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This paper describes a professional development initiative for teacher educators, called the "Digital Pedagogies Collaboration," in which the goal was to build faculty knowledge about technology enhanced teaching (TPACK knowledge), develop a collaborative learning and research community of faculty members around technology enhanced teaching, and provide opportunities for faculty to serve as future workshop facilitators and mentors for other faculty and students. Using a design-based research approach, data sources included workshop evaluation surveys, photographs of workshops in progress, researcher field notes, and narrative case reports constructed by faculty members actively involved in the collaborative research. Findings indicated that the "Digital Pedagogies Collaboration" was effective because it was: 1) based on faculty members' expressed instructional needs, 2) used a TPACK-based professional learning workshop model that translated TPACK principles into practical classroom application, and 3) uniquely included a research collaboration that provided self-study reflection on participants' changing teaching practices.

The article "Authentic learning for pre-service teachers in a technology-rich environment" (Latham & Carr, 2012) appeared in the "Journal of Learning Design," Volume 5, Issue 1 in 2012. Since writing this paper three years ago, the authors reflect upon and brainstorm what they describe here as a radically revised approach. It is one where where students have far greater control over the direction of the mystery along with more open-ended problems. The article as it appeared in 2012 is also presented. With the author's approval, minor edits and layout changes have been made. [For "Authentic Learning for Pre-Service Teachers in a Technology-Rich Environment," see EJ978983.]

In this paper, we report on a longitudinal case study exploring Grade 3 teachers' implementation of iPads in the Language Arts classroom. A school-university partnership was formed based on a collaborative teacher inquiry model. We examined factors that shaped our collaboration. The project resulted in greater teacher sharing of iPad implementation strategies and growth in leadership skills among the teachers. A surprising finding was the degree of reciprocal learning about digital pedagogy that the university researchers experienced during the study and were able to share with their Pre-service Education classes. We emphasize the potential of school-university partnerships for narrowing the current gap between theory and practice in technology-enhanced learning.

This paper examined professors' conceptions of effective teaching in the context of a course they were teaching in active learning classrooms and how the conceptions related to the perceived role and use of computers in their teaching. We interviewed 13 professors who were teaching in active learning classrooms in winter 2011 in a large research university in Canada. The interviews captured what professors consider effective teaching, expected learning outcomes for students, instructional strategies and the role participants saw for computers in their teaching. Analysis of interview transcripts using a holistic inductive and constant comparison approach resulted in three conceptions of effective teaching: transmitting knowledge, engaging students, and developing learning independence. Professors' perception about the role and use of computers was found to be in line with their conceptions of effective teaching. Professors whose conception of effective teaching focused on developing learning independence used computers as tools for students' learning; those with a transmitting knowledge conception considered computers as a means of accessing or presenting information. Data collected from students about their use and their professors' use of computers in the course supports this conclusion. Results have implications for design of active learning environments and faculty development initiatives.

The purpose of this study was to determine the methods of experiential assessment in use at a Canadian university and the extent to which they are used. Exploring experiential assessment will allow identification of commonly used methods and facilitate the development of best practices of assessment in the context of experiential learning (EL) at an institutional level. The origins of EL are found in the work of Dewey (1938), later modified by Kolb and Fry (1975). Experiential methods include: experiential education, service learning problem-based learning and others such as action learning, enquiry-based learning, and case studies. Faculty currently involved in EL at the participating university were invited to complete an online survey about their teaching and assessment methods. This paper will share the results and analysis of the EL inventory survey.

This paper explores student perceptions of the effects of pairing discipline-specific language instruction with the traditional method of course delivery in economics. Our research involved teaching content-based English as an additional language (EAL) tutorials to a small group of ten international students taking first-year introductory economics courses. These voluntary participants completed pre- and post-treatment assessments with exit interviews at the end of the project. Assessment results and interviews suggest that students perceive that discipline-specific language instruction such as our EAL tutorials assists in the development of increased content and language proficiency. They also believe that vocabulary development is one of the most critical activities to support these goals; reading skills are also important but require more time and commitment than students can afford to give. Despite the students' interest in the project, their heavy class schedules prevented many from participating; our group was limited to ten students which precludes any assurance of statistical significance. In spite of the limitations, we believe that the project can still contribute valuable qualitative lessons to the literature of content-based language instruction in which the discipline of economics has not been well represented.

