Category Archives: Write6x6

Write6x6

Two P’s of Inspiration

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     Sometimes I have to self-start  inspiration. These moments come at the end of semesters, week four of the semester, and other times of life that are filled with stress. I remember last semester being so busy and looking for something to inspire me. 

sage


     By late November, I had not planted my front, winter flowers yet and wondered why without coming up with a reason. I planted every year–why not this year?  So one weekend I went to the nursery, picked out some flowers–bright red petunias, lobelia, two rose bushes, dahlias–and potted them all in one day. I felt instantly better. I really did. I repeated it the weekend after with the backyard. Planting and nurturing those plants drew me outside, away from the distractions that don’t really feed me, to a quiet place where I can think and plan. Even though I was busy with work, I put it all aside to have that meditative time. Those couple of weekends, with my hands in the soil (gloves are for suckers), really fed me.

petunias


     And now those plantings are still bringing me some joy. And when I sit outside and watch them grow, my mind clears and is open to new ideas. When I periodically get my hands busy with pruning the dead from the living, I prune the old from my mind to make room for some new thinking.



 
Write6x6

Lessons Along the Way

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“It took me nine years to get my Bachelor’s degree….needless to say I had a really good time in college.”    I tell this to every class I teach, and yes, it is true.  Interestingly this statement allows me to connect to many students for a variety of reasons:
• The dropped out/returning student
• The partying student
• The ‘I don’t know what I want to major in” student
• The I can only take 1 or 2 classes a semester because I am working multiple jobs while going to school student
• The student who is in a new relationship and instead of attending evening classes, spends time with their new ‘interest’
• The student with the crummy schedule because they didn’t register early
• And of course the “I’m never going to graduate” feeling student

I think I made just about every mistake I could make while going to school that prohibited me from graduating in a more timely fashion…

“Animal House” Toga Party

The “It took me nine years….” statement also allows me to talk about one of my biggest regrets from college, which strangely isn’t one of the reasons listed above.   My ‘If I could do it all over again, the next time I would…. “(drum-roll please)….. “realize college, in itself, has many valuable life lessons.”

That lesson that took me nine years to understand has strongly impacted how I help students learn today.

Going to college isn’t just about learning textbook content, there is so much more!   College is about learning how to do a presentation (dress professionally, strong visuals), not just the content of the presentation. It’s about learning how to write an email (complete sentences and a comprehensive message), not just emailing someone to ask a question.   It’s about how to work in groups (when to compromise, when to pick up the slack, when to allow someone else to lead), not just creating a final project.   And it’s about making lasting friendships with someone who has similar interests, not just exchanging contact information with the people who are in a group that you were assigned to.

These lessons are just a few of many; I’m sure if we all collaborated and generated a list of ‘what I learned in college that was not in a textbook’ our list would be quite lengthy.

Of course I help students learn about Pavlov and his salivating dogs, the stage model of memory, Schizophrenia and many other psychology topics.   And of course I am concerned about their level of comprehension on the curriculum that has been outlined for the class.   However, I  am also  concerned about those valuable non-textbook lessons that make college life more meaningful and memorable and our adult life a little easier.  So I help them learn those as well.

BTW-Ten years after introducing myself to a girl I was sitting next to in my cognitive psychology class during my last semester at UNM, she was the maid-of-honor in my wedding.

 
Write6x6

Late Work Policy—By Instructor Approval Only

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Friday

11:30am
Settle into a chair in the CTLE and begin brainstorming ideas for blog post

11:45am
Voice frustration over writer’s block

11:46am
Check faculty email

11:48am
Type 3 sentences

11:48:58am
Delete 3 sentences

11:52am
Check faculty email (again)

12:00pm
Reread suggested prompt and finally settle in with a general idea

12:35pm
Share progress with colleagues only to find my ideas didn’t transfer

12:45pm
Revise blog post based on feedback from colleagues

1:10pm
Grab ice cream reward for last week’s blog and eat it straight from the carton

1:45pm
Publish blog post

3:00pm
Read blog post…decide I hate it…wrestle with how to remedy the situation…decide that maybe it’s not as bad as I think it is

4:30pm
Read blog post again…nope…still hate it.

