Today's Tiny Teaching Story is by Lauri Mattenson. Lauri is a Lecturer with UCLA Writing programs.   Holding Zoom Space She’s sitting in her empty bathtub, laptop propped up on a stack of towels, because there’s no room anywhere else in the apartment. He’s in his garage using his neighbor’s wifi. She’s on academic probation and never submitted a draft. They are using a laptop with seven missing keys and a cracked screen. He hasn’t had a good night’s sleep in two weeks. She’s taking care of three little sisters during class. He’s the only Covid-negative person in a household of six. They are working 25 hours a week while going to school full-time. We’re weary, but we’re all here.    Submit your own Tiny Teaching Story to tinyteachingstories@macmillan.com! See the Tiny Teaching Stories Launch for submission details and guidelines. ... View more

Today's Tiny Teaching Story is by Jennifer Smith Daniel, Director of Writing Center and Writing Across the Curriculum Programs at Queens University of Charlotte.   Restoring Your Tongue... Earlier in the Center, you’d encouraged a first-year with her assignment. Then sat in the comfy red chair of my office as essential oils penetrated our masks to cry out your anger at the professor who commented on your writing with his elitist, prescriptive perspective. He never learned the story of how your family stopped speaking Spanish at home because you didn’t get registered for preschool after migrating from Mexico. Later, I stood in the front our class as another white women teacher and offered you Anzaldúa. You found restoration in the new word - Chicana.   Submit your own Tiny Teaching Story to tinyteachingstories@macmillan.com! See the Tiny Teaching Stories Launch for submission details and guidelines. ... View more

Today's Tiny Teaching Story is by Pamela Childers, a lifelong secondary, undergraduate and graduate school educator, writer, editor, and consultant. She enjoys collaborating with colleagues and students.   My First Teacher Letitia, my Welsh Grammie, took me at three to the circus in Philadelphia, while Mother worked at a switchboard and Dad was still overseas after the war. She read me poetry and prose long after I had started teaching English and recited Shakespeare for the Princeton Women’s Club in her late seventies, an age I am close to reaching. When I last visited her in the dementia ward of the nursing home, she looked up at me from her wrinkled pillow, smiled and said, “I raised you, didn’t I?” I nodded, and we both shared an unforgotten memory.   Submit your own Tiny Teaching Story to tinyteachingstories@macmillan.com! See the Tiny Teaching Stories Launch for submission details and guidelines. ... View more

Today's Tiny Teaching Story is by Dr. Meridith Leo. Leo teaches courses in Composition and Rhetoric as well as Creative Non-Fiction at Suffolk County Community College’s Ammerman Campus. Dr. Leo earned her Ph.D. at St. John’s University where she focused on narratives of difference and belonging along with culturally responsive literacy narratives. Her research at St. John’s University led to work in Co-Requisite (ALP) coursework which is detailed in her dissertation “Integrating Emerging Writers into the Post-Remedial College: A Consideration of Accelerated Learning Programs.”   No Sleep, Only Teach Ding. It's 3 am. I should be sleeping but I'm not. That's the 3rd email from Katia. Ding. There goes another email. It's Jeremiah this time. Do I get up? The emails will just keep coming; they're awake. I guess it's time to start the day. Computer on. Login complete. Virtual meeting links sent. Black tiles slowly fade to Katia and Jeremiah. "Good morning. What's going on?" My voice is cracking as it wakes. Simultaneously I hear: "We need help with our essays!" Through a yawn, I manage to say, "Okay let's see what we can work through. Don't worry. We'll figure it out."     Submit your own Tiny Teaching Story to tinyteachingstories@macmillan.com! See the Tiny Teaching Stories Launch for submission details and guidelines. ... View more

