Author
Using Twitter to Talk about Teaching
Apr. 18, 2012—by CFT Director Derek Bruff If you’re skeptical about the value of Twitter as a social networking platform, James Lang’s latest Chronicle of Higher Education column, “Using Twitter to Talk about Teaching,” is worth a read. Lang was skeptical of Twitter at first, but he has now embraced it as a source of ongoing professional...
New Book from CFT Assistant Director Nancy Chick on Signature Pedagogies
Mar. 12, 2012—by CFT Director Derek Bruff Exploring More Signature Pedagogies: Approaches to Teaching Disciplinary Habits of Mind (2012) just hit the stands a couple of weeks ago. This is big news at the CFT because the lead editor is Nancy Chick, our new Assistant Director. This book is the follow-up to Exploring Signature Pedagogies: Approaches to...
Engaging Students in Large Lectures
Feb. 14, 2012—by CFT Director Derek Bruff I’m leading a workshop in the School of Nursing this morning on the topic of teaching large lecture classes. I’m using a Prezi for the workshop, and I’ve embedded it below. You can click the forward button to move through the Prezi, or use your mouse to zoom and pan...
A Few Examples of Teaching with Clickers
Feb. 14, 2012—by CFT Director Derek Bruff I’m teaching a statistics course for engineering students in the math department this spring. With 73 students in the course, it’s keeping me busy, but I think it’s important that the CFT director (and assistant directors) are in the classroom here at Vanderbilt. Teaching lets us directly support the teaching...
Principles and Practices for Investigating Student Learning
Feb. 7, 2012—by CFT Director Derek Bruff I’m giving a talk today at the School of Medicine as part of the Medical Education Grand Rounds sponsored by the Office for Teaching and Learning in Medicine and the Academy for Excellence in Teaching. The talk is titled “The Scholarship of Teaching and Learning: Principles and Practices for Investigating...
Derek Bruff Welcomes New Assistant Director to the CFT
Feb. 3, 2012— I’m very happy to introduce the CFT’s newest assistant director, Nancy Chick, to the Vanderbilt community. Nancy comes to us from the University of Wisconsin-Barron County, where she was a professor of English and taught face-to-face and online courses in English and women’s studies. Prior to her arrival at the CFT, Nancy was also...
Tell and Show: Resources from a Workshop on Images in Presentations
Jan. 25, 2012—This afternoon, CFT staff Derek Bruff and Rhett McDaniel are facilitating a workshop titled “Tell and Show: Why and How to Use Images in Presentations.” Below you’ll find the visuals from the first part of this workshop. Click the arrow button to advance through the presentation, or use your mouse to pan and zoom around....
New Listing of CFT Publications and Presentations
Jan. 6, 2012—In addition to our work at Vanderbilt, Center for Teaching staff members contribute to the broader higher education community through publications and presentations. Our scholarly work includes research in our “home” disciplines, the scholarship of teaching and learning, and the scholarship of educational development. Visit our new “Publications and Presentations” page to see highlights from...
Learning to Teach, Teaching to Learn: A Spring 2012 Graduate Course
Jan. 6, 2012—Grad students in science and engineering fields with an interest in teaching take note: The Department of Physics and Astronomy is offering a one-credit, graduate-level course on science pedagogy. PHYS302: Learning to Teach, Teaching to Learn Course #13242 Directed readings and discussion of topics in the teaching of science and engineering. Practical application of best...
The CFT Is Hiring – Assistant Director Applications Due January 15th
Dec. 2, 2011—We’re now accepting applications for an assistant director position at the CFT. The assistant director will work with faculty, teaching assistants, and other instructors across the university to advance excellence in teaching and learning at Vanderbilt. This work will take a variety of forms, in three general areas: Teaching: Consults with individuals and academic units...