6:30pm
Read blog post again….my God, this is the worst thing I have ever written…how many people have read this already?…I can’t leave this out in the open!!

6:32pm
Delete blog post

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This whole process—procrastination, frustration, distraction, creation, submission— is similar to what some of my students go through when submitting their major writing assignments. Life happens, and before they know it, a paper is due. In a span of about 2 hours, they compose a frantic essay and submit it to Canvas—and then spend the next few hours (or days) stressing over just how bad it is.

But unlike me…they can’t just log back in, delete the submission, and start over.

They don’t get to experience the relief I felt when, upon clicking the aptly-named “trash” button, my subpar words disappeared. And maybe there’s a lesson for me here…

I’m not sure what it is yet, but it’s there. Maybe it’s a lesson in empathy…or expectations…and finding the balance between the two.

If I am going to be honest, I’m not 100% happy with this post either…but I do feel better about it than the one I submitted Friday afternoon; and I think I realize that this feeling is all my students want as well. They just want to feel ok about the work they submit, and maybe I could be more conscious of that fact and not deny them that feeling all in the name of a syllabus policy on late work.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not throwing out the policy. It’s important to have expectations and standards and consequences. It’s even more important to learn how to accept expectations and standards and consequences, especially when we have no other excuse than procrastination and lack of planning.

Me? I’m imposing my own late penalty for this blog. So if anyone who posted during week 2 wants to lay claim to my ice cream for the week, it’s all yours. You earned it!

 

 
Write6x6

Distribution Problem

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When teaching a pre-algebra course the distribution property for the first time, I had unique incident occur in my classroom. The students had been working to develop an understanding of the distribution property using whole numbers.

For example; 4(3+2) can be simplified by adding 3 and 2 together and then multiplying by 4 giving the result of 20. However, you can also use the distribution property to simplify the expression 4(3+2) by first distributing (multiplying the 4 to both the 3 and the 2) this simplifies to 12+8, which simplifies to 20.

After the students had been using the distribution property for the class hour, we came back together to try some more complex expressions. I asked the question which property should we use to simplify the expression. There was an overeager student that really wanted to answer the question. I went ahead and called of the student. I was so surprised to hear that the property we should use if the DISTRIBATION property. Needless to say I lost my students to a fit of laughter.

Distribation Property: when a student tries to answer a question too fast.

 
Adjunct Faculty, Administration, GCC Students, Student Engagement, Student Services, student success, Write6x6

Week 2: The “One Thing” and its Powerful Sway

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Welcome back to Week 2 of “The One Thing You can do to Raise Enrollment,” a six week “how-to” series.

Did you complete your Week 1 homework assignment? If not, take a moment to search for your name on gccaz.edu, click on your employee bio page, and make a note of any information that uniquely reflects your own personal humanity.

When it comes to class enrollment, do you leave it up to chance? You have a lot to offer, and are a passionate educator. But students don’t know this about you ahead of time. What if you could influence students before you even meet them?

Studies show that when it comes to choice, a good reputation is king. To influence a student’s choice in which class (or college) they enroll, we must increase perceived reputation. Reputation is a fragile thing, and a student’s initial experience plays a critical role in the decision-making process.

This brings us to the old adage, “You’ll never get a second chance to make a great first impression.” A first impression is critical to reputation, and Step Two is all about taking control of the timing of that first good impression.

Timing, they say, is everything.

So, the “one thing” you can do to influence the student decision-making process, raise enrollment, and raise GCC’s reputation in an increasingly crowded marketplace is to teach others what to think about you before you even meet.

I am going to show you how to not just make a good first impression, but a viscerally good first impression, using your employee bio page. During the decision making process, students check out who is teaching a class – why? They are looking for clues  for who to choose. The purpose of this blog series is for you learn how to make it easy for student to choose you, and thereby GCC. When you are done with your bio page, students who view it will “get” you. I have done random checks of comparable faculty at NAU, ASU, UofA and GCC. The sad fact is that very few instructors have posted any information on their bio page beyond name, email, and office hours.

As a result, students turn to sites such as RateMyProfessors.com to help them make a decision. The problem with these ratings sites is that other people are defining your reputation for you – and influencing reader choice. Remember, reputation is a fragile thing.

