NC faculty will get a chance to hear how some of their peers are increasing students’ awareness and appreciation for standards of academic integrity, at a special Spotlight on Teaching and Learning session February 4.
The session is the first in a new series, spearheaded by the college’s Centre for Academic Excellence (CAE). Capturing the spirit of CAE’s annual, weeklong Spotlight on Teaching and Learning conference in a condensed format, “Spotlight On” sessions are short one-hour discussions focused on topics that have been identified as key interest areas for faculty. These sessions will spotlight practical strategies being implemented by NC faculty and staff and key lessons learned.
Each “Spotlight On” session is led by faculty members, and incorporates an overview of the changes they’ve brought to the classroom, and how other faculty can adapt the practice to their own unique classes. The sessions also include a question and answer period to give faculty a forum for discussion. CAE intends to offer a session each month during the Fall and Winter terms.
“NC is fortunate to have exceptionally talented faculty who bring fresh, innovative teaching strategies and techniques into their classrooms every day,” said Natasha Hannon, CAE’s manager of educational development. “Through the Spotlight On sessions, we want to capture how faculty are pioneering those new techniques and making a difference in the lives of their students, and share those insights with the rest of our college community.”
The first session will be held Monday, February 4, from 2-3 p.m. in room SA 208 at the Welland Campus, and will feature Courtney Evers, coordinator for NC’s Nursing and Personal Support Worker graduate certificate programs, as well as Sarah McGeown, manager for those same programs. Through a series of classroom exercises, curriculum modifications and teaching techniques, the two have seen a marked improvement in students’ appreciation for, and adherence to, NC’s standards for academic integrity. The impact this has had on the classroom is hard to understate – the four graduate certificate programs McGeown and Evers administer are composed entirely of international students, who are often less familiar with Canada’s standards and practices surrounding academic integrity.
“Our focus on academic integrity reflects the high academic standard set in our graduate certificate programs, as well as across Niagara College,” said Evers. “We introduced multi-faceted strategies to promote academic integrity among our international students in order to ensure we were doing our due diligence in offering resources to students and setting them up for success.”
Faculty interested in joining the session can register here.
