Junior Faculty Spotlight: Ibby Cizmar
Each year, the CFT Newsletter highlights the work of our Junior Faculty Teaching Fellows. This month, , Assistant Professor of Theatre specializing in Acting and Directing, talks about some of the lessons she has gained from the Fellowship.
Through the JFTF program I have established connections with colleagues across disciplines and identified overlapping challenges across fields.Having a fellowship of colleagues creates a supportive environment where we problem solve and share innovative ideas to improve our teaching and pedagogical strategies. Specifically, I have been working on assessments as it relates to acting courses.In my seminar group led by Joe Bandy, I have been afforded the time and space to think about the population of students that varies from semester to semester as well as the larger goals of my Jazz Acting course. My individual mentorship from Julaine Fowlin has been such a gift in terms of considering teaching research and the application of that research to a performance-based class.Based on my findings as a Junior Faculty fellow I recently applied to the Association for Theatre in Higher Education’s annual conference in which I will be presenting a paper “Serving All Students: Rethinking Strategies and Assessments inPWI Acting Classrooms.” Two questions I am pursuing: (1) In a liberal arts environment where Acting I students come from a variety of disciplines with varying levels of experience from seasoned stage performer to theatre novice, how does one quantify effort? (2) In a performance-based class, how does an instructor create syllabi and establish effective grading methods to serve all students in a Predominantly White Institution’s acting class? The paper will explore classroom dynamics as it relates to introductory and advanced acting courses, and challenge instructors to rethink syllabi, pedagogical strategies, and assessments to better serve all students creating a more enriching performance-based experience.
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