Today's Tiny Teaching Story is by Carmen Misé, Assistant Professor of English and Communications at Miami Dade College - North Campus. Misé is an insatiable reader and greatly enjoys film. Her favorite genre is horror (mystery, suspense, thrillers, sci-fi). She writes non-fiction and poetry, enjoys being outdoors and spending time with family, friends, and her dog Hamlet. Misé just became a first-time mom. She believes in aliens, and yes, the Earth is round.   Hello! As I logged into Blackboard Collaborate Ultra, using the recommended browser, and triple checking my Internet connection, I instantly dreaded the sea of silence in our “classroom.” The silhouettes of “users.” No faces, no voices. I felt like that one time I shouted, “Hello!,” as I stood at the Grand Canyon's South Rim. My salutation echoed through time and space, but I did not know its end destination or if anyone heard me. That day would be different. We laughed and talked about our favorite local restaurants. I met everyone's cat. We didn't cover thesis statements, but I was OK with that.   Submit your own Tiny Teaching Story to tinyteachingstories@macmillan.com! See the Tiny Teaching Stories Launch for submission details and guidelines.  ... View more

Today's Tiny Teaching Story is by Dr. Nancy E. Wilson, Associate Professor and Directory of Lower Division Studies at Texas State University. Epiphanies Asked to share an epiphany, Misha mentions that while watching a YouTube video of a KKK grand wizard, she recognized that they had something in common: as an African American, she also wishes to preserve her racial heritage. When the class expresses alarm, Misha clarifies that she knows about the KKK’s hatred of African Americans; however, during quarantine she resolved to stop condemning and canceling others. Doing so made her feel superior but left her ignorant. She suggested that as a class we “run toward” uncomfortable topics and try to understand why people think what they think. Every class needs a Misha.   Submit your own Tiny Teaching Story to tinyteachingstories@macmillan.com! See the Tiny Teaching Stories Launch for submission details and guidelines. ... View more

Today's Tiny Teaching Story is by Jenna Morton-Aiken, Assistant Professor at the Massachusetts Maritime Academy.   Voices Day 1: Welcome to Technical Writing. I cultivate tone and words to establish authority with young, mostly male, maritime cadets. Call me Dr. Their body language shouts, Stop trying, your class doesn’t matter to me. Weeks 1-3: Deploy resistance with strong voice and applied expertise as Covid-19’s shadow grows. Maybe this doesn’t suck, white gaps between double-spaced submissions whisper. Week 4: Campus abandoned, we’re all silenced. Week 5+: I’m here, I write with memes and raw emotions, my voice virtually transformed. Theirs, too—Help me, they say. I’m drowning, they say. Your words matter to me, they say. We write.   Submit your own Tiny Teaching Story to tinyteachingstories@macmillan.com! See the Tiny Teaching Stories Launch for submission details and guidelines. ... View more

Today's Tiny Teaching Story is by Dr. Chris M. Anson. Chris is a Distinguished University Professor at North Carolina State University, where he is also the Director of the Campus Writing & Speaking Program.   Boot Camps and Boot Straps Four years after I taught him in a federally-funded pre-college summer program for inner-city kids who some high school teacher saw a spark in—otherwise doomed never to go to college—we crossed paths on the campus just before graduation. "Cool Chris!" he yelled—the name the students had given me in that summer writing course. "Tyrone! What's up?" We high-fived. "I got into Harvard Law!" he said with a broad smile, "and you helped, man!" A story of triumph—his, and my small piece of it. But what's wrong with us that so many live on the margins . . . and of those, with such slim chances?   Submit your own Tiny Teaching Story to tinyteachingstories@macmillan.com! See the Tiny Teaching Stories Launch for submission details and guidelines. ... View more