This article reports on research regarding interprofessional education (IPE) in child welfare conducted in 2009 and 2010. Pre service nursing, social worker and teacher education candidates participated in a workshop that "exposed" (Charles, Bainbridge & Gilbert, 2010) students to IPE in child welfare. This paper addresses a gap in literature in IPE in child welfare. Literature in IPE precedes a description of the workshop followed by an explanation of the integrated expert presentation, case study, modeling, reflection and small and large group processes. Results of the survey administered to workshop attendees are presented. Likert scaled questions indicate a high degree of satisfaction with the workshop organization, pedagogy and objectives. Responses to the open-ended questions align closely with the Thistlethwaite and Moran (2010) learning outcomes framework. It is clear that pre-service students learned with, from and about each other's discipline. 2 tables and an extensive reference list are included.

Discusses the activities and accomplishments of the Canadian Council of Teachers of English (CCTE), especially with regard to its Teacher Education Commission's "Statement on the Preparation of Teachers of English and the Language Arts." (MS)

This paper describes a case study of two pure mathematicians who flipped their lecture to teach matrix determinants in two large mathematics service courses (one at Stage I and the other at Stage II). The purpose of the study was to transform the passive lecture into an active learning opportunity and to introduce valuable mathematical skills, such as debate, argument and disagreement. The students were told in advance to use the online material to prepare, which had a short handout on matrix determinants posted, as the lesson would be interactive and would rely on them having studied this. At the beginning of the lesson, the two mathematicians worked together to model the skill of professional disagreement, one arguing for the cofactor expansion method and the other for the row reduction method. After voting for their preferred method, the students worked in small groups on examples to defend their choice. Each group elected a spokesperson and a political style debate followed as the students argued the pros and cons of each technique. Although one lecture does not establish whether the flipped lecture model is preferable for student instruction, the paper presents a case study for pursuing this approach and for further research on incorporating this style of teaching in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics subjects.

Students often struggle with concepts from abstract algebra. Typical classes incorporate few ways to make the concepts concrete. Using a set of woven paper artifacts, this paper proposes a way to visualize and explore concepts (symmetries, groups, permutations, subgroups, etc.). The set of artifacts used to illustrate these concepts is derived from our investigation of open-work woven mats produced in several cultures in the South Pacific. The exemplars that will be shown present variations of the figure eight, and can be created using readily available materials and straightforward instructions.

Based on a review of works by Indigenous educators, this paper suggests a four-domain framework for developing course outcome statements that will serve all students, with a focus on better supporting the educational empowerment of Indigenous students. The framework expands the three domains of learning, pioneered by Bloom to a four-domain construction based on the four quadrants of the Medicine Wheel, a teaching/learning framework that has widespread use in the Indigenous communities of North America (Native American, First Nation, Metis, Inuit, etc.). This paper expands on the cognitive (mental), psychomotor (physical) and affective (emotional) domains to add the fourth quadrant, spiritual, as being essential for balance in curricular design that supports students in their learning goals. The description of the spiritual quadrant includes a progression of learning outcomes and suggested verbs for developing learning outcome statements. Evaluation and practical implications are also discussed.

Increases in the frequency of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) within the postsecondary education system are now beginning to surface. Through a review of the literature this paper will focus on the persistence, retention and successful completion of autistics in the postsecondary education (PSE) sector. The author found no concrete statistics for the prevalence of autism, however the Autism Society of Canada conservatively estimates that 1 in every 200 children in Canada have been diagnosed with autism (Wood, 2013, p. 1). Currently the approximate graduation rate is 20% for the autistic population in the postsecondary sector, which is extremely low (MacKenzie, 2014, 3m 14s). An investigation into the causes of low persistence and retention is needed to determine the necessary actions to increase graduation rates for this particular population. "Recent reviews of outcomes have indicated that individuals with ASD experience low rates of college completion, employment, independent living, and life-long friendships on graduation." (Wehman, Schall, Carr, Targett, West & Cifu, 2014, p. 32) Using the triad of accessibility, funding, and quality is a useful tool, however these aspects are all interrelated, and when one aspect of the triad is affected the other two are also affected. These students are an available market that has many talents to contribute to the postsecondary education sector and society. This author concludes that increasing the persistence, retention, and graduation rates for ASD students provides society with well-educated, employable, and productive contributors. All members of society should have the opportunity to be supported in achieving their potential. Making the initial investments in the ASD community will decrease the need for long term social service funding. This population has valuable contributions to make to the academic arena. By honing their talents and focusing on their interest, these individuals will excel in the global market and assist in supporting and developing their societies.

