Motivating and Engaging Today's Students: Tools and Best Practices


Friday, April 11, 2008
Regional Conference at Penn State New Kensington


Hotel information for the conference

Register here for the sessions you wish to attend by choosing New Kensington Conference - all sessions from the list of available events.

Please note: If a session appears on the schedule but not on the registration listing, that session is currently full. You may select another session or send an email to Abbey to be placed on a waiting list.

Sessions Schedule

Morning Session 7:30 - 11:45 a.m.
Afternoon Session 1:15 - 4:30 p.m.

7:30 - 8:15 a.m.
051 Conference Center
Continental Breakfast
Registration

8:30 - 10:00 a.m.
031 ITC
With a click of a button, they're off!: Using students' life skills to motivate
Presenter:Deborah Gill, Associate Professor, Spanish
Penn State Dubois

In today’s technological society, it's not unusual to see students chatting on line, listening to their IPods or MP3s, playing virtual games against one another, etc. This session will discuss how to use these technologies, and others, to motivate and engage students in all disciplines.


14B Conference Center
The Student-centered classroom: Techniques for engaging students in their learning
Presenter: Jill Lane, Research Associate
Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence, University Park

Gone are the days when students sat on the edge of their seats diligently taking notes and hanging on our every word. Today's student population is constantly on the move and it is up to all of us to capitalize on their energy. This session will present and engage you in a variety of techniques you can use to engage your students in their learning and make your course even more student-centered.

10:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. 12B Conference Center
Digital Commons
One-on-one consulting

Take advantage of this time throughout the day to schedule your own individual one-on-one time with your Digital Commons consultant.

10:15 - 11:45 a.m. 14B Conference Center
How do I teach in an MP3 world when all they gave me was colored chalk: Reflections on teaching millennium students
Presenter: James Beierlein , Professor, Agribusiness
University Park

Description: Coming Soon


031 ITC
Copyrights
Presenter: Becky Albitz, Electronic Resource and Copyright Librarian
University Park

Learn what the latest laws and guidelines are for using published material, digital media and what the penalties and consequences are for breaking the rules governing unlawful use of copyrighted material.

11:45 - 1:15 p.m. 051 Conference Center
Lunch

1:15 - 2:45 p.m. 14B Conference Center
Program assessment: Next steps
Presenter: Jill Lane, Research Associate
Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence, University Park

As you begin to plan for program assessment, you might not realize that you already have a wealth of data that can be used to show that learning objectives are being met. However, identifying, locating, and collecting the data can be a challenge. In this session you will learn about strategies for matching goals to courses in order to locate existing data points. Participants should bring program goals and syllabi to this session.


031 ITC
How do I teach in an MP3 world when all they gave me was colored chalk: Reflections on teaching millennium students
Presenter: James Beierlein, Professor, Agribusiness
University Park

Description: Coming Soon

3:00 - 4:30 p.m. 031 ITC
Student-defined course agendas
Presenter: Hal Smith, Assistant Professor, Information Sciences and Technology
Penn State New Kensington

In this discussion, Dr. Smith will relate experiences and student perceptions for a class where the students define the agenda for the semester. Dr. Smith explains the course expectations, with respect to the concepts and skill mastery. The students then decide collectively on the topic for any given week, essentially setting the course agenda dynamically as the course progresses.


14B Conference Center
The Digital Commons: Best practices for engaging students
Presenter: Chris Millet, Education Technology Services
University Park

Digital Commons is a service which provides students and faculty across the commonwealth with digital media production facilities and the support they require not only to learn the tools, but how to integrate them into their teaching and learning. The project has seen much success in the two short semesters since it's inception. In this presentation, I will share student and faculty outcomes including videos and podcasts, best practices, and the results of a recent statewide faculty focus group and how we plan to use this information moving forward.