Writing With a Point—Part 2: The Annotated Bibliography 2.0Posted on September 15, 2014 by Richard NewtonFew things are sadder than the student who cites a work without the foggiest idea of the author’s argument or its relevance to a discourse. To help my undergraduates clarify the reading process, I have them keep an annotated bibliography of course materials and independent research. “Isn’t that a little much?” Here’s the thing. If a student is going to read something for me, I want them to at least get the point of what they’ve read….
Writing With a Point—Part 1: Calculating IntroductionsPosted on September 8, 2014 by Richard NewtonAs far as I’m concerned, STEM education is not the enemy, it’s one of our best allies. In my experience, students with STEM backgrounds have an easier time at transitioning from descriptive writing to critical writing. Their theses are clearer; their questions, more profound; their topics, beautifully honed.The difference lies in the logic undergirding the scientific method. STEM students hold that a good topic is a defined topic. They presume that a good question is an answerable question. And they maintain that a good thesis is a valid thesis. Once they perceive how all three are functions of each other, they can calculate introductions with this in mind….
Flipping the Classroom: Don’t Sweat the TechniquePosted on May 12, 2014 by Richard NewtonFor those unfamiliar, the flipped classroom reverses the conventional teach-in-class/learn-at-home approach. Instead teachers introduce content in homework lessons, and students practice the material in the classroom. In theory, this will encourage more hands-on learning when students and teachers meet together. With the help of dynamic media, students can interact with content beyond the level afforded by the traditional lecture experience.Truth be told this is not a novel idea. Math and science educators, for instance, have been implementing this for the past 20 years. Humanities professors frequently harbor anxiety over what it means for our praxis….
ACE Series Part V: A Call to ACE Critical Reasoning for the Last TimePosted on August 21, 2013 by Richard NewtonWe are at a pedagogical turning point. Once we could impress students with our powers of memorization and recall. But that day is ending. Fast thumbs and fine-tuned algorithms can replicate the same thing.Sure, you can hold onto the belief that no one lectures quite the way you do. But what will you teach when your school uploads your lectures to iTunes University?Our task is becoming less about just transmitting content. Whatever our respective domains, we are increasingly called to train students in application, access, and analysis….
ACE Series Part IV: Writing ACE Commentary, or Everything I Need to Know About Arguing I Learned from Billy Madison!Posted on August 13, 2013 by Richard NewtonMy research deals with the scriptures people use to orient their lives. This interest may have begun in adolescence. Much to the chagrin of my youth group directors, my friends and I had a wider canon than the authorized version of any denomination out there.Our central text was the Adam Sandler film, Billy Madison (dir. Tamra Davis, 1995). To us it was a cult classic to be quoted chapter and verse. This movie made those awkward teenage years some how more bearable. For every situation, there was some line from the film available for application. And for whatever reason, when I think of ACE commentary, this film clip comes to mind….