The paper reports on the experienced educator perspective regarding human-to-human connection in distance education. The research questions aimed to fill gaps in the existing research literature, to investigate the role of the educator, to discover how learning and subject content are affected by contextual factors, to find out if it enhances the sense of togetherness (immediacy and intimacy). The Informed Grounded Theory and the Community of Inquiry model provided a scaffolding framework for designing interview questions and analyzing findings. The outcome of the analysis formulated a new theory called tele-proximity, which gives an explanation of how presences could work in synchronicity. The findings may help educators gain insight into how to use Synchronous Video Communication (SVC) and lead future research to dig deeper into the field of synchronicity and the importance of audiovisual cues.

To support students in an introductory organic chemistry course, scaffolding in the form of weekly Learning Task Inventories (LTIs) were introduced. LTIs are chapter-by-chapter lists of detailed learning tasks students are expected to master during the course. This paper describes efforts to effectively implement LTIs, the effect of differing implementations of LTIs on students' final exam grades and students' reactions to the use of LTIs.

In recognition that student academic misconduct is a complex issue that requires a holistic and institutional approach, this case study explores the impact of an intervention strategy adopted by the Faculty of Applied Health Sciences (comprised of approximately 80 faculty and an average of 3,240 undergraduate students) at Brock University, St. Catharines, Ontario. In 2006, spearheaded by the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies, a Faculty-wide academic integrity strategic plan was designed and implemented. The plan identified 4 principles (collaboration, education, assessment, and monitoring and detection) and recommended 17 initiatives. This case study examines the impact of theses initiatives through an analysis of survey data and incidences of student misconduct cases adjudicated between 2005 and 2012 (with 2006 as the point of intervention). Data was coded and analyzed using the Welch's t-test. Results indicated that the intervention strategy led to a significant reduction in the frequency of self reported at risk behavior and the number of academic misconduct cases. This paper will report on these findings and identify the strategies that helped effect a positive change in the culture of academic integrity.

Critical reflection is a highly valued and widely applied learning approach in higher education. There are many benefits associated with engaging in critical reflection, and it is often integrated into the design of graduate level courses on university teaching as a life-long learning strategy to help ensure that learners build their capacity as critical reflective teaching practitioners. Despite its broad application and learning benefits, students often find the process of engaging in critical reflection inherently challenging. This paper explores the challenge associated with incorporating critical reflection into a graduate course on University Teaching at the University of Guelph. Strategies for effectively incorporating critical reflection are presented, based largely on Arsonson's (2011) framework for teaching critical reflection and the outcomes of a workshop offered at the 2013 STLHE Conference. The strategies discussed have multidisciplinary relevance, and can be broadly applied to improve how critical reflection is incorporated into post-secondary courses.

Literature on teacher education and encounters with race highlight some of the difficulties that teacher candidates face when they confront their own racialized subjectivities. However, many of these projects focus exclusively on Whiteness studies, explicating how White teacher candidates come to witness their own racialized Whiteness in relation to their epistemological understandings of the world. In this paper, I diverge from this pattern of thought, exploring a subset of the tenets of critical race theory, that of silences and exclusions, pervading my own teaching in a primary/junior social studies methods class and exploring how these structured my lessons. Specifically, I look at how counternarratives, critiques against liberalism, and multiculturalism and encounters with racialized and colonial supremacy were involved in my pedagogical strategies. I conclude by suggesting that although these methods may seem daunting for the primary/junior classroom, they can provide valuable insights for teacher candidate orientations to their own pedagogies.

As an oral culture, Aboriginal ways of knowing and learning come through practice and practical application first, rather than through theory or text. For Aboriginal students, the Western methodological approach to learning theory first, poses a counterintuitive near insurmountable roadblock, particularly in science. This paper presents the results of two successful pilot course offerings of an introductory chemistry course in a First Nations' Transition Program; a course that engaged Aboriginal students in a creative, hands-on, practical way. The medicine wheel, in the context of the four seasons (spring, summer, autumn, and winter), is used as the frame to teach chemistry concepts from an Aboriginal cultural lens and beginning with hands-on methodology to establish context and develop experience before bridging to Western theory.

