Graduate Students in Teaching, Mini Conference 2020

Event Date & Time

  • April 27, 2020
    10:00 am - 2:45 pm
  • April 28, 2020
    10:15 am - 2:45 pm

Event Description

Please click “Register Now” to register for this event. The Mini Conference will be online on Zoom and you will be emailed the links for both days upon registration.

The 2020 Graduate Students in Teaching, Mini-Conference (GSiT) organizing committee is looking forward to welcoming presenters and attendees on April 27 & 28, 2020.

Day 1 (Monday, April 27, 2020)

10:00 – 10:15 am Opening
10:15 – 11:15 am 60 minute participatory session

Exploring Vulnerability in Teaching Roles

Facilitators: Lindsay Fraughton and Natalie Westwood, UBC

How does vulnerability affect our experiences as teachers and learners? We will explore how to navigate being vulnerable and emotionally honest with students, and engage in individual and group reflection about what we assume and what our students assume about our identities. Through group discussion and brainstorming, this session may raise more questions than answers!

11:15 – 11:45 am Break
11:45 am – 12:15 pm 30 minute TAR/SoTL project presentation

Social Network Analysis display in canvas’ online discussions

Facilitator: Fabian Froehlich, UBC

This Teaching as Research (TAR) project is guided by the research question: “Does displaying learning analytics data, in this case social network analysis data, change the students’ behavior related to canvas’ online discussions?” The project analyzed an intervention, which took place in an undergraduate teacher education course. The students had to engage in online discussions. A social network analysis tool, called Threadz, was enabled and pre- and post surveys were conducted. This presentation might be especially interesting for fully online courses but also for blended course design.

12:15 – 1:00 pm Lunch, online poster session

  • What about the middleman? Understanding how TA roles influence GTA motivation and values in teaching

Presenter: Natalie Westwood

  • BioTAP: TA Training for Life Sciences

Presenter: Angie O’Neill

  • CUPE 2278

Presenters: R. Gillian Glass and Laura Yvonne Bulk

1:00 – 2:30 pm 90 minute participatory session

Exploring UBC Tree Walks with Courses: Integrating Wellness, Environmental Sustainability and Citizen Science

Facilitators: Laura Super and Tahia Devisscher, UBC

Human activities and actions, which are increasingly interconnected in the Anthropocene, are rapidly depleting underlying ecosystems and planetary health, leading to environmental crises such as climate change and mass species extinction. How do we act with heart and mind in this scenario and stay focused to be agents of positive change? How do we relate tree walks to our course material? The objective of this session is to discuss and develop UBC tree walks designed to relate to these questions for diverse disciplinary courses. Why do tree walks? Being outside is helpful for motivation and learning (Dettweiler et al. 2017). Furthermore, programming outside can also promote sustainability thinking in higher education (Lugg 2007).

2:30 – 2:45 pm Wrap up

 

Day 2 (Tuesday, April 28, 2020)

10:15 – 10:30 am Opening
10:30 am – 12:00 pm 90 minute participatory session

Developing a TAR/SoTL Research Question

Facilitators: Joseph Topornycky and Lacey Samuels, UBC

Teaching as Research (TAR) invites us to look at teaching as evidence based, to connect our teaching practice with existing scholarship on teaching in our disciplinary contexts, and to contribute to a greater scholarly understanding of teaching in our disciplines. In this session, we will explore how you can start to engage in the scholarship of teaching by generating a coherent and specific research question about teaching in your discipline. This workshop is especially recommended if you intend to apply for a CIRTL TAR award at UBC, but is open to any graduate students or postdocs interested in researching their teaching.

12:00 – 1:00 pm Lunch, online poster session
1:00 – 2:30 pm 90 minute participatory session

How should we build inclusive classrooms?

Facilitators: Connie Leung, Analise Hofmann, Najah Adreak, UBC

The question we try to answer in this session is: How do we make our classroom more inclusive? Students come to class with different backgrounds, cultures, religions and races, etc. which can help add different perspectives to learning experiences. However, how can that be done if students don’t feel welcome and supported in the classroom? What is our role as educators to create environments in which each student feels free to express themselves? In this session, we will explore experiences of teachers and learners, discuss advantages and disadvantages of inclusivity decisions, who may be left out, and discuss practical tips for creating inclusive classrooms.

2:30 – 2:45 pm Wrap up

 


The Zoom video conferencing link will be provided prior to the event to all who are confirmed to participate. Please make sure you have your own quiet space and a computer with a webcam and earphones/buds, and download and test Zoom before the session: join this test meeting and check out this support article.