Consider the following:

“I grew up in a poor family, and I identify with the struggles some of my students have.” – Dr. Carlos Nunez

When I first read that quote, a picture of who this man is immediately formed in my mind: Genuine. Sincere. Empathetic. Successful. When I met Dr. Nunez, I quickly became aware that he was all this and more. He was courageous in and out of the classroom, and we all miss him, bless his soul.

Quotes – we love them. We share them, post them, tattoo them, frame them and hang them on our walls. We love quotes because quotes resonate with something deep inside of us. Quotes inspire us. Quotes give us hope. Quotes make us laugh at ourselves and life. Quotes make us cry with empathy. Quotes rally us together.

But the greatest power of a quote is that it connects us to each other’s humanity.

Your homework is to write a compelling introductory statement that reflects on a particular aspect of your personal journey through college. Here are a few examples to get your juices going:

  • “Juggling work, family, and college was hard, but I wanted a better life.” (inspires resilience).
  • “The first time I looked through a microscope I saw my future.” – (conveys vision)
  • “I didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life. College helped me find my passion.” – (inspires hope)

Experiment writing statements that uniquely reflect your own personal humanity.

“It’s not up to chance, it’s up to you.” ― Rob Liano, Author and Business Speaker

Come back for Week 3, Step 3: The “One Thing” and It’s Not Bragging.

 

 
Write6x6

Sabbatical: Supporting Data-Driven Decision Making With Educational Data Analytics Technologies

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I’m happy to say that I was awarded a sabbatical for the 2018-2019 academic year. The fancy title of this post will be the focus of my sabbatical. It should be a grand ole dandy time, and I’m looking forward to spending my time doing and learning something new. If you’d like to read more about my sabbatical, I posted a few key points below.

Abstract: Learning analytics is a new and developing field. There is a growing literature base around learning analytics and its impact on student grades and retention. Although learning analytics is still at a relatively early stage of development, there is convincing evidence from early adopters that learning analytics will help to improve outcomes. It only makes sense that Maricopa would want to tap into this new field. Learning analytics has been defined as “the measurement, collection, analysis and reporting of data about learners and their contexts, for purposes of understanding and optimizing learning and the environments in which it occurs” (Sampson, 2016). Maricopa with its use of Canvas LMS and SIS has an overabundance of data that goes unused. Becoming a data analysis authority will enable me, as a full-time faculty member, to help support data driven decision making at GCC using education data analytics technologies, which includes Canvas Data Portal.

Goal(s) – what the sabbatical will accomplish. A vital aspect of data driven decision making is Data Literacy for Teachers, which is the primary goal of this sabbatical, to empower myself to use data in the decision-making process, so that I can help support data driven decision-making at GCC using education data analytics technologies. Data Literacy for Teachers “comprises the competence set (knowledge, skills, and attitudes) required to identify, collect, analyze, interpret, and act upon Educational Data from different sources so as to support improvement of the teaching, learning and assessment process” (Sampson, 2016). Our LMS, Canvas, produces a lot of data that presently is not being used. By becoming a data analysis authority and more knowledgeable in Canvas Data, I will be able to help support other faculty and administrators with data driven decision making at GCC using these data analytics from Canvas.

Objectives – steps to achieve the goal(s). The objectives for this project mostly follow the competency set (knowledge, skills, and attitudes) required for Data Literacy for Teachers. They are required to identify, collect, analyze, interpret, and act upon Educational Data from different sources. There are several steps involved in this project.

  • Identify and learn about big data, analytics and data analysis.
  • Identify and learn about Canvas Learning Analytics.
  • Learn about Canvas Data Portal.
  • Learn how to collect the data from Canvas into various tools for analysis.
  • Learn Data Analysis to discover what the right questions to ask will be.
  • Learn how to interpret learning data to predict and influence outcomes (act upon).
  • Assess and identify which BI Tools schools are leveraging to analyze data.
  • Create/Find a collection of example queries that use Canvas Hosted Data to answer questions; queries that could be very useful to solve problems at GCC (act upon).
  • Create awareness guides and a workshop for faculty on Canvas Learning Analytics.
  • Create a resource guide for district CTL’s on Canvas Data Portal.
  • Get Canvas Data Portal turned on in Maricopa.