One day, over four centuries ago, Daniele Barbaro, a Venetian nobleman, tried an interesting experiment (Upton & Upton, 1980). He decided to use a convex lens from a farsighted man's spectacles to expand the viewing power of his camera obscura. To his delight, "the lens projected images much superior to those previously supplied by the simple pinhole camera" (p. 52). Much more recently, a high school art teacher encouraged her second period second year art students, to use the human eye like a camera, to expand their own visual fields by reading poetry with the suspended pigments of watercolour lights--a trompe l'oeil for the mind. Presented in this paper is a specific poetic illustration of one graduate student's visual investigations, prompted by an assignment from the course.

With an increasing volume of health information online, it becomes critical for consumers to improve their search and evaluation skills to retrieve reliable information. The Patient Information Aid (PIA) program is aimed to facilitate information seeking, potentially leading to positive outcomes of online consumer health information and the reduction of negative outcomes. This program consists of an educational website based on findings from a systematic literature review and a qualitative research. By teaching information evaluation skills at-the-point-of-search, the general objective of the PIA website is to improve users' e-health information literacy. Adopting user-centered design methods, we ran two focus groups with users having various literacy levels. We applied usability heuristics and information architecture strategies to design the PIA website, and developed "personas" and task scenarios to inform the wireframing. In this paper, we share our experience and insights on designing an educational information literacy program, which can be useful for information professionals working in all areas.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between student motivation and technology in the implementation of problem-based learning (PBL) in a technologically enhanced active learning classroom (ALC). Design/methodology/approach: PBL was implemented in an undergraduate course in human osteology (n=49) at a large Canadian University. Numerous activities using the ALC technology were conducted to engage students in self-directed active learning. Students wrote critical self-reflections at the beginning of the course and with each PBL report. They completed a survey at the end of the course using a Likert scale that included written comments on their motivation toward different uses of technology. Findings: Students generally had high motivation toward PBL at the end of the course. Their evaluation of the technology to support PBL was dependent on the activity. Students (88 percent) appreciated the use of an overhead camera to visualize anatomical elements, and short problem-solving exercises using the whiteboard but they negatively evaluated the real-time projection of PBL sessions through a discussion board (52 percent). Almost half of the class (43 percent) felt that technology was a hindrance to their learning process in PBL. Originality/value: This study demonstrates the complex relationship between student motivation toward active learning, the learning environment, and technology. Instructors and students influence the learning environment through their conceptions of effective teaching. According to this framework, technology should be implemented not only according to the teaching method, but consider teaching conceptions and the learning environment.

This paper provides an overview of a collaborative model with which to equip educators with the tools to apply and embed simulated person (SP) methodology in their teaching. Our aim is to expand opportunities to foster student success through simulation by embedding the training of simulators and faculty within undergraduate education. The development of this model supports the application of SP methodology within higher education and involves a) developing an applied elective course for undergraduate theatre students that will provide them with the opportunity to learn simulation methodology and to develop skills that will prepare them to work in the field of simulation as SPs, b) delivering workshops to educate faculty to work with and effectively utilize SPs as a pedagogical approach for teaching undergraduate students, and c) using fundamental principles of experiential learning to provide educators, SPs, and students with opportunities to work collaboratively across disciplines.

This paper details the visual responses created by a group of preservice teachers reading a series of contemporary graphic novels about adolescence. Visual response is here understood as an interpretive methodology of transmediation, informed by theorists of multimodal literacies as well as particular forms of psychoanalytic inquiry related to creative symbolization. Over the course of 5 months, six readers collaboratively interpreted four novels, each of which took a unique glance at the emotional and developmental challenges of adolescence: Tamaki and Tamaki's "This One Summer," Barry's "My Perfect Life," DeForge's "Big Kids," and Yang's "American Born Chinese." Responding in visual form, readers were able to reacquaint themselves with the emotional value of adolescence, a value that is often unavailable to strictly linguistic modes of expression.

Innovative literacy teaching and learning approaches have proved that multiliteracies enables teachers to work with culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students. However, few studies have shed light on examining Chinese teachers' understanding and practices of multiliteracies in Canada. To respond to this challenge, this qualitative case study aims to understand how Chinese teachers who pursued multiliteracies graduate studies perceive and implement multiliteracies in teaching young CLD children Chinese literacy in Canada. We investigated narratives of two Chinese teachers to provide useful insights into their lived experiences of multiliteracies for Chinese literacy teaching. A constant comparison approach was adopted to analyze three data sources through narrative analysis: interviews, reflective writings, and curriculum materials. Findings suggest that these teachers actively appropriated affordances of multiliteracies for Chinese literacy teaching in Canada drawing upon graduate courses in multiliteracies. The paper concludes with the pertaining implications to highlight the importance of teacher professional development.

