Expanded Field Course/Topic Mapping

Course Introduction/ Getting Started

Goal setting

what are the different 'options' available for growth and development? (e.g. mentorship opportunities, exhibition, teaching experience)

Student Presentation

student introducing their own practices to cohort; sharing ideas; opportunities for collaboration

Group Critiques

Proposal Development & Timeline

Woodshop Orientation

Grant Writing/ Portfolio Development

Mid-Term Check-In; proposal edits

Research Methods

including meetings with students in the group sessions

final exhibition?? optional

potential opportunity to share space with foundation year

open studio walk-a-bout

mentorship opportunities for those that are interested-- optional? (e.g. presentation, teaching experience)

opportunities for engagement with learning activities of the Foundation Level

13 week plan
3 hour session each week
shared responsibilities for different group sessions

all instructors present for first few weeks (e.g. intro/orientations/ student presentations)

1-on-1 mid-term meetings

final exhibition and final 1-on-1 check in

role of mentorship?

students to choose their mentor?

probably not

important for balancing workload for instructors

managing instructor workload

work involved with mentoring students

1 or 2 faculty advisors per student?

include expectations around advisor appointments as a component of the proposal/application

clear expectations around how & when to connect with instructor; set up a structure ahead of time

dedicating class time to doing some of the 1-on-1 meetings

How can we make sure class time is valuable for all students?

office hours as well for student meetings

teaching collaboration

divide and conquer for some things

play to individual instructor strengths, interests, etc.

need for implicit trust between instructors

work of collaboration was beneficial and efficient in other ways

when would there be dedicated time for the instructors to meet and 'prep'?

determine roles and responsibilities of each instructor

instructors as facilitators

Goals for Course

shared goal posts Milestones/ Markers

coming to class

creating a timeline

common touchpoints

opportunity to self-identify to set indiv goals

some self-assessment?

possibly self-reflection

questions about feeling safe having difficult conversations with students; THIS IS REALLY IMPORTANT

Q from Colleen: What happens if their goals change during the course? Is that ok?

Q from Colleen: Does the process matter? (if so, should it be evaluated?) Or only the product?

final presentation on process? or product?

Evaluation scheme for CO

Components to consider:

Proposal

Timeline

Mid-Term Reflection/ Proposal update

Final Project

Presentation

Attendance/Participation

Challenges/Questions:

students struggled with reflection;
students struggling to have constructive dialogues;
scaffolding/supports needed

reflection is skill that needs to be taught and support
-what does it look like to reflect
-show some examples

Questions posted by Colleen (in Zoom chat)
1. Why do we grade? How does it feel to be graded? What do you want grading to do (or not to do) in your class (for students or instructors)?

2. What do letter grades mean? Do they have any intrinsic meaning or is their value purely extrinsic? Is assessment different when it is formative rather than summative?

3. How does feedback function in relation to grades? To what extent should teachers be readers/receivers/reviewers of student work (as opposed to evaluators)?

4. What would happen if you didn’t grade? What would be the benefits? What issues would this raise for students/instructors? What are the risks of not grading?

5. Who is the primary audience for the work students produce in the class?

ideas about ungrading

requires transparency with students

requires trust between instructors and students

focus on relationship

explain WHY this approach

need to take time to teach students about pedagogy

and being open about the biases that we bring

one approach (Colleen & Hillarie) = no grades on assignments

allows student to focus on things other than numbers

instead give lots of qualitative feedback on student work

also peer assessment

and lots of self-reflection

lots student self-reflection to provide a narrative about how they graded themselves

misalignments between students & instructors forced a dialogue with the students

too high

dialogue about the pressures for student achievement; ended with compromise

too low

gender divide emerged (women can tend to grade themselves to harshly)

institution requires a grade

pass/fail is/may be an option

brings up big institutional questions

P = no GPA attached

how does this impact articulation agreements? scholarships? transferability? grad school applications?

perhaps students could choose whether they wanted a grade (for GPA) or a 'P'

doesn't have to be all or nothing

its about making assessment meaningful- and more focused on learning

students can engage in the process and find meaning within

it needs to be done WITH students