The only objective I’m worried about not accomplishing is the last. It can be a challenge at time getting things with in Maricopa accomplished, but I’m up for the fight.

 
Write6x6

Facepalm of the Week

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When I was a kid, my mom worked in “word processing” at a law firm during their transition from electric typewriters to computers. She often worked 14- to 16-hour days as the system administrator for the new computers. This left her exhausted, so she would spend a whole Saturday in make-up sleep. In my view, computers took my mom away from me. I hated them, and I vowed never to use them. My life being unending irony, I became a web and graphic designer, and later an Instructional Media Developer, who uses computers for every single aspect of my work.

What kept my mom at work for 16-hour days – the WANG.

One of the reasons for my transformation from computer hater to present-day technophile was the world wide web. My heart still expands into a balloon made of light at the thought of all the people of the world being able to share their experiences, find friendship across the world, communicate instantly, and build an amazing collective repository of knowledge – available, searchable by everyone else with a connection. I have friends all over the world I never could have met without the Internet.

I taught myself HTML (hypertext markup language) in 1994. I did this by using a Microsoft product called FrontPage to visually layout web pages. Then I opened the resulting HTML files in a text editor and picked apart how they worked. When I didn’t understand something, I turned to web searches for answers. I soon realized I needed to unlearn everything FrontPage taught me about HTML.

The ability to learn, unlearn, and relearn is critical.

Visual tools like FrontPage created multi-column layouts by inserting text content and images into a table. But the HTML markup for a table was intended to display tabular data. Using a table as a means to create a page layout destroyed the ability of people using assistive technology to access the information on the page. Using tables for layout said “the Internet is for everyone but you” to people who are blind. I couldn’t bear that thought. So I became a web accessibility advocate in 1996, and I’ve kept up with advances in making web content accessible ever since.

Accessibility is more and more on my mind these days, as higher education institutions are finally beginning to take web accessibility seriously. I’ve been presenting web accessibility workshops for faculty and staff since being hired at GCC. I’m currently helping a small team develop accessibility training for Maricopa faculty. I’ll present on web content accessibility at an Ask a Librarian workshop later this month. And yet I still have my own “duh” moments over my own failure of empathy for people with disabilities.

Illustration of a woman with her palm to her frowning face.For example, I gave a workshop earlier this week, and one of my attendees arrived in a wheelchair. I hadn’t set up the room to accommodate a person using a wheelchair. I quickly moved a chair out of the way to fix the problem. The situation made me realize the CTLE didn’t have a way for a person to request an accommodation when registering for one of our workshops. So I didn’t know in advance how to best prepare the room to provide an equally independent experience for all my participants. I felt bad, and I indulged in a hearty facepalm after my workshop ended. I’m disappointed in myself that I hadn’t naturally extended my awareness of online accessibility to an awareness of physical accessibility in a space I meant to be welcoming and inclusive.

How have I not thought to do this before now? Me, who’s been urging everyone who will listen to keep accessibility in mind for over 20 years? I realize I am still making my own transition from a designing for the web, to designing an in-person experience.

To address the CTLE’s workshop accommodation issue, I contacted Disability Resources & Services to see if there is any sort of standard accessibility/accommodation wording for event registrations. They told me since it’s for employees I’d need to talk to Human Resources. This made me laugh at humanity’s general tendency to compartmentalize.

I turned instead to my original source of help for accessibility: the Internet. I found some great resources on room set up and other event considerations.  I’ve adjusted the CTLE’s registration form so that participants can tell us about any accommodation that will help them fully participate in our events. I’ve already received a request for free pizza, and I expect I’ll receive a lot of other interesting suggestions for the sake of humor. And that’s okay because we’re doing the right thing by inviting any registrant to privately tell the CTLE what they need to have the best experience with us.

I feel like my facepalm moment this week is one more illustration of how inclusiveness is a practice. Empathy is a practice. I want to be part of a campus culture that is inclusive by design. That means I personally need to step outside myself as often as I can and imagine the experiences and needs of the people I collaborate with and the people I serve. And I need to encourage my colleagues to share their own needs and experiences so that my ability to imagine is multiplied by each of my relationships. With imagination and empathy, we can create a campus where everyone can learn, grow, and thrive.

