This Week for Graduate Students: Microteaching and Upcoming LTF Events!
Microteaching
Want to practice a new in-class activity or just get some more practice before teaching in your classroom? Join peers in a Microteaching Practice session where you will divide into groups of 3-4 with a facilitator and take turns delivering short samples of instruction to each other. After each teaching sample, your facilitator and your peers will offer structured feedback to support your teaching. Whether you are currently teaching at Columbia or not, all graduate students looking to practice teaching are welcome to attend this Microteaching Practice session.
Microteaching satisfies the Application and Practice requirement in the Teaching Development Program.
Date & Time: Thursday, November 10, 1:00 – 3:00 PM
Location: Butler 204
Register: here
Inclusive Teaching Series
CTL’s Inclusive Teaching series is underway this semester. Graduate students are welcome to register for any session that interests them. Participants are expected to have viewed the corresponding module in CTL’s MOOC Inclusive Teaching: Supporting All Students in the College Classroom ahead of the session. Get more information about this series here.
Inclusive Teaching sessions count towards track completion in the Teaching Development Program.
- Promoting Diversity and Inclusion through Course Content, Nov. 2, 4:00 – 5:30 PM, 212 Butler | Register
- Designing all Course Elements for Accessibility, Nov. 9, 4:00 – 5:30 PM, 212 Butler | Register
- Cultivating Critical Self-Reflection, Nov. 16, 4:00 – 5:30 PM, 212 Butler | Register
Inclusive Teaching sessions count towards track completion in the Teaching Development Program.
Upcoming Lead Teaching Fellow Events
The 45 2022-23 Lead Teaching Fellows are running workshops and discussions in departments all around Columbia. These are generally advertised locally. Below are a few upcoming events that are open to participants beyond the LTF’s home department.
LTF events count towards track completion in the Teaching Development Program.
Trauma Conscious Teaching: Preparing to Teach Difficult Topics in the Language Syllabus
While language syllabi and textbooks are making an effort to cover a more diverse set of topics, they often touch upon violent histories and potentially sensitive experiences such as colonialism, migration, race, and genocide. As instructors, we often come unprepared as to how to teach these in a language class setting, where students don’t have the full lingual capacity or confidence to express themselves. In this event we’ll explore the different topics of language instruction, with emphasis on the German intermediate textbook, and come up with pedagogical tools to facilitate productive and sensitive discussions.
This event is led by Lead Teaching Fellow Didi Tal (Germanic Languages). It is open to all graduate student instructors who teach languages.
Date & Time: Thursday, November 3, 4:00pm – 5:30pm
Location: Deutsches Hall, 420 W 116th st.
Registration: Email Didi Tal at dt2587@columbia.edu
Navigating Politics in the Classroom
Elections tend to be a fraught time in many college classrooms, particularly perceived high-stakes elections. Errant remarks from instructors can prove especially alienating. Disagreements between students can rapidly escalate into situations that derail productive learning. Anxieties about electoral outcomes and their implications can interact in adverse ways with other social and academic anxieties students may hold, or can eat up mental and emotional bandwidth that might otherwise be directed towards their studies. In this workshop, participants will explore some of the ways that classroom teaching can be derailed by politics and some strategies for mitigating these risks.
This event is led by Lead Teaching Fellow Musa al-Gharbi (Sociology). Graduate students from across disciplines are welcome to attend.
Date & Time: Friday, November 4, 2:30pm – 4:00pm
Location: 509 Knox Hall
Registration: Email Musa al-Gharbi at aa3933@columbia.edu
Improv(e) Your Classroom Communication
Come get to know your fellow STEM TAs, and discover how basic improv techniques can improve how well you communicate your ideas, both in and out of the classroom. In this 1.5-hour workshop, we’ll play with committing to your words, listening effectively, and learning to let go of “mistakes” when speaking publicly.
This event is led by Lead Teaching Fellow Eliza Jaeger (Biological Sciences). It is open to all graduate students in STEM disciplines.
Date & Time: Friday, November 4, 5:00pm-6:30pm
Location: Fairchild 800
Registration: here
Teaching Math: Challenges and Perspectives in Quantitative Pedagogy
Students take courses in quantitative subjects to pursue personal interests, to acquire skills for the job market, or simply to fulfill degree requirements. As instructors, we hope all students take something away from the class that will be useful in their lives. Teaching quantitative courses poses unique challenges related to the nature of the material itself, as well as differences in student background and mismatch between instructor and student expectations. The goal of this workshop is to consider the ways in which introductory courses in mathematical subjects can be made more accessible to heterogeneous audiences. We will discuss experiences and case studies from teaching a prerequisite course intended to equip students with mathematical tools for advanced coursework and eventual independent work in mathematical modeling. Prior to the workshop, attendees should think about a topic for a lesson they would like to give; attendees will leave the workshop with a sketch of a lesson plan, as well as anticipated challenges and pitfalls and a plan to address them. Recommended prework: think of a topic you would like to teach and watch the video How To Speak.
This event is led by Lead Teaching Fellow Zhenrui Liao (Neurobiology & Behavior). It is open to all graduate students.
Date & Time: November 11, 3:00-4:00pm
Location: Jerome L Greene Building, 5th Floor (L5-084)
Registration: here