When writing an assignment, most students start by searching for information online, which they integrate in their writing and conclude by producing a bibliography for the sources used. They use their informational, writing and referencing skills to do this as well as refer to their plagiarism knowledge to make sure their text is exempt from plagiarism. In this paper, we examined which skills and knowledge students feel the need to further develop in university to prevent plagiarism in their assignments. Professors were also questioned as to their perceptions of their students' skills development during their pre-university studies. Questionnaires were administered in six Quebec Universities to students (n = 1170) and professors (n = 279). Results show that students feel the need for more training while professors expect students to have already mastered the skills and knowledge to prevent plagiarism. Recommendations are made on how to implement better training for students through a program approach.

The purpose of this paper is to examine cultural effects on interactions within a Canadian MBA programme delivered in Iran. The analysis helps illuminate some of the important cultural differences between the countries and their importance for international education. The study also illustrates how single cause explanations often provide simplistic interpretations of culturally influenced behaviours. Results indicate that underlying cultural differences create issues for teaching and learning, but that their impact is subtle and complex.

The recent passing of legislation decriminalizing medically assisted suicide was a landmark in Canadian history. Since the law's passage, an average of four Canadians per day have chosen to die using medical assistance. With Canadians embracing this option of death, we argue that there will be moments in Canadian schools when this topic will be brought into the classrooms. In this paper, we outline how children view death both emotionally and conceptually, as well as how teachers can discuss death in their classrooms. The purpose is to provide a brief explanation of the law, an expiation of how children view death, and a framework for how teachers may be prepared to broach the topic when raised in their classrooms.

This paper addresses a niche in studies on immersion programmes for English as second language learners. While studies on the impact of the experience of studying abroad are replete with reports about the enhancement of participants' language proficiency or intercultural skills, the present study investigates the types of language and culture strategies used by a group of student teachers on an overseas immersion programme by coding their interview responses and documenting the types of strategies reported. It also traces changes in the participants' perceptions of their strategy use before, during and after studying abroad. The findings show that while participants reported using speaking strategies and listening strategies much more than other language strategies, only a narrow range of both strategy groups are reported. Similar findings are found in their use of culture strategies. Different changes in strategy use before, during and after the immersion are reported. The paper interprets the findings. Both short-term and long-term pedagogic implications for strategy development on study-abroad programmes are proposed.

Research-intensive universities around the world are increasingly drawing upon leading practitioners in professional fields as adjunct faculty to deliver high quality student learning experiences in diverse undergraduate and graduate program contexts. To support effective professional development in these contexts, many universities have developed flexible and responsive initiatives in order to meet the specific needs and circumstances of adjunct teaching faculty. However, very little has been documented about these initiatives. This paper is a reflective examination of the development and impact of strategic professional development initiatives for field practitioners in the Faculties of Education and Dentistry at The University of British Columbia (UBC), Canada. Our experiences suggest that professional development programs designed to meet the specific needs and circumstances of adjunct teaching faculty can enhance scholarly approaches to university teaching and learning practices. Specifically, strategically led, situated and flexible communities of practice (e.g., mentoring, post-teaching reflective debriefs, blended and distance learning professional development opportunities) were critical supports for engaging adjunct teaching faculty in research-informed and inquiry-based pedagogical methods (e.g., learning-centered assessment practices, peer review).

Self-regulated learners manage their thoughts, emotions, and behaviours, and their social and contextual environments to reach their learning goals. Research shows that student teachers can learn to teach in ways that promote students' development of SRL. It has also been shown that there is a relationship between teachers' own SRL and their ability to develop self-regulation in students. This study examined student teachers' developing concepts of SRL as they learned about this complex set of skills, behaviours, and beliefs through both coursework and field observations. This paper investigates the relationship between self-reported SRL of these teachers and their understanding of SRL behaviours and SRL-supportive teaching practices. Participants' self-reported learning strategy scores predicted their performance on an SRL classroom observation assignment while motivation scores were unrelated. These results contribute to our growing knowledge of how to support student teachers in their learning of teaching strategies that support the development of SRL.

