Research and Relationships

Abstract

Indeed, educators as well as students construct meaning of their experiences; and just as the ways students interpret events shape their reactions to these events, so too do the ways educators interpret pedagogical models shape whether and how they choose to use them in their own practice.Baxter Magolda and King (2004, 303) Mercer University-Atlanta I am constantly seeking equilibrium. I want balance, but some teaching days are anything but balanced. I planned, I expected good class interaction and it was ok but not what I had hoped for in my mind' s eye. On other occasions, a risky lesson plan evolves into an exceptional teaching and learning experience. It turns out I'm not alone. Faculty across campus are asking the same questions and having similar experiences. Mercer University is a Baptist affiliated private university in Atlanta, Georgia. The Atlanta campus consists primarily of professional, graduate programs. The university does not have a Center for Teaching and Learning, yet several colleges (Nursing, Pharmacy and Health Service, Education, and Continuing and Professional Studies) promote the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in their tenure and promotion process. There is no centralized office or designated faculty to provide professional development, organize resources, or provide teaching and learning support.Two workshops were offered to any interested faculty to begin conversations based on the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning model. These sessions were designed to inform participants on how to use course management software, such as Blackboard, to gather data from their students to explore the student learning experience. The goals were to demonstrate how to use adult development and learner-centered literature in any discipline and to analyze classroom data for the purpose of creating rich experiences. The purpose for choosing adult learning theory was to provide NEW DIRECTIONS FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING, no. 139, Fall 2014

“Part of Something Larger than Myself”: Lessons Learned From a Multidisciplinary, Multicultural, and Multilingual International Research Team of Academic Women

“…Collaborations can also serve as a learning tool in academia with those who are more advanced, senior scholars, mentoring those earlier on their journeys, junior scholars, to enhance their skills and experience. Shared passion, curiosity, and a commitment to explore and better understand issues or occurrences are also an opportunity to bring researchers together (Abramo et al, 2011; Swanson, 2014). These cooperative experiences in research occur in multiple formations with varying levels of success as determined by both the experiences of the members and the outcomes which we define as products including presentation and publication.…”