Conference on Higher Education Pedagogy to be held Feb. 18-19
Virginia Tech's Conference on Higher Education Pedagogy will feature two days of practice, research, and poster sessions showcasing the best pedagogical practice and research in higher education today.
The conference, held on Feb. 18-19 at The Inn at Virginia Tech and Skelton Conference Center, offers a forum to demonstrate effective instructional practice and disseminate the latest research aimed at improving the quality of higher education.
Peter Doolittle, director of Virginia Tech’s Center for Instructional Development and Educational Research, said, “The conference in 2009 demonstrated the tremendous benefit of bringing practitioners and researchers together for the exchange of pedagogical ideas across departments and colleges. This year we’ve expanded to two days and have invited colleagues from other colleges and universities to participate.”
Over 90 research, practice, and poster sessions will address a broad range of topics that cut across departments and disciplines, including problem-based and case-based teaching and learning, teaching controversial issues, use of ePortfolios and rubrics, online teaching and learning, service learning, and student peer evaluation. Thursday’s poster session and mobile lunch provides a venue for more informal dialog and collaborative exchanges.
Presenters include faculty from Virginia Tech, Old Dominion University, Virginia Commonwealth University, Radford University, Longwood University, University of North Carolina, North Carolina State, and the University of Maryland. A complete schedule can be found online.
Two keynote speakers highlight the conference. Lisa R. Lattuca, senior research associate for the Center for the Study of Higher Education will open the conference addressing interdisciplinarity in academic settings and strategies for promoting interdisciplinary competence. Mary Taylor Huber, senior scholar at the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, will close the conference with a discussion of the teaching commons, a conceptual space in which communities of educators committed to inquiry and innovation come together to exchange ideas about teaching and learning, and use them to meet the challenges of educating students for personal, professional, and civic life.
Over 400 attendees are expected to gather for this exchange of ideas and experiences. The 2009 conference was described by participants as "reinvigorating to be with other individuals who care about and pursue innovative teaching approaches" and an "introduction to new tools that I am excited about trying."
The conference is free, however, registration is highly encouraged. Participants may register online.
The Conference on Higher Education Pedagogy is hosted by Virginia Tech’s Center for Instructional Development and Educational Research with support from the Office of the Vice President and Dean of Undergraduate Education as well as event and general sponsors.