 
Write6x6

See me. See You. See Possibility.


My cultural reflection/inspirational story is connected to Dr. Velvie Green, the former President of Glendale Community College. I met her when I was a student at GCC. I was hanging around the Communication Department and Jim Reed, the Department Chair, was giving our newly appointed President a tour of the department. Jim came around the corner and said that he wanted to introduce me to her. When she came around the corner I saw an African American woman standing in front of me. I had a moment of pause. I looked at this stranger and felt like I was looking at my future physical self. I couldn’t tell you what I was expecting, but I could definitely tell you that I was not expecting her.

I recognized something in her that connected with me on a level I had never recognized before. I recognized possibility in something that I would have never considered without this encounter, the possibility that I could become a college president myself. I saw a cultural reflection of myself on campus and it inspired me. For years I pursued becoming a college president. My pursuit brought me to teaching and I fell in love with it and changed course.

That day motivates and inspires me daily. It really showcases the importance of cultural reflection on college campuses. That day is one of the things that motivates me to bring excellence into everything that I do, because someone out there may see themselves in me through my work. They may see me and they may be encouraged to be excellent in their career. They may see me and see the possibility of a career path that they would have never considered for themselves. They look at me and think to themselves if she can do it, I can do it too.

I encourage others to think of themselves in the same way. All it takes is someone seeing themselves represented, right in front of them to inspire and motivate them to greatness.  Each encounter that you have on this campus could make or break someone’s hopes, dreams, or desires. Be mindful of the fact that you matter to someone and that they are paying attention to what you say and do.

I don’t know Dr. Velvie Green personally. She doesn’t know the impact she has had on me. I hope that she will come across this one day, so she can read about the difference she has made in my life. I am thankful and grateful that I had the opportunity to meet her. It changed my life.

 
Write6x6

Time is My Opportunity

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When I first agreed to participate in Write 6×6 I thought this would be a piece of cake….I could easily write one blog a week. I could write about Canvas, campus resources, assessment; the list went on and on. Then I learned the posts were to be personal and demonstrate self-reflection, and that is when I realized I was in trouble. I didn’t have time to put ‘deep thought’ into what inspired me; I am a busy person with a lot of things to do!

I read the suggested topics (note to self-“read the details prior to agreeing to participate”). and I thought I had an idea… then it was gone.  So I reread the suggested topics, and this time, absolutely nothing came to me.

I went home and got irritated at myself because I had not started my post yet, and I promised myself I would get serious and get focused first thing the next morning. Ten hours later I was sitting at my desk with my hands on my keyboard, but no keys were being punched.

Desperate for inspiration I took the time to peruse the posts of my fellow colleagues. I laughed and remarked how clever many of them were; I nodded my head in silent agreement with several shared thoughts, and I had a couple of ‘ah-huh’ moments.  Yet I still had nothing.  My ‘inside-my-head’ comments were a string of curse words, and I was getting desperate…my panic meter was approaching the red zone!

But then, I reminded myself of some advice that I recently started giving to my students: relax, be patient, don’t view this assignment as a task, but as an opportunity.

This approach/advice is new to me and has been difficult to incorporate into my own life; I love my to-do lists, and I love checking off those tasks! However since my mom moved to Arizona, the importance of my check lists has changed.

My mom has had multiple sclerosis for more than 30 years. While she is determined to live independently, she is physically limited and relies on me for help. For example once a month a Walmart trip is needed; my tasks are to drive, to lift heavy items into the cart, to retrieve items that are out of her reach, to load the car and to transport everything from the car back to her kitchen. This excursion typically takes three hours.

Now I could easily take her shopping list and zip through the busy Walmart aisles and probably have everything purchased and unloaded at her house in less than 45 minutes. However I would have missed an opportunity.  From these monthly trips to Walmart, I have learned that while the task of shopping is a necessity, I can choose to turn that necessity into an opportunity, an opportunity to spend more time with my mom.  So while writing five more 6×6 blogs will remain on my to-do list, I am going to embrace the opportunity to read the other posts and to enjoy writing my own.