This paper studies a community-based Indigenous teacher education program in Northwestern Ontario in Canada. This program, the result of a partnership between the Northern Nishnawbe Education Council and Brock University, was designed to prepare Nishnawbe Aski to teach through a Two Worlds Orientation: unique Indigenous understandings combined with Western educational principles. The program characteristics and structure are outlined. The strengths of the program, as identified by teacher candidates and teacher educators, are explored. Challenges to teacher candidate success are also considered.

This article makes an argument for an economic geographical pedagogy that is post-disciplinary, emphasizing non-hierarchical, student-based knowledge, disciplinary interconnectedness, epistemological plurality, and material embodiedness and embeddedness. Key to this conception of economic geographical pedagogy are recent writings of Timothy Mitchell and especially Donna Haraway. The paper discusses several projects and exercises employed by the author in an economic geography course to exemplify, and to persuade students of the merits of, a post-disciplinary approach to the subject.

Many environmental educators and philosophers have identified anthropocentrism and the socially constructed separation between humans and "the more-than-human world" (Abram, 1996) as primary root causes of current ecological devastation. This separation is embedded in Western schooling content and structures and is often unintentionally reinscribed by educational content and practices. This paper describes three ways I work to disrupt this artificial separation between humans and the non-human "nature" within a graduate level course: 1) attention to discourses; 2) offering counternarratives; and 3) provision of experiences that support ways of knowing and being introduced in course readings and class lectures.

The increase in global migration to Canada has changed the demographic profile of students in Canadian higher education. Colleges and universities are becoming increasingly diverse by race, ethnicity, and culture. At the same time, the process of teaching and learning is on the cusp of transformation with technology providing the tools to alter the way post-secondary educators teach and how students learn. What pedagogical approaches have emerged to maximize educational benefit from these twin forces of migration and technology? This paper explores the use of one method that has attracted global interest: digital storytelling. Specifically, the article considers student-generated digital stories as a means to authenticate the multiple perspectives of learners and create space for their diverse voices in post-secondary education. A list of resources is included.

This paper shares insights into how university faculty understand and integrate internationalization and global citizenship ideas into their pedagogical practices. The study worked with a broad base of faculty to come to an understanding of what it means for scholarship to embrace internationalization in teaching and then to explore ways of sharing that knowledge through pedagogical practices in the classroom. The results demonstrate faculty commitments to global citizenship, willingness to share teaching strategies, and ethical concerns about internationalization. Through this project the researchers hope to inform capacity to understand, develop, and deliver teaching strategies that enhance values associated with global citizenship.

Offered between 2006 and 2009 and graduating 21 Inuit candidates, the Nunavut Master of Education program was a collaborative effort made to address the erosion of Inuit leadership in the K-12 school system after the creation of Nunavut, Canada's newest territory, in 1999. Delivered to a large extent in short, intensive, face-to-face courses, the program also made extensive use of online supports. This paper outlines the design challenges--geographical, technological, pedagogical, and cultural--that faced the development and delivery of the online portion of the program. It highlights the intersection of the design decisions with the decolonizing principles that framed the program as a whole, the various and varying roles played by the online environment over the course of the program, and the program's contribution to student success. (Contains 1 table and 5 figures.)

Engaging students while providing them with the necessary linguistic and critical skills as a foundation for further exploration are the principle challenges for those of us who teach disciplinary introductory courses. My own response to this challenge has been to develop and implement what I refer to as the "pedagogy of play." Informed by the work of bell hooks, G.H. Mead, and J. Huizinga, the pedagogy of play is grounded in the notion that an orientation toward "play" and "playfulness" provides the framework for developing curricula and teaching practices that emphasize learning as process rather than outcome. This paper outlines the principles of a pedagogy of play and describes one of the quintessential examples of this approach:"Lego Day(s)," a strategy I developed to provide students with a concrete context in which the abstract concepts "culture" and "society" could come to life.

