Welcome to the "Rethinking Student Engagement" Learning Path! This is your all-access pass to a variety of sessions and materials designed to boost your classroom dynamics. Each session offers unique insights into making your teaching more engaging, from fundamentals of active learning to interactive polling techniques. The components are arranged in a logical order to help you build your skills progressively. Starting from the beginning will give you a comprehensive foundation, but, feel free to explore the components that pique your interest. Attendance isn’t mandatory at every stop—hop on and off as you wish! This path is laid out buffet-style; sample what you like and come back for seconds whenever you’re ready for more!
Your guide for engaging with this Learning Path:
In this Learning Path, we use a variety of engagement methods to ensure flexibility and cater to the different ways you absorb and process information. Each component is marked by specific terms to guide you:
- Attend: Join live workshops where real-time interaction is key.
- Read: Access text-based resources to explore at your own pace.
- Watch: Engage with video content to visualize and understand concepts.
Building Student Engagement
- Attend: Setting the Stage: Fostering Student Engagement Throughout the Semester | Jan 15
Join this workshop to explore tools and strategies for fostering student engagement from day one. Discover practical techniques for encouraging peer discussions, sparking curiosity, and making learning a dynamic, interactive experience.
View details and register for this workshop.
- Read: Sustaining Engagement Without Laptop Bans, Center for Teaching and Learning, UC Berkeley
This article examines the complexities of maintaining student engagement in the presence of digital devices. It highlights research indicating that multitasking can hinder learning outcomes and discusses the potential drawbacks of implementing device bans, such as inadvertently stigmatizing students who rely on technology for accessibility. The article advocates for inclusive teaching strategies that integrate technology thoughtfully to foster active participation and sustained attention without resorting to prohibitive measures.
- Read: Encouraging Student Engagement, Center for Teaching and Learning, Boston University
This resource explores how involving students in the creation of a course syllabus can enhance engagement and collaboration. It discusses the benefits of a learner-centered syllabus, such as improved negotiation skills and increased course familiarity for students, as well as greater "buy-in" for instructors. The guide offers strategies for co-creating various syllabus components, including course topics, assignments, policies, and classroom norms, aligning with the concept of engaged pedagogy to foster a productive and respectful learning community.
- Explore: Five Tips for Engaged Lecturing, Center for Teaching and Learning, Columbia
This resource offers five tips for creating engaging lectures that actively involve students. It emphasizes setting clear learning objectives, understanding student backgrounds, incorporating interactive activities, and fostering an inclusive environment. These strategies help transform traditional lectures into dynamic and engaging learning experiences.
Active Learning
- Explore: Active Learning, Center for Teaching and Learning, UC Berkeley
Active learning involves instructional methods that engage students actively in learning, encouraging skill development and critical thinking through activities like reading, writing, and discussion. This resource highlights the benefits of active learning for building student engagement and it also offers practical strategies to help instructors implement active learning in their courses.
- Read & Attend: Choosing the Right Active Learning Strategies, Center for Teaching and Learning, UC Berkeley
- Read this guide on Types of Active Learning Strategies and explore various active learning strategies to help you select the right mix for your specific classroom contexts and teaching styles If you have any questions about these strategies or would like to discuss them with a CTL colleague, please feel free to email teaching@berkeley.edu, or schedule a consultation.
- Attend "Typology of Active Learning: A Framework for Selecting Active Learning Techniques" to explore a typology of active learning techniques tailored to your goals. Gain fresh ideas and practical suggestions, along with a curated list of categorized strategies. This workshop will be held on Feb 11, 2025.
View details and register for this workshop.
- Explore: UC Berkeley Active Learning Classrooms
Berkeley’s Active Learning classrooms (ALC) are teaching and learning spaces that allow the instructor to customize the physical learning environment to meet pedagogical needs. In an ALC, the room design, flexible furniture, writing surfaces, and technology allow for multiple pedagogical activities. ALCs have been intentionally designed to encourage and foster the use of active learning strategies - except, they don’t come with a manual about how to make that happen! Read "Space Matters! Maximizing Active Learning Classrooms for Student Collaboration and Engagement" to learn how to get the most out of your classes in ALCs.
For any questions about ALC or strategies, feel free to reach out to us via teaching@berkeley.edu.
- Attend: Active Learning in Large Classes: What’s Possible? | Mar 6
Join this workshop to explore strategies for implementing active learning in large, introductory lecture settings. Learn techniques to engage students and address skepticism while creating dynamic, interactive learning experiences in large classes.
Technology Tools to Enhance Student Engagement
1. Polling tools are excellent resources for increasing student interaction during classes. They can quickly gather student opinions and knowledge, enabling real-time adjustments to teaching and increasing student involvement in the learning process.
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Watch: View these short video tutorials on using Berkeley sponsored polling tools—iClicker Cloud and Poll Everywhere. These videos will guide you through setting up an account, starting a poll, etc. You can also receive customized assistance by emailing studentresponse@berkeley.edu or by scheduling a 1:1 consultation.
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Attend: New in Poll Everywhere: Course Management Interface | Jan 16
Join this workshop to explore Poll Everywhere's new "Course Management" feature. Discover how this updated interface can simplify organizing activities, tracking participation, and syncing results with the bCourses gradebook, saving you time and streamlining your workflow.
View details and register for this workshop.
2. Peerceptiv is a peer collaboration tool designed to enhance student engagement by facilitating peer review and team member evaluation assignments and is now available for all UC Berkeley classes as part of a pilot.
- Attend: Using Peerceptiv Peer Review to Increase Collaboration and Engagement | Jan 22
Join this workshop to discover how Peerceptiv fosters student engagement and enhances critical thinking through peer assessment. The session will cover setting up Peerceptiv assignments in bCourses and integrating peer review into your course.
Making Attendance Matter
- Read: Encouraging Attendance, Center for Teaching and Learning, UC Berkeley
This resource offers strategies to boost student attendance by enhancing the value of class sessions through active learning, clear communication of attendance importance, and fostering intrinsic motivation. It suggests engaging students with activities like discussions, collaborative projects, and problem-solving exercises that are unique to the classroom environment.