News / Tips for Teaching and Learning

Content tailored for Amarillo College faculty which explores, promotes, and supports excellence in teaching, with diverse technologies.

Volume 2, Issue 1

Welcome Back to Campus!

Welcome to the 2021-2022 academic year. We hope you had a restful and fun summer. As we make our way into this new academic year we are still dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, exploring ways to help retain our students, and loving them to successful completion or transfer. Our programming this year is designed to help you navigate your teaching this year around those situations. 

Highlights in this issue include:

1. Professional Learning Cohorts: Discover the many different professional learning options we have available to you this semester. 
2. Blackboard ER and course availability: You don't have an urgent Blackboard need but need to learn more or clear up your grade book before the end of the term, read about where you can co for help. 
3. ACES 2022: January 12, 2022, will be here before we know it, so "Save the Date." Learn more about ACES 2022 and what the Faculty Development Committee has planned.
4. Pedagogy of Real Talk - Jackie: Explore with Jackie Llewellyn how to use real talks and alternative lessons to increase retention and success in your courses.
5. Pedagogy of Real Talk - STEM: Explore with Dr. Jacob Price how to use real talks and alternative lessons to increase retention and success in your courses.
6. CTL Blog and Facebook Page: Find out about 2 new ways to get the most up-to-date CTL information available. 

We are excited to see you and the students all back on campus. We hope the start of this semester has been a successful one.

The CTL Team

Professional Learning Cohorts

Professional Learning cohorts are a great way to earn while you learn. We offer many different topics to choose from, including, Small Teaching by James Lang, Google Tools, and Extensions, intentionally designing classroom engagement lessons, and so much more. The cohorts of learning communities are a great way to explore these topics around teaching and learning with other faculty from across the campuses. This community also serves as a support system as we grow and learn together to learn each other's strengths and experiences. Find one that appeals to you and come join us. We start most cohorts on Friday, September 3 - sign up for something today!  

READ MORE >> 

Blackboard ER and course availability 

1. Blackboard ER: Once again we will have Blackboard ER. If you are needing help with your grade book, a course copy, troubleshooting, or just want to learn a new function in Blackboard come to see Richard Stephenson and CTL on Friday afternoons (9/17; 10/15; 11/12; 12/10) from 1 pm to 4 pm. There will be both an in-person option (Ware 205V) and a Zoom option (Zoom link is located in Blackboard). 
2. Blackboard Course Availability calendar:  Courses populate in Blackboard for faculty 45 days before the first day of class. We have posted the 2021-2022 calendar to help you better plan and prepare your next set of courses. The calendar is posted both on our website and on Blackboard. 

READ MORE >> 

Blackboard Course Availability 

Amarillo College Educational Summit (ACES) 2022

The Faculty development committee is hard at work in planning next year's ACES. Save the Date - January 12, 2022. We will have a day of learning and fellowship as we get ready to head into the spring semester. Please consider presenting at the conference (this link is below). If you don't want to present by yourself, get a group of 3-4 faculty members together and present together. 

At this time we are planning an in-person ACES 2022, however, as with everything during a pandemic - stay tuned to the newsletter and other announcements for the most up-to-date information. 

READ MORE >> 

Amarillo College Educational Summit – Call for Presenters - Google Forms

Pedagogy of Real Talk - Jackie

Jackie Llewellyn (Speech Communication) will lead a Pedagogy of Real Talk cohort this fall. Participants will read and work through Dr. Paul Hernandez’s book, “The Pedagogy of Real Talk” while learning about how to implement this highly effective pedagogy into the classroom. Participants will learn how to create real talks and alternative lessons based on their own life experiences in order to help students relate to them and relate to the material they are learning as well. Participants will create and implement a real talk and an alternative lesson in one of their classes.

We will have two different Pedagogy of Real Talk cohorts this fall please choose a time that works in your schedule. 

**NOTE: This cohort will now be from 12:45 - 1:45, starting on September 17.

READ MORE >> 

Pedagogy of Real Talk - STEM

Dr. Jacob Price (Biological Sciences) will lead a Pedagogy of Real Talk cohort this fall. Participants will read and work through Dr. Paul Hernandez’s book, “The Pedagogy of Real Talk” while learning about how to implement this highly effective pedagogy into the classroom. Participants will learn how to create real talks and alternative lessons based on their own life experiences in order to help students relate to them and relate to the material they are learning as well. Participants will create and implement a real talk and an alternative lesson in one of their classes.

We will have two different Pedagogy of Real Talk cohorts this fall please choose a time that works in your schedule. 

READ MORE >> 

CTL Blog/Facebook page

The CTL Corner on our website is a great place to find our blog. Each month we will focus on a specific teaching and learning theme which highlights a part of the 2025 Strategic plan. This month learn more about what inquiry is and how to implement different versions of it in your classes. Inquiry is a great way to get students to critically think and problem-solve their way through learning the content. 

Also included in the CTL Corner are Instruction on Demand videos and an archive of the newsletter. The Instruction on Demand videos are quick and easy ways to learn faculty-tested strategies for your classroom. If you would like to learn more and complete one to put up on our page email Michaela Dodson. 

Don't forget for great tips, tricks, and strategies - like us on Facebook: Amarillo College Center for Teaching and Learning

CTL Blog

READ MORE >> 

Save the Date

PLCohorts Start
Date: various start dates
Location: Various locations

Bb ER
Date: 9/17/2021
Location: Zoom link in Blackboard or in-person WARE 205V

ACES 2022
January 12, 2022
Location: TBD

Professional Learning Moving Forward - New Faculty Goosechase

Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL)

Center for Teaching and Learning (WARE) Room 205
Web Page: www.actx.edu/ctl | Email: ctl@actx.edu
Phone:  806-371-5920 

The Center for Teaching and Learning promotes transformative, evidence-based, and engaging professional learning for the enrichment of faculty and administrators to ensure the academic success of all students at Amarillo College.