The Centre for Teaching and Learning's 2010 Summer Series on Teaching and Learning will kick off with “Self Assessment as the Foundation for Developing and Encouraging Independent Learning” Monday, August 23, from 1:30pm-4:30pm. The workshop will be facilitated by Dr. Don Woods, emeritus professor of chemical engineering at McMaster University, and winner of numerous awards for leadership and teaching including the prestigious 3M Teaching Fellowship and the OCUFA Teaching Award.

How can you make your classroom even more accessible, to ensure that everyone has the best opportunity to learn?  This workshop is interactive session exploring strategies of universal design for instruction (UDI) that will best promote learning for all of your students.  The new government Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 (AODA) requires changes in the way that universities teach and provide professional development for all of their employees.  Through this workshop, you will become aware of your personal responsibility under the new Act, as well as learn and share successful strategies that will help your students learn most effectively.

One fundamental purpose of higher education is to encourage students to take increasing responsibility for their own learning, to take charge of their learning. How can we facilitate self-directed learning or learning autonomy? What are the preferred avenues and the best strategies to stimulate self-directed learning? What are the limits in terms of student readiness and institutional constraints? This interactive workshop, based on a reading of the literature as well as student and faculty surveys conducted by the presenters, will explore various facets of the stimulation of self-directed learning and encourage the identification of practical implementation strategies for University of Windsor classes.

Learning Management Systems are ubiquitous in modern higher education. Systems such as the University of Windsor’s CLEW are used to enhance flexibility in learning and teaching and to improve learning opportunities. There is evidence that using tools such as CLEW in your teaching can also improve student self-direction and autonomy in learning, by providing students with options that may be more suitable to their learning style, greater flexibility to study on a schedule that suits them, enhancing motivation to learn, support for perseverance in challenging courses, and improved self-monitoring and metacognitive skills.

Personal digital technologies are all around us – almost every student in our classes will have at least one or more devices such as a laptop, netbook, iPad, iPhone, SmartPhone, PDA, tablet PC, digital cameras, video cameras/flip cams, MP3 players, digital smartpens and a vast array of other technologies. The question that is often asked is, can we make use of those everyday devices for learning purposes? This interactive workshop aims to demonstrate some of the ways in which instructors can tap the potential of the technology that students already own to support them in developing as independent learners.

How do you encourage students to ask good questions and take more responsibility for their learning?  Problem based Learning (PBL) is one method of teaching that can encourage students to think more critically, to become more self-directed in their approach to learning, and to develop skills that closely relate to research in your discipline.  In this interactive workshop, you will have the chance to experience a PBL case.  We will explore questions such as:

Assessment is one of the strongest drivers of learning in students, but can it be used to promote independence and autonomy in learners? While it has been argued that traditional methods of assessing student learning (exams, essays etc.) may not help students develop the necessary skills to support a commitment to lifelong learning, there are many alternative approaches that may lead to engagement with the learning, and greater autonomy.

Student learning portfolios are being used increasingly in grade schools, colleges and universities to document the progress of students towards meeting their learning goals. For teachers, the portfolio approach can provide a framework for a dynamic curriculum, and can facilitate transfer of information between teacher and individual students, other teachers, and beyond the walls of the institution to potential employers of graduates. The learning portfolio can be one of the most powerful tools available to support both teaching and learning. Portfolios have many different goals and approaches, and many argue that they encourage students to assume greater responsibility for their own learning.

The Summer Series Barbecue is the perfect way to finish a week of celebrating teaching and learning at the University of Windsor. The BBQ is held on the final day of the Summer Series, and is an opportunity for faculty, staff and graduate students to come together to network and informally discuss teaching and learning in their own context, as well as the sessions they have experienced throughout the week. It provides a place to share ideas and experiences, explore new ideas and teachng challenges, and make new connections with colleagues around the University. The BBQ also provides an opportunity for participants to gain a better understanding of the services and support that is available to them at the University.