The following interview with Haleh Azimi and Elsbeth Mantler, Co-directors of the Community College of Baltimore County’s Accelerated Learning Program, focuses on professional development for faculty teaching corequisite composition and was conducted via email in December of 2021. This is the fourth of four parts. David Starkey: What are some of the biggest differences between the faculty development you do at CCBC and the development you do for external audiences? Haleh Azimi: Whether we are addressing faculty development for CCBC or external audiences, we always conduct some sort of needs assessment to collect information about what is needed. Who is participating in the session? Where do they see a gap or a need for information or a conversation? This applies to external colleges that may be brand new to acceleration or internal, specific workshops, such as the remote synchronous workshop mentioned earlier. We always try to ground our workshops in data and research, while also providing practical and tangible examples for practitioners to use. DS: And what do you teach that practitioners really seem to love? HA: It’s really exciting to work with external practitioners when we are sharing our ready-to-use thematic units, which are essentially our fully developed teaching materials. These materials include all scaffolded activities, including readings, writing prompts, and any alternative activities. Sharing this with other practitioners helps them conceptualize the way we approach our students through our curriculum. In our program, we are fortunate enough to have a bank of ready-to-use culturally relevant thematic teaching units for faculty to use. This is especially helpful for adjunct faculty who may not have the time to create a brand new curriculum every semester. DS: I imagine that you’re also working with multiple stakeholders when you’re doing professional development. HA: We typically host faculty and those in student development, such as advisors and the registrar. Deans and others in senior-level leadership positions, such as provosts, also attend external consultations. We think it is important that all stakeholders have a working knowledge of the program—especially when they are new to institutionalizing ALP. DS: If you had unlimited resources, what would your ideal faculty professional development program for ALP look like? Elsbeth Mantler: What would be really cool is if we had an opportunity to provide a true learning community for faculty involved with ALP so that we could dig deep, be collaborative, and share ideas. Teaching can be isolating, especially during the pandemic. There is also a lot of emotional stress that can come with working so closely with students especially since we really emphasize addressing non-cognitive needs. In my courses, especially since the pandemic, I always start classes with a brief and informal check-in with my students. For example, prior to finals week, I’ll say something like, “Hi, everyone! This could be a stressful time as you prepare for exams in your other classes. Is there anything that is causing you to not be able to do your schoolwork? You can share openly or grab me privately if you would like….” I say things like this and frontload these sorts of comments at the start of each class to build community with my students. They share their comments with their classmates, and I create an environment where students know they can come to me for support. I also work to build in student voices during these informal check-ins. My students have a wealth of knowledge and experiences. The peer-to-peer input is often more useful than what I can offer to them. I want students to know that they can connect with me and with each other. Sometimes students share very difficult issues with me, such as homelessness, food insecurity, and mental health struggles. DS: Students’ struggles can also weigh heavily on their instructors. EM: Faculty really need each other to share the burden of issues like these sometimes. Building a strong community that meets often would help faculty feel connected. HA: Elsbeth and I also would love to see an increase in monetary support for ALP adjunct faculty involvement with PD sessions. ALP is truly a unique program. The configuration and concentrated effort to meet students’ non-cognitive needs are areas that require significant professional development, and we want to support adjunct faculty for their time and commitment. We both started as adjunct faculty working multiple jobs. We understand how thinly stretched people are, so allocating a significant amount of resources toward adjunct faculty involvement in PD is something we both find important.   DS: Wow, I learned a lot! Thanks to both of you for taking time out of your extremely busy schedules to talk with me. HA: Thanks so much for the opportunity to share! EM: I've enjoyed the conversation! Thanks. ... View more

Today's Tiny Teaching Story is by Jennifer Gray, Professor of English and Director of the Writing Center at the College of Coastal Georgia.   Video Conference The student requested a video conference on Easter Sunday at 4pm. I said yes, because it was what he selected. I grumbled privately, as it was the only day without something work-related scheduled. I left celebrations at my neighbor’s house, much to our dismay, and logged in, expecting a blank black box. Instead, there he was, with a smile, a Zoom wave, and his Walmart uniform and nametag, calling from the front seat of his car on his break during his shift on a holiday. We talked about our assignment. He revised his citing practices, and I revised my negativities.     Submit your own Tiny Teaching Story to tinyteachingstories@macmillan.com! See the Tiny Teaching Stories Launch for submission details and guidelines. ... View more

