Talking Stick - July/August 2008 - (Page 45)

FAculty involvEmEnt A living-learning environment on campus extends the learning process beyond the confines of a class period into every aspect of a student’s campus life, including the residence hall. Faculty involvement outside the traditional classroom setting is crucial to the success of such environments in creating learning experiences. It might be intentional, highly formal involvement that includes interdisciplinary discussions and planning, or it might be less formal and intentional. Regardless of the program design, it is critical to bring faculty on board and to get them to buy into the program’s purpose and value. Existing faculty development opportunities, such as teaching workshops connected with first-year seminars and learning communities, provide a solid foundation for building such support. talking stick may 08.pdf 5/14/08 Faculty working in, with, and through the residence halls can provide general academic support to students in a variety of ways. At St. Lawrence University in Canton, New York, the faculty teach a first-year course, and the students in each section live in the same general area of a residence hall. In addition, the faculty member teaching that particular section serves as the academic advisor for those students. The faculty meet regularly with the residence staff to discuss course content as well as individual student progress. Faculty can also lead study sessions, offer workshops on important life skills (examples include time management and effective study skills), and share special topics they care about such as hobbies, a specific academic subject, or a significant campus issue. Faculty who are teaching first-year courses, especially those taken by a large number of students, can have office hours 8:02:25 PM in the halls, either on a regular basis or during examination times. Faculty regularly offer programming in the residence halls at institutions as diverse as Prairie View A&M, the University of Charleston, Southeast Missouri State University in Cape Girardeau, and Iowa Wesleyan College in Mount Pleasant as a way of connecting student life and academic life. The Faculty Fellows program at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina, links a faculty member with a residence hall floor, giving the students and the faculty member an opportunity to interact through special programming. The less formal atmosphere of the residence hall can lead to students and faculty sharing ideas as co-learners. The students see the faculty as friendly, concerned, and committed. This, in turn, can energize and inspire students to do their academic best. C M Y CM MY CY CMY K (2008) (2008) http://www.erezlife.com http://www.erezlife.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Talking Stick - July/August 2008

Talking Stick - July/August 2008 Contents Online Now Vision Just In Your ACUHO-I Transitions Res Life Facilities Business Calendar When Politics Come to Your Town Support System Conversations First Takes Reporting Out New Members Snapshot

Talking Stick - July/August 2008

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.