Teaching Climate Change Across the Disciplines
Thursday, April 5th, Common Hour, Dangremond Family Commons (Hallden)
This event is co-sponsored by the Trinity Institute for Interdisiplinary Studies.
At the 2015 Climate Summit in Paris, then President Barack Obama called Climate Change the “one issue that will define the contours of the century more dramatically than any other”. Despite attempts to debunk global warming as a “hoax,” there is an overwhelming consensus among scientists that the earth is warming, that human activity is a major contributor, and that—without immediate and drastic measures—the consequences will be severe. Education is crucial, but how to teach Climate Change, both within one’s own field and across disciplines? What should a modern “Climate Change Curriculum” look like? Environmental Educator Stephen Siperstein, editor of Teaching Climate Change in the Humanities, will give the key address. He will be joined by Professors Beth Notar (Anthropology) and Amber Pitt (Environmental Science).
Creating the 4.0 (GPA) Version of You by Upgrading Your Learning Skills
Thursday March 1, Common Hour, Dangremond Family Commons (Hallden)
Dr. Kelley will introduce metacognition-based learning methods that incorporate reflective thinking. He will discuss time-management and key test taking strategies. The presentation includes various mental exercises, peer group discussion, and question and answer session. Students of any discipline who may see themselves studying for hours on end without the grade reflecting that effort are encouraged to attend. Dr. Kelley’s primary focus is to help improve the academic performance and retention rate of students in the STEM fields of study. He specializes in working with minority students and students with learning disabilities pursuing STEM degrees.
Dr. Kelley currently serves on both the Exploration Elementary Charter School for Science and Technology Board of Trustees and the Horizons Summer Enrichment Program at University of Rochester, Warner School of Education Board of Trustees.
The Value of Failure
Thursday, February 8th, Common Hour, Dangremond Family Commons (Hallden)
This interactive session will explore how we can further our students’ learning by giving them room to make mistakes, suffer setbacks, and experience failure. Mistakes – when handled well – offer great opportunities for learning, yet many college courses often penalize students for making mistakes. This session will highlight ways to structure classes so that students have room to make generative mistakes when professors allow for revision and reflection. Dan Pearlman has taught introductory a variety of courses in environmental studies and ecology. He has given numerous pedagogy workshops for faculty across the country and has co-authored three texts on conservation biology including Conserving Earth’s Biodiversity with E.O. Wilson. He earned a PhD in Biology from Harvard University, and has received multiple university-wide teaching awards at Brandeis and Harvard.