Today's Tiny Teaching Story is by Lisa Lebduska, Professor of English and Director of College Writing at Wheaton College.   Observations As a grad student adjuncting at 3 schools, I always ran late. One rainy day, I flew into my office, changed into dry shoes, then rushed to class. When class ended, a student was waiting for me. "We just wanted you to know," she said, "that we noticed you are wearing two different shoes." I looked with horror from the beige wedge on my left, to the black pump on my right. "Why didn't anyone say anything?" "We thought it was another one of those exercises where you were trying to see if we were paying attention to details… We were."   Submit your own Tiny Teaching Story to tinyteachingstories@macmillan.com! See the Tiny Teaching Stories Launch for submission details and guidelines. ... View more

The following interview with Haleh Azimi and Elsbeth Mantler, Co-directors of the Community College of Baltimore County’s Accelerated Learning Program, focuses on professional development for faculty teaching corequisite composition and was conducted via email in December of 2021. This is the third of four parts. David Starkey: Have you had strong institutional support for the professional development you are doing at CCBC? How has that manifested itself? Haleh Azimi: Yes, CCBC has offered institutional support for ALP professional development. The office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (PRE) at CCBC studies ALP pass and retention rates, and this data collection helps inform our decision-making about professional development needs. Our PD options vary depending on faculty needs. For example, we have an onboarding 2-day workshop for those brand new to teaching ALP. Our dean provides stipends for adjunct faculty who require this training. We also have embedded mentors for those new to teaching ALP, and this is something that we are very proud of. DS: You also have a Certified ALP Instructor Workshop Series. What happens there? HA: We provide ongoing professional development opportunities each academic year. There are specific requirements pertaining to this internal certificate program. Once an adjunct faculty member meets this requirement, they are given a stipend. Full-time faculty who meet the requirements of the Certified ALP Instructor Workshop Series can use this as equivalency credits for our internal promotion process. Finally, CCBC has always supported efforts to host our national conference, The Conference on Acceleration in Developmental Education (CADE). The institution provides the college’s resources to ensure a successful national conference. Elsbeth Mantler: Another thing that demonstrates CCBC’s commitment to ALP is the fact that our roles even exist as co-directors. If we did not have the embedded co-directorship then the program would not be as robust as it is. DS: You certainly have a commendable arrangement going on at CCBC. What recommendations would you give to faculty whose administrations aren’t currently willing, or able, to pay for faculty development? EM: I would really urge faculty to apply for grants. There are often institutional grants that are internal. When doing so, faculty should tie in the institution’s strategic plan and how funding for co-requisite professional development directly enhances the goals of the strategic plan. Likewise, I think that people developing PD opportunities should also apply for external funding. Often, when we are hired for external consultations, institutions inform us that they have secured funding through external organizations in order to fund our visits. DS: Good ideas! Any other suggestions? EM: You can make internal incentives that are free that help encourage people to participate in professional development opportunities – in other words, be creative in how you approach professional development. Are there ways to incentivize faculty involvement in PD that are not tied to stipends? For example, could you offer prioritized staffing preferences? If there are steps or levels for promotion, could this contribute to their promotion? Or, can facilitators provide tangible attendance documentation, such as a certificate for faculty to document on their CVs? Institutional support is absolutely critical in ensuring ALP’s success, but there are alternatives when there are creative faculty problem-solving ways to address professional development. ... View more

Today's Tiny Teaching Story is by Sonia Feder-Lewis, a Professor at Saint Mary's University of Minnesota's Graduate School of Education.   Awakening It was a dream course assignment: a small upper-level honors class in Women’s Literature. A reward near the end of graduate school. Eleven students: 10 women and one brave young man, newly separated from the Army for carefully undisclosed reasons. The women treated him gently as we read Woolf, Morrison, Erdrich, Chopin. “The Awakening is the greatest book I have ever read,” he said passionately. Two decades later, he recognizes me in a coffee shop. Without pause, he tells me the course had been his favorite. And his hardest. I do not ask why.     Submit your own Tiny Teaching Story to tinyteachingstories@macmillan.com! See the Tiny Teaching Stories Launch for submission details and guidelines. ... View more

