Teaching Digital Humanities through a Community-Centered, Team-Based Pedagogy

Through a focus on the Digital Humanities Practicum course at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL), this paper explores two areas of current--and recurrent--interest in digital humanities teaching and learning: DH pedagogy in the undergraduate classroom and DH and skills training. While the presentation emphasizes particulars of the course, including its design, what has worked well, and what we are still learning, we also want to think beyond the single course and prompt further discussion around several themes, including team-based problem-solving and connecting digital humanities with community-engaged learning. Ultimately, we argue that a team-based, community-engaged approach can be an effective strategy for teaching digital humanities practice to students. Furthermore, we believe that this approach can powerfully illustrate the societal benefit of humanities-centered approaches to problem-solving. Students in the Digital Humanities Practicum course get an opportunity to work together creatively, analyze a problem and conceive a solution, build something, and have a positive impact on their community

Teaching Digital Humanities through a Community-Centered, Team-Based Pedagogy

Through a focus on the Digital Humanities Practicum course at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL), this paper explores two areas of current--and recurrent--interest in digital humanities teaching and learning: DH pedagogy in the undergraduate classroom and DH and skills training. While the presentation emphasizes particulars of the course, including its design, what has worked well, and what we are still learning, we also want to think beyond the single course and prompt further discussion around several themes, including team-based problem-solving and connecting digital humanities with community-engaged learning. Ultimately, we argue that a team-based, community-engaged approach can be an effective strategy for teaching digital humanities practice to students. Furthermore, we believe that this approach can powerfully illustrate the societal benefit of humanities-centered approaches to problem-solving. Students in the Digital Humanities Practicum course get an opportunity to work together creatively, analyze a problem and conceive a solution, build something, and have a positive impact on their community

Improving Faculty Preparation in Research Universities: Insights From The Teagle Foundation's Graduate Student Teaching in the Arts and Sciences (GSTAS) Initiative

This white paper describes findings and lessons learned from site visits to seven GSTAS grantees: Northwestern University, Cornell University, Stanford University, Columbia University, Princeton University, the University of California-Berkeley, and the American Historical Association (AHA). We argue that a key element of success in these programs was their treatment of the development of knowledge and practice in teaching, and the development of knowledge and practice in research, as both similar and synergistic. We also observe that, despite substantial differences in project design, the Teagle projects constituted a graduate-level version of "highimpact practice," such that participants experienced first-hand the kinds of instructional strategies supported by much of the scholarly literature they were reading

The Journal of the Center for Interdisciplinary Teaching and Learning

IMPACT: The Journal of the Center for Interdisciplinary Teaching & Learning is a peer-reviewed, biannual online journal that publishes scholarly and creative non-fiction essays about the theory, practice and assessment of interdisciplinary education. Impact is produced by the Center for Interdisciplinary Teaching & Learning at the College of General Studies, Boston University (www.bu.edu/cgs/citl).How do our students learn what it means to be a human being, with all the attendant responsibilities and joys? How do we learn to teach in a truly interdisciplinary manner? These are some of the questions that preoccupy this issue’s contributors

The Blended Learning Unit, University of Hertfordshire: A Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning, Evaluation Report for HEFCE

The University of Hertfordshire’s Blended Learning Unit (BLU) was one of the 74 Centres for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETLs) funded by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) between 2005 and 2010. This evaluation report follows HEFCE’s template. The first section provides statistical information about the BLU’s activity. The second section is an evaluative reflection responding to 13 questions. As well as articulating some of our achievements and the challenges we have faced, it also sets out how the BLU’s activity will continue and make a significant contribution to delivery of the University of Hertfordshire’s 2010-2015 strategic plan and its aspirations for a more sustainable future. At the University of Hertfordshire, we view Blended Learning as the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to enhance the learning and learning experience of campus-based students. The University has an excellent learning technology infrastructure that includes its VLE, StudyNet. StudyNet gives students access to a range of tools, resources and support 24/7 from anywhere in the world and its robustness, flexibility and ease of use have been fundamental to the success of the Blended Learning agenda at Hertfordshire. The BLU has comprised a management team, expert teachers seconded from around the University, professional support and a Student Consultant. The secondment staffing model was essential to the success of the BLU. As well as enabling the BLU to become fully staffed within the first five months of the CETL initiative, it has facilitated access to an invaluable spectrum of Blended Learning, research and Change Management expertise to inform pedagogically sound developments and enable change to be embedded across the institution. The BLU used much of its capital funding to reduce barriers to the use of technology by, for example, providing laptop computers for all academic staff in the institution, enhancing classroom technology provision and wirelessly enabling all teaching accommodation. Its recurrent funding has supported development opportunities for its own staff and staff around the institution; supported evaluation activities relating to individual projects and of the BLU’s own impact; and supported a wide range of communication and dissemination activities internally and externally. The BLU has led the embedding a cultural change in relation to Blended Learning at the University of Hertfordshire and its impact will be sustained. The BLU has produced a rich legacy of resources for our own staff and for others in the sector. The University’s increased capacity in Blended Learning benefits all our students and provides a learning experience that is expected by the new generation of learners in the 21st century. The BLU’s staffing model and partnership ways of working have directly informed the structure and modus operandi of the University’s Learning and Teaching Institute (LTI). Indeed a BLU team will continue to operate within the LTI and help drive and support the implementation of the University’s 2010-2015 Strategic plan. The plan includes ambitions in relation to Distance Learning and Flexible learning and BLU will be working to enable greater engagement with students with less or no need to travel to the university. As well as opening new markets within the UK and overseas, even greater flexibility for students will also enable the University to reduce its carbon footprint and provide a multifaceted contribution to our sustainability agenda. We conclude this executive summary with a short paragraph, written by Eeva Leinonen, our former Deputy Vice-Chancellor, which reflects our aspiration to transform Learning and Teaching at the University of Hertfordshire and more widely in the sector. ‘As Deputy Vice Chancellor at Hertfordshire I had the privilege to experience closely the excellent work of the Blended Learning Unit, and was very proud of the enormous impact the CETL had not only across the University but also nationally and internationally. However, perhaps true impact is hard to judge at such close range, but now as Vice Principal (Education) at King's College London, I can unequivocally say that Hertfordshire is indeed considered as the leading Blended Learning university in the sector. My new colleagues at King's and other Russell Group Universities frequently seek my views on the 'Hertfordshire Blended Learning' experience and are keen to emulate the successes achieved at an institutional wide scale. The Hertfordshire CETL undoubtedly achieved not only what it set out to achieve, but much more in terms of scale and impact. All those involved in this success can be justifiably proud of their achievements.’ Professor Eeva Leinonen, Vice Principal (Education), King's College, Londo

The tree of life as a methodological metaphor

The Tree of Life is an ancient motif that appears in many cultures and religions. The Tree is symbolic of the interconnected nature of our world(s) and is often used as a reminder of the sacredness of life and its connection to the earth. This chapter uses the Tree of Life from a Native American worldview as a metaphor for a critical participatory action research methodology. I explore the multifaceted nature of being a practitioner of this methodology from the perspective of a university researcher working with a group of school teachers. Critical participatory action research as a method often is reliant on an emergent design and a practitioner is never quite sure what is around the corner in a project. The Tree of Life metaphor can provide guidance and help the practitioner stay faithful to their original intent and the project's aims