Teaching & Learning Sessions

Thursday, April 2, 2020 – Rolllin G. Johnson Jr., Kensington Strickland Group, LLC
12:30 PM – 1:45 PM

Description: 
Experiential Learning, Civic Engagement, and Community-based Learning have been receiving increased attention within higher education. Tangentially, institutions of higher education are increasingly being asked: What is you public purpose? How do you impact the world around you?

Whether through refined broader impact expectations of NSF grants, more nuanced standards of accrediting bodies, or new state-wide efforts such as SCHEV’s recent civic engagement requirement for VA universities and colleges, our institutions are being ask how are they actively living out their missions.

Internally, faculty, university leaders, and students are seeking to experience deeper and more connected engaged learning opportunities at their institutions. Community-based learning and community engaged (participatory) research are positioned to be salient components to addressing these questions while fostering engaged learning mosaics within our institutions.

The purpose of the session is to engage participants who are exploring, planning, and/or seeking to deliver community-based learning opportunities as a part of their pedagogical portfolios. We also welcome those who advocate for and support faculty in delivering community-based learning on campus. During this session we will explore:
• common challenges facing community-based learning courses
• best practices for creating the framework for substantive pedagogical experiences
• creating and managing authentic reciprocal community partnerships
• crafting a compelling case for this work in your department and on campus

Biography:
Rollin G. Johnson Jr. brings over 15 years of experience in community-based learning, program management, community relations, and strategic planning. His career and work have focused on deepening the impact of people, colleges and universities, and programmatic operations within communities.
Rollin holds a M.B.A. from The Scott L. Carmona College of Business at Saginaw Valley State University. He has led civic engagement efforts at Johns Hopkins University, University of Michigan, Saginaw Valley State, Coe College and state-wide in Virginia. Currently, Rollin is Co-founder and Co-principal of the Kensington Strickland Group, LLC which focuses on enhancing university/college, nonprofit, and public-sector social impacts and organizational effectiveness.

Tuesday, February 25, 2020 -Dr. Arlene McCain, McCain Whole Health Care and Bridgewater College
12:30 PM – 1:45 PM

Description
Dr. Arlene McCain, founder of McCain Whole Health Care, a family medicine and integrative health coaching practice, will be presenting:

1. an introduction to mindfulness
2. share research regarding the effects of mindfulness practices on mental health, particularly in the classroom setting, and
3. explore strategies for introducing mindfulness in the classroom setting

Biography 
Dr. Arlene McCain serves as Medical Director for Bridgewater College M.S. Athletic Training program, as well as Adjunct Professor for the JMU P.A. program. She is a board-certified family physician and offers comprehensive medical care for all ages. Dr. McCain received the Resident Teacher of the Year award, and served as Chief Resident from 2009-2010.

Friday, January 31, 2020 – Dr. John Almarode, James Madison Unversity (A BC Alum)
12:00 PM – 1:15 PM

Description
Is this going to be on the test? Why do we have to know this? Is this for a grade? Can you tell me what I need to do to get this right? These questions haunt each and every teacher on the receiving end of such inquiry.  Over the past fifteen years, the science of learning has provided many insights into how we think and learn. Furthermore, these promising principles provide a starting point for faculty to build the capacity in learners to see themselves as their own teachers – demonstrating the persistence, engagement, and concentration to be lifelong learners. This midday conversation will look at targeted and specific strategies for finding the right level of rigor, striking the ideal balance between surface and deep learning, and identifying the perfect level of challenge for each learner.

Biography
Dr. John Almarode has worked with schools, classrooms, and teachers all over the world. He has presented locally, nationally, and internationally on the application of the science of learning to the classroom, school, and home environments. He has worked with hundreds of school districts and thousands of teachers in Australia, Canada, England, Saudi Arabia, Scotland, South Korea, and Thailand.

In addition to devoting his time to PreK – 12 schools and classrooms, he is an Associate Professor in the Department of Early, Elementary, and Reading Education and Director of the Content Teaching Academy. In 2015, John was awarded the inaugural Sarah Mill Luck Endowed Professorship. He continues to work with pre‑service teachers and actively pursues his research interests including the science of learning, the design, and measurement of classroom environments that promote student engagement and learning.
The work of John and his colleagues have been presented to the United States Congress, Virginia Senate, at the United States Department of Education as well as the Office of Science and Technology Policy at The White House.

John began his career in Augusta County, Virginia, teaching mathematics and science to a wide‑range of students. Since then, John has authored multiple articles, reports, book chapters, and nine books including Captivate, Activate, and Invigorate the Student Brain in Science and Math, Grades 6 – 12 (Corwin Press, 2013), From Snorkelers to Scuba Divers (Corwin Press, 2018), both with Ann Miller, and Visible Learning for Science, with Doug Fisher, Nancy Frey, and John Hattie (Corwin Press, 2018). He recently finished a book focusing on clarity, Clarity for Learning, with Kara Vandas (Corwin Press, 2019), as well as Teaching Mathematics in the Visible Learning Classroom, Grades 6 – 8, and Teaching Mathematics in the Visible Learning Classroom, Grades 9 – 12 both with Doug Fisher, Joseph Assof, Sara Moore, Nancy Frey, and John Hattie (Corwin, 2019), all with Corwin Press. Teaching Mathematics in the Visible Learning Classroom, Grades K – 2 and Teaching Mathematics in the Visible Learning Classroom, Grades 3 – 5 with the same author team plus Kateri Thunder hit the shelves in March of 2019. He is also the past co-editor of the Teacher Educator’s Journal.

Most recently, John and his colleagues have developed a new framework for developing, implementing, and sustaining professional learning communities: PLC+. Focusing on sustained change in teacher practice, the PLC+ framework builds capacity within teacher-led teams to maximize student learning. The books, PLC+ Better Decisions and Greater Impact by Design and The PLC+ Playbook, Grades K – 12, will support this work in schools and classrooms.

However, what really sustains John, and his greatest accomplishment is his family. John lives in Waynesboro, Virginia with his wife Danielle, a fellow educator, their two children, Tessa and Jackson, and Labrador retrievers, Angel, Forest, and Bella.

Wednesday, January 22, 2020  – Dr. Eric Pappas, James Madison University
12:00 PM – 1:15 PM

Description:
Competency-based education is focused on students being able to demonstrate what they have learned, whether it be skills, behaviors, or personal habits.  While higher education supports the intellectual development of students, the individual habits, routines, and lifestyles that foster a behavioral foundation for effective thinking and productive living remain largely unexplored.  Many academic approaches to cognitive as well as individual behavioral change suggest a product (or goal) for intentional change, but they do not foster the intentional and directed cognitive processes and behavioral changes that foster productive thinking and well-being.  This presentation will address a variety of competency-based instructional strategies as well as competency-based assessment.  Of particular interest is Cognitive Behavioral Change (not the clinical approach of cognitive behavioral therapy), an instructional methodology supporting behavioral change.

Participants are encouraged to participate in the session, offer their own methodologies, and ask questions.

Biography:
Eric Pappas is a professor in the School of Integrated Sciences at James Madison University where he teaches and conducts research in social psychology.  Prior to arriving at JMU in 2003, Dr. Pappas taught literature and then engineering at Virginia Tech since 1986.  Currently, he conducts research into behavioral change resulting from creating cognitive dissonance between students’ values and behaviors.  He received his graduate degrees at Virginia Tech.