplish

• Provide an opportunity for you to share and discuss effective strategies;

• Synthesize challenges and best practices in intro course offerings;• Provide examples of successful introductory courses at a wide range of institutions;

• Foster conversation and collaboration to enhance the impact of your courses.

To start:

• The national landscape: what can we learn from the research and from other disciplines?

• How does this apply to us?– Small-group discussions with like

institutions

• How does this apply to me?– Homework for next time SWOT

analysis