Several more or less formal discussion groups meet regularly on the UMBC campus to discuss topics of teaching and learning. The FDC provides support to these groups as needed. Contact the FDC for further information. These groups include the:
- Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) Group,
- Team-Based Learning (TBL) Group,
- Biology Teaching Circle,
- Mathematics and Statistics Teaching Circle, and
- Modern Languages, Linguistics, and Intercultural Communication (MLLI) Teaching Circle.
Book Discussion Groups
The FDC sponsors book discussion groups based on recently published books on a topic related to teaching and learning. Faculty who register to attend the book discussion group receive a copy of the book compliments of the FDC or access to the ebook compliments of the AOK library. Watch our home page for announcements of upcoming book discussion groups. Past books have included:
- Engaging Ideas: The Professor’s Guide to Integrating Writing, Critical Thinking, and Active Learning in the Classroom, 3rd Ed. (Bean & Melzer, 2021). [Chapters 6, 7, 13, & 14].
- Ungrading: Why Rating Students Undermines Learning (and What to Do Instead) (Blum, 2020). [Introduction, Conclusion, and Chapters 1, 7, 8, 9, & 11].
- Skim, Dive, Surface: Teaching Digital Reading (Cohn, 2021).
- Intentional Tech: Principles to Guide the Use of Educational Technology in College Teaching (Bruff, 2019).
- Small Teaching Online: Applying Learning Science in Online Classes (Darby with Lang, 2019). [Chapters 4 & 5].
- Minds Online: Teaching Effectively with Technology (Miller, 2014). [Chapter 8].
- Online Teaching at its Best: Merging Instructional Design with Teaching and Learning Research (Nilson & Goodson, 2017). [Chapters 3, 5, & 6].
- Connected Teaching: Relationship, Power, and Mattering in Higher Education (Schwartz, 2019).
- Creating Engaging Discussions” Strategies for “Avoiding Crickets” in Any Size Classroom and Online (Herman & Nilson, 2018).
- SoTL in Action: Illuminating Critical Moments of Practice (Chick, 2018).
- Life Beyond Grades: Designing College Courses to Promote Intrinsic Motivation (Covington, von Hoene, & Voge, 2017).
- Bandwidth Recovery: Helping Students Reclaim Cognitive Resources Lost to Poverty, Racism, and Social Marginalization (Verschelden, 2017).
- Flipped Learning: A Guide for Higher Education Faculty (Talbert, 2017).
- Why Students Resist Learning: A Practical Model for Understanding and Helping Students (Tolman & Kremling, 2017).
- Teaching & Learning STEM: A Practical Guide (Felder & Brent, 2016).
- Teach Students How to Learn: Strategies You Can Incorporate into Any Course to Improve Student Metacognition, Study Skills, and Motivation (McGuire, 2015).
- Teaching Undergraduate Science: A Guide to Overcoming Obstacles to Student Learning (Hodges, 2015).
- Whistling Vivaldi: How Stereotypes Affect Us and What We Can Do (Steele, 2011).
- Specifications Grading: Restoring Rigor, Motivating Students, and Saving Faculty Time (Nilson, 2015).
- Engaging Imagination: Helping Students Become Creative and Reflective Thinkers (James & Brookfield, 2014).
- Using Reflection and Metacognition to Improve Student Learning: Across the Disciplines, Across the Academy (Kaplan et al., 2013).
- Creating Self-Regulated Learners: Strategies to Strengthen Students’ Self-Awareness and Learning Skills (Nilson, 2013).
- Introduction to Rubrics, Second Edition, (Stevens & Levi, 2012).
- Teaching Naked: How Moving Technology Out of Your College Classroom Will Improve Student Learning (Bowen, 2012)
- Teaching for Critical Thinking: Tools and Techniques to Help Students Question Their Assumptions (Brookfield, 2012)
- Effective Instruction for STEM Disciplines: From Learning Theory to College Teaching (Mastascusa, Synder, & Hoyt, 2011).
- Engaging Ideas: The Professor’s Guide to Integrating Writing, Critical Thinking, and Active Learning in the Classroom, 2nd Ed. (Bean, 2011)
- Effective Grading (Walvoord & Anderson, 2010).
- Teaching What You Don’t Know (Hutton, 2009).
- How Learning Works: 7 Research-Based Principles for Smart Teaching (Ambrose, 2010).