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Learning Communities

Anti-Racist Pedagogy Discussion Group

This annual series is designed to help participants form a community of practice focused on improving anti-racist pedagogy. Together, we will:

  • Explore the intersection between anti-racist teaching and anti-racist pedagogy. 

  • Examine how our assumptions and inherent practices influence classroom practices. 

  • Discuss ways we can adjust those practices to be more inclusive and effective. 

  • Design course content that will be presented at an Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) showcase, EASE, in May.

    • CHECK OUT THE RECORDINGS FROM THE 2021 EASE SHOWCASE

 

The purpose of this series is not to give mandates and protocols, but to share experiences and create a space to collaborate with peers and to support personal and professional growth. 

Registration for this workgroup will begin each September. If you have questions regarding this event, please contact Eileen Camfield at ecamfield@ucmerced.edu or Samantha Ocena at socena@ucmerced.edu. 

 

Discipline-Based Education Research (DBER) Discussion Group 

Are you interested in studying and/or conducting education research, then you have found the right group. DBER is an open, collaborative, and friendly environment for people to read recent articles, present findings, proposals, or trends in education research, or find other people who want to collaborate and work together on research projects. 

 

Goal of DBER

The goal of this interdisciplinary discussion group and seminar series is to foster cross-disciplinary partnerships in education research and engage in current education research findings and initiatives. 

Details

DBER meets every week for an hour and a half and the format is ever-evolving based on participant interests and needs. If you are interested in getting connected with DBER, please contact Jackie Shay at jshay@ucmerced.edu. Want to participate in Fall 2021? Please fill out our When2Meet to get involved! 

Summer 2021 Schedule: Thursdays from 1:00 pm – 2:30 pm (contact Jackie for Zoom link)

 

Faculty Learning Communities

A professional or faculty learning community (PLC/FLC) is a group made up of instructors who meet regularly to offer one another support, share expertise, and work collaboratively to improve teaching skills and the academic performance of students. The interdisciplinary nature of these collaborative groups has been particularly helpful in helping instructors to expand their pedagogical practices when applying new methodological approaches, modalities, and technologies (Terry, Zafonte, & Elliot, 2018). All faculty are invited to take a deeper dive into how learning works and the implications for teaching diverse students and disciplines at UC Merced.

Participants will collectively develop a deeper understanding of the learning principles and support members of the community as they test out new instructional strategies and practices to facilitate learning in the classroom.

The Seven Principles are:  

  1. Students' prior knowledge can help or hinder learning.
  2. How students organize knowledge influences how they learn and apply what they know.
  3. Students' motivation determines, directs, and sustains what they do.
  4. To develop mastery, students must acquire component skills, practice integrating them, and know when to apply what they have learned.
  5. Goal-directed practice coupled with targeted feedback enhances the quality of student learning.
  6. Student's current level of development interacts with the social, emotional, and intellectual climate of the course to impact learning.
  7. To become self-directed learners, students must learn to monitor and adjust their approaches to learning (Ambrose, et al., 2010).

 To get connected with a UC Merced CoP, please contact Dr. Cathy Pohan at cpohan@ucmerced.edu. 

References

Terry, Laura, Maria Zafonte, and Sherman Elliott. "Interdisciplinary Professional Learning Communities: Support for Faculty Teaching Blended Learning." International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education 30.3 (2018): 402-411.

Graduate Pedagogy Association (GPA) 

GPA’s mission is to assist graduate TAs and educators, both novice and experienced, with their pedagogical development by providing simple, yet effective, resources to aid their teaching practices. We accomplish this goal by utilizing a multivector approach to skill development. For more information contact GPA's president. You can find updated information through UC Merced's CatLife GPA Page. 

 

 

 

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