��ɫӰ��

True to Life Virtual Classroom Experience

Tim Flowers, Christoph Maier, Gary Stoudt, Amanda Faust, Francisco Alarcon, Shelly Bouchat, Charles Lamb, Kara Romance, and Veronica Paz

Our teaching circle has the goal of exploring the potential of emerging technology when teaching and sharing mathematics and computer science. Having students engage with mathematics, modeling, simulation, and computer programming in new and interesting ways is a core mission of our department. Our teaching circle is constantly looking to explore new ways to have our students engage with mathematical and computer programming concepts. Through funding of this mini-grant our teaching circle will explore the creation of 3D-Virtual Reality content for use as a teaching tool. Here our strategy will be two tiered: We aim to explore the mathematical and programming concepts used to create virtual content, and we wish to explore how this virtual content can be used to enhance how we share concepts and ideas.

Developing Effective Teacher Training for the ��ɫӰ�� Digital Storytelling Project

Mike Sell, Rachel Schiera, Dan Weinstein, Olivia Maderer, Eric Wentz, Zainab Younas, Zeeshan Siddique

The Digital Storytelling Project is a Digital Humanities educational outreach program that teaches middle- and high-school students to create interactive digital “storygames.” Since 2015, the DSP has worked with over 500 students in 3 school districts. This year, we will expand into 6 more. We intend to build the DSP into a statewide program by 2024. To respond effectively to present and future DSP growth, we need to build a teacher-training program. Our teaching circle would enable us to gain knowledge about gameful learning, gather data from participating teachers and students, and provide opportunity to draft a teacher-training program.

Integrating Digital Design and Rapid Prototyping into the Classroom

Sharon Massey, Sean Derry, Holly Travis, Ben Ford, Rick Adkins

This teaching circle will investigate strategies for integrating digital design and fabrication into the classroom. We will use Rhino 3D software to create digital files for rapid prototyping using a laser cutter, 3D printer, and CNC mill, with a focus on planning introductory projects for students and methods for instruction and assessment. These new technologies are becoming more widely available, and it is vital that our students are trained in their use. This teaching circle is open to any faculty member who is interested in including digital design and rapid prototyping in their curriculum.

Creation of an Introductory Anthropology Open Educational Resource (OER)

A. Palmiotto, L. Homsey-Messer, A. Adams, B. Ford, A. Poole, W. Chadwick

Anthropology faculty are developing an OER for the Department's introductory, four-field course, Contemporary Anthropology (ANTH 110). Enrolling ~500 students/semester, the class serves as a Social Science elective within the Liberal Studies curriculum and a requirement for the new Cultural Competencies certificate. Although OERs abound for specific Anthropology subfields, such as Cultural and Biological Anthropology, there is surprisingly no OER dedicated to an introductory four-field class, a paucity which the ��ɫӰ�� Anthropology Department plans to remedy. The mini-grant funds will be used to recruit professional anthropologists to contribute case studies highlighting their research and student reviewers to provide feedback during development.

Best Practices for Creating EDI Opportunities Within Classroom and Campus Pedagogy

Carrie J. Cole, Robert Gretta, Ethan Hollinger, Rachel Desoto Jackson, Brian Jones, Michael Schwartz

This project will examine best practices for integrating guest artists/speakers with an EDI focus into both classroom curriculum and the university community. Our teaching circle strives to implement continued strategies to meet and surpass our departmental diversity goals in the classroom through curriculum, alumni involvement, and guest speakers. We are creating opportunities for queer artists within our departmental curriculum while expanding accessibility to the campus community. This project will invite department alumni and drag artist, Kyah Hawk, to our campus in Spring 2019 for classroom visits, a potential Six O'Clock Series workshop, or another university wide forum and/or performance.

Resources for Fostering Diversity and Inclusion in Any Classroom

Anne Kondo, Veronica Paz, Nancy Pipkin Hutchinson, Jon Lewis, Ben Rafoth, Jennifer Perillo, Mary Stewart, Melanie Duncan, David Chambers, Rachel Jackson

The objectives of the Teaching Circle “Fostering Diversity and Inclusion in Any Classroom” are to help faculty learn to address diversity and inclusion in classrooms where such topics are not traditionally “content.” We will also discuss ways to incorporate inclusive language into our syllabi. We requested funds to purchase 10 copies of the book Courageous Conversations about Race, by Glenn E. Singleton, to serve as a starting point for our conversations. We will share the results of our discussions with the wider ��ɫӰ�� campus community.

Improving Simulation-Based Learning at ��ɫӰ�� through Expert Feedback

Pao Ying Hsiao, Johanna Boothby, Lori Lombard, Erin Clark, Rachel DeSoto-Jackson, Nicole Clark

Since fall 2017, the disciplines of nursing, food and nutrition, speech-language pathology, and theater have completed at least one interdisciplinary simulation experience per semester utilizing a traditional simulation approach. Recently, our cross-disciplinary teaching circle has been exploring the use of Forum Theatre as a theoretical framework for our interprofessional simulation. In an effort to effectively apply this framework to our existing interprofessional simulations, we are seeking expert feedback from the simulation certified faculty from Robert Morris University (RMU). Obtaining feedback from these certified professionals will enhance our teach circle goals of developing and integrating simulation to increase student learning.