TEACHxperts
A speaker series sponsored by TEACHx
TEACHxperts is a speaker series for Northwestern instructors featuring experts in teaching and learning with technology. Join us to learn more about topics that spark new pedagogical experiments in your class!
Join Our Next Event
Make Learning Stick with Visually Appealing Course Materials
Presented by Dawn Diperi, Education Specialist - Learning Passport Digital Content Lead at UNICEF Learning Passport, this session will cover principles of visual design that support learning. Dawn is the author of “Graphic Design for Course Creators, Digitally accessible, Visually Appealing Courses” published by Press Books with a CC-BY Creative Commons license.
October 27, 2023
12:00 PM-1:00 PM CDT (Virtual)
Resources from recent talks
- Design for Divergence with Megan Kohler , Think UDL podcast
- Digital Learning & Equity - Reading & Resources from Dr. Jessica Williams
Speakers from the 2022-2023 Academic Year
Ruthann C. Thomas
Learning Strategies to Support Equitable Student Engagement
Associate Director of Teaching and Learning at MIT's Teaching & Learning Lab
April 5, 2023
In this interactive presentation we will learn and apply principles from the science of learning to design structured and inclusive learning activities that engage students through the practices of retrieval and self-explanation. We’ll discuss technological tools and teaching strategies that require minimal preparation and grading time to encourage more equitable engagement from all students.
Veronica Berns
Adapting Ungrading Principles to STEM Lab Courses
Assistant Professor of Instruction in the Chemistry Department
February 2, 2023
Ungrading – an assessment philosophy which deemphasizes grading by “points” – offers many benefits to students, including transparency, flexibility, and forgiveness in assessments. Most often, Ungrading approaches are seen in small seminar or writing-centric courses due to the high time cost in providing written feedback to students. In this interactive presentation, we will discuss how Ungrading ideas inspired a change in the assessment structure of general chemistry lab courses at Northwestern. You’ll hear how Veronica and co-lab director Katie Gesmundo adapted a Specifications Grading model to fit courses of 100-450 students that heavily rely on teaching assistants. You will also have an opportunity to identify core ideas of Ungrading compatible with your own course formats, and discuss actionable ways to incorporate them into your grading scheme.
The work at the heart of this discussion was funded by a Weinberg College Summer Teaching Grant, co-authored with Assistant Professor of Instruction Katie Gesmundo, titled “Reconsidering methods of grading for lab reports in General Chemistry”.
Megan Kohler
Strategies for Creating Neuroinclusive Learning Environments
Learning Designer at John A. Dutton e-Education Institute at Penn State
October 26, 2022
It is estimated that up to 30% of the learners in your classroom have some form of neurodivergence such as autism, ADHD, or Tourette’s syndrome. They are gifted with a unique way of viewing the world and processing information but are faced with the challenge of learning in classrooms that do not support this variance. This talk explores the barriers neurodivergent learners encounter, the impact of those barriers on a social and emotional level, and strategies for creating neuro-inclusive learning environments where every student can thrive.