The following interview with Haleh Azimi and Elsbeth Mantler, Co-directors of the Community College of Baltimore County’s Accelerated Learning Program, focuses on professional development for faculty teaching corequisite composition and was conducted via email in December of 2021. This is the second of four parts. David Starkey: Why is faculty professional development so important for corequisite composition instructors in particular? Elsbeth Mantler: In general, a lot of community college practitioners do not take classes in their own schooling that teach them anything about teaching. For example, a lot of English professors we have met with have backgrounds in literature or creative writing. Then, we add on the unique course structure of ALP. Many new faculty have never heard of the program, and have not received any formal training in education. I personally did not take a single education class in my past (not yet, at least!). DS: So, the lessons you’ve learned about teaching have mostly been on the job? EM: Yes, and through reading, researching, and learning from my colleagues. I really think it’s important to pay attention to what’s going on in the field. While I don’t have the formal education, Haleh and I make sure that we stay connected with research and best practices within the field. I have been attending the national Conference on Acceleration in Developmental Education (CADE) for over a decade. This conference provides an opportunity for colleagues doing this work together to present on important work in the field, and much of what’s presented includes tangible practical tools for the classroom. We also always keep up to date with other professional organizations such as the Conference on College Composition and Communications (CCCC), the Council of Writing Program Administrators (WPA), and the Community College Research Center (CCRC). We do ongoing research on Culturally Responsive Teaching and Learning (CRTL), belonging, and Integrated Reading & Writing (IRW), pandemic teaching, among many other topics. Oftentimes, when Haleh and I are conducting new faculty trainings, this is the first-time faculty are even learning about ALP, teaching College Composition or teaching Integrated Reading and Writing. These foundational professional opportunities help faculty prepare to meet student needs. Long-term, ongoing, and consistent professional development is needed to help sustain the unique structure of this program. Our longitudinal data validates ongoing successes with pass and retention rates. Much of this success is because of relevant and consistent professional development opportunities for ALP faculty at all levels. Haleh Azimi: If we are asking faculty to support the students so deeply, we need to support the faculty with ample opportunities for professional development. DS: In your minds, what constitutes a successful faculty development activity? Could you give me an example of a single activity, then discuss how it might connect with areas of professional growth that you hope to foster? EM: We offer a series of workshops that occur once a month, but what makes this series sustainable is that we choose the topics based on organic needs and conversations that arise among our colleagues. For example, at the beginning of Covid, all of our face-to-face classes turned into remote synchronous classes overnight. This was a modality that had never been offered with ALP at CCBC. Some faculty struggled with how to translate what they would do in person into this new modality. We stepped in and identified a need for professional development in this new arena. HA: Yes, everything Elsbeth just talked about regarding our various modalities and professional development is so important. The general approach to teaching ALP online is the same as teaching in-person. The online course should use backward design so that the Academic Literacy course is supporting everything done in Composition I. Low-stakes, scaffolded assignments should be present in both courses, and prompt and thoughtful feedback from the faculty member is imperative. Any way that you can encourage community in the online classroom is essential. This could mean discussion boards where everyone posts a video of themselves or synchronous drop-in office hours, or, even guest speakers to connect students to college resources. Elsbeth and I are by no means experts in all of the areas where we provide professional development. We serve as facilitators and identify others within areas that are the experts. So, as Elsbeth points out, when we transitioned to a new modality because of Covid, we helped develop PD to support ALP faculty. ... View more

Today's Tiny Teaching Story is by Pamela Childers, a lifelong secondary, undergraduate and graduate school educator, writer, editor, and consultant. She enjoys collaborating with colleagues and students.   Student Teaching “Go wash your mouth out with soap!” And he did. The 8th grader returned to our grammar lesson in progress, raised his hand, and bubbled out the next answer. In Biology class, I distributed apples and asked, “Who can identify the internal parts you just dissected?” And they all did, delighted to eat their half apples. Rushing to my senior English class to discuss the Romantic poets, I passed a student at his open locker pulling out a knife. “May I have that, please?” And he handed it to me. Things were much different in 1965, I have learned.    Submit your own Tiny Teaching Story to tinyteachingstories@macmillan.com! See the Tiny Teaching Stories Launch for submission details and guidelines.   ... View more