The rise of the research intensive university has led some critics to argue that teaching has been discounted in favour of research, and thus the academy has "failed...their undergraduate populations" (Boyer Commission, 1998, p .5). This paper examines instructor perceptions of inquiry at an institution with a significant history of providing inquiry learning opportunities to undergraduate students. Inquiry learning is typically seen as a pedagogical approach, both a method and a process, delivered in small class settings. Qualitative data were collected through interviews (n=16) with instructors who used inquiry in their teaching to elicit instructor perceptions of inquiry teaching. Content analysis was performed on the interviews to extract themes. Results suggest that instructors approached their inquiry teaching differently--some adopting an intentional and some an unintentional approach. There was general consensus that teaching and learning academic skills is valuable, inquiry instructors are facilitators, technology has only a modest place in the inquiry classroom, and larger classes inhibit inquiry. Responses were mixed about the importance of stand-alone inquiry courses. Teaching such courses appears to change the instructor's perspective about inquiry. (Contains 4 footnotes.)

This paper defines and operationalizes definitions of good teaching, scholarly teaching and the scholarship of teaching and learning in order to measure characteristics of these definitions amongst undergraduate instructors at McMaster University. A total of 2496 instructors, including all part-time instructors, were surveyed in 2007. A total of 339 surveys were returned. Indices of good teaching, scholarly teaching and scholarship of teaching and learning were developed. The data illustrated a strong correlation between good teaching and scholarly teaching and between scholarly teaching and scholarship of teaching and learning. The perceived value placed upon teaching varied across the different Faculties. New instructors and those engaged in scholarly teaching and scholarship of teaching and learning perceived teaching to be more valued than their peers. (Contains 7 tables, 1 figure and 6 footnotes.)

Health care researchers and practitioners are increasingly asked to work across disciplines (or, in keeping with the conference theme, "Between the Tides") to deal with complex health issues. But working with individuals from different fields is more challenging than it sounds. Working across disciplines can result in tension and miscommunications. Furthermore, to explore interactions among disciplines requires breaking down disciplinary boundaries and creating a common framework and language to define, analyze, and develop new approaches. This paper explores the benefits and challenges of teaching transdisciplinarity in a discipline-centred world, including a description of the journey of one post-graduate research training program as it strives to help student researchers break down disciplinary borders and develop a common framework to approach a particular health issue--in this case, the problem of substance misuse and addictions.

How do you know what students in your course "took away" with them? Why not ask? Through a learning portfolio assignment, I invited students to show: how they met the course objectives; connections they made to other courses as well as aspects of their lives; and their views and perspectives about the course material and processes. They were asked to include tangible evidence, examples, connections, and reflections from all class sessions, discussions, and other assignments. They were also required to express themselves through a creative variety of styles and formats, including a concept map and a world map. What were their reactions to the assignment? Many noted that it encouraged them to think critically and that it was a fun way to show the links between the course and their own lives. Might you like to use or adapt some or all parts of my learning portfolio assignment in a course (any discipline) that you teach? Through reading this paper and trying the described activities, you will have completed your own mini-learning portfolio and explored methods of assessment.

This paper explores the relationship between electronic social networks, teaching, and learning. Previous studies have shown a strong positive correlation between student engagement and learning. By extending this work to engage instructors and add an electronic component, our study shows possible teaching improvement as well. In particular, enthusiastic teachers and learners have a more positive attitude toward their work and studies.

One of the "tidal dilemmas" addressed by the 2009 Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education conference concerned physical vs. virtual learning environments. Videoconference teaching is an alternative to traditional classroom instruction and a subset of the broader field of distance education. Based on my recent experiences with videoconference teaching, this paper explores the application of videoconference teaching to graduate students in educational administration, with reference to the nature of both the subject matter and the learners.

The mainstream curriculum is extremely efficient in furthering a neoliberal multicultural discourse, what is described as the dance, dress, and dining, or heroes and holidays, or Taco Tuesday approaches to diversity. Given this, doing anything else is an ongoing challenge. This paper shares details of a government-university-school collaboration in which the authors were participants in a national project to digitize ethnic group archives and create lesson plans based from those archives. The authors share insights and challenges about what worked for resisting the "zoo" approach.

Metaphors are pervasive and accessible thinking and learning machines that have the ability to disrupt and transform our patterns of thought. While much has been written about metaphor as a pedagogical tool, the potential learning opportunity that arises when students co-create metaphor within the classroom as a way to make sense and meaning of the curriculum and co-discover knowledge is not discussed. Through the example of six graduate students co-creating a metaphor of capacity-development-as-fire, this critical reflective paper describes an emergent learner-driven process involved in utilizing metaphor as a learning activity to promote deeper and long-lasting student learning and knowledge acquisition.