Skip to main content

Course Improvement Grant Spotlight: “Virtual Reality in World Languages”

Mar. 3, 2022—by Julaine Fowlin Patrick Murphy, a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese and Coordinator of Intensive Elementary Spanish 1103, talked about his Course Improvement Grant, “Virtual Reality in World Languages,” in an interview with CFT assistant director Julaine Fowlin. The interview was done from the CFT’s Digital Media Lab. Patrick’s project involves...

Read more


Junior Faculty Spotlight: Ibby Cizmar

Feb. 25, 2022—Each year, the CFT Newsletter highlights the work of our Junior Faculty Teaching Fellows. This month, Ibby Cizmar, 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...

Read more


Course Improvement Grant spotlight:“The Physics of Yoga: Connecting Body to Mind”

Feb. 24, 2022—Savanna Starko, senior lecturer in physics & astronomy, recently told us about her Course Improvement Grant on connecting mind to body through examining physics in yoga. Can you tell us about your project and what inspired you to do it? I’m working with Lauren Colliau, a graduate student getting a master’s degree in education, on...

Read more


Join a CFT Learning Community!

Feb. 22, 2022—Learning Assistant Instructors  Learning assistants, or LAs, are undergraduates who serve as peer educators in courses that they have previously taken. Supported by training in pedagogy, they extend the reach of faculty members implementing active learning components in a course and help provide personalized experiences that increase students’ sense of belonging. In this learning community,...

Read more


Course improvement grant spotlight: “Music Classroom Technology”

Feb. 17, 2022—Bethany Nickel, visiting assistant professor of Instrumental Music Education, talked about her Course Improvement Grant, “Music Classroom Technology,” in an interview with CFT assistant director Julaine Fowlin. Bethany’s project was inspired by her experience last Fall with teaching a short unit on music technology in her Instrumental Methods for Juniors in Music Education Course (MUED3010)....

Read more


Excellence in (Student) Podcasting Submissions Now Open

Feb. 16, 2022—The Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities is sponsoring the second annual Excellence in Podcasting Competition, in collaboration with the Office of Immersion Resources and the Center for Teaching. We had really fantastic student submissions last year, and you can listen to the winning submissions on our podcast VandyVox. If you know of students who...

Read more


Catch up with the Leading Lines Podcast

Feb. 10, 2022—In this episode, Nathan Stucky, director of the Farminary Project at Princeton Theological Seminary in New Jersey, and Emma Lietz Bilecky, Farminary Fellow talk about the origin of the Farminary, combining work on the farm with theological education, and the challenges and opportunities that come with teaching in rhythm with nature. Listen to the latest episode below!...

Read more


Pham and Cravens explore “What Students Value Most” in online degree programs

Feb. 8, 2022—By Cynthia J. Brame Associate professor of the practice in LPO Xiu Cravens and Vanderbilt doctoral alumnus Lam Pham recently published an analysis of student experiences in an online Ed.D. program, identifying key program characteristics and structures for promoting student engagement and satisfaction in a fully online program. Pham, who is currently an assistant professor...

Read more


Come Work at the Center for Teaching

Feb. 7, 2022—Each year the Center for Teaching (CFT) hires a number of graduate students as part of its efforts to mentor and train graduate students, including those serving as teaching assistants or instructors of record here at Vanderbilt as well as those interested in developing teaching skills for future faculty careers. The CFT has several positions...

Read more


Junior Faculty Spotlight: Hannah Kestner

Jan. 28, 2022—Each year, the CFT Newsletter highlights the work of our Junior Faculty Teaching Fellows. This month, Hannah Kestner, School of Nursing, talks about some of the lessons she has gained from the Fellowship. As a member of the nursing cohort of Junior Faculty Teaching Fellows, I have gained so much knowledge from my fellow nursing colleagues over...

Read more