A New Conference Proposal

**Update - This has been approved and we will be doing it in November!

Here is a proposal Grant and I are submitting for a national conference in Salt Lake City later this year. This would be an all-day workshop for teachers and administrators. I would love to get feedback on it:

The Curriculum Congruence Model (A Reification Exercise)

Abstract:

In a world where teachers have literally millions of resources at their fingertips and less and less premium is placed on strictly “basal based” curricula, it is imperative that teachers have a stronger pedagogical foundation than ever before. This workshop will focus on two key components: The Four Responsibilities of a Teacher and The Three Responsibilities of a Student. Each model is a research-based continuum designed to produce consistent and congruent curricula and to operationalize many of the intuitive or instinctual processes to which not all teachers or students have direct access. The workshop is highly interactive with a great deal of resources, activities, and opportunities for engagement. In many ways, this workshop could be viewed as a more practical and condensed version of a compulsory Philosophy/Psychology of Education course many of us took before we had the requisite experience to truly appreciate the content.

Description:

This workshop contains the core elements the presenter(s) have utilized as the foundation for their Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTaL) trainings conducted domestically and internationally for the United Nations and the U.S. State Department. The development of these two models has unfolded over thirty years in U.S. universities and community colleges, spanning coursework ranging from developmental education to graduate studies. More than 1,000 students and teachers have participated in the development of these models.

There is a very old tenet in education that any curriculum applied consistently will produce academic gain; likewise, it could also be said that any well-designed curriculum applied inconsistently will produce diminished academic gain. In simple terms, it is the job of the teacher to create a consistent and congruent curriculum; to apply it appropriately; and finally, to help their students learn to navigate it successfully. This workshop consists of two sessions: the first session, The Four Responsibilities of a Teacher, deals with the creation, application, and evaluation of a curriculum. The second session, The Three Responsibilities of a Student, outlines the cognitive and behavioral processes students need to apply in order to be successful at any educational level.

The Four Responsibilities of a Teacher – The first component of this interactive session helps teachers examine their core philosophical beliefs about human nature, learning, and ethical responsibilities. The second component focuses on the nature of instruction that would logically follow. The third component examines the appropriate forms of assessment that would complement the two previous stages. Finally, the last component centers on the evaluation of the entire process (i.e. the “interpretive light”) where teachers work to examine their beliefs and attitudes throughout the whole continuum and to identify possible points of incongruence.

Learning Outcomes: 1) Participants will examine and articulate their core philosophic beliefs; 2) Participants will identify instructional techniques that are congruent with their philosophical beliefs; 3) Participants will identify appropriate assessment activities that are congruent with their instructional choices; and 4) Participants will evaluate the entire process, including instances where the continuum failed, possibly even challenging some of their original philosophic beliefs.

The Three Responsibilities of a Student – As simple as it seems, students have three basic cognitive tasks they must attend to when engaged in an academic setting: 1) Learn the material; 2) Manage the material in their memory; and 3) Prove that they have learned the material. This session leads teachers through the three areas in regards to the activities they do in the classroom. Once teachers understand the difference between learning, memory management, and proving, they are poised to help students develop a metacognitive awareness of the same dynamics! In essence, teachers (intuitive learners) learn to operationalize, or reify, their intuition.

Learning Outcomes: 1) Participants will distinguish between activities at various levels in the model; 2) Participants will develop the language and associated resources to guide their students through the model; and 3) Participants will draw comparisons between their activities as teachers and the activities of their students.

Bio (1): Michael Morsches

Michael has more than thirty years in higher education and international development. He has taught graduate courses in education and has led hundreds of workshops and presentations on teacher development in the U.S., Africa, Europe, and the Middle East. Michael has facilitated SoTaL (the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning) workshops for teachers in developing countries and has presented related concepts at national and international conferences. Currently, he serves as Dean of Learning Enrichment and College Readiness at Moraine Valley Community College, where he oversees ESL, ABE, Developmental Education, Tutoring, and Basic Literacy.

Bio (2): Grant Matthews

Grant has worked and taught at community colleges in Oregon and Illinois for over 16 years in both academic programs and student services. Much of his work focuses on student development inside and outside of the classroom and how programs can improve the connections between student services and classroom learning through shared learning outcomes and consistency. Currently, Grant serves as Dean of The Center for Learning Advancement and Interim Dean for Health Professions at Lane Community College, where he oversees ABSE, Developmental Education, Career Pathways, Nursing and Allied Health, and Physical Education.

Presentation Track: Theoretical Models of Student Retention and Success, Retention and Special Populations

Presentation Type: Full Day Presentation

Audience Level: Any

Targeted Audience: Teachers, Administrators