Taming the Monster: Rethinking the Role of Content

New Way to Look at Content in the Classroom

The infinite amount of information available at any time on portable devices places a unique burden on educators: too much to teach. More specifically, teachers struggle with what should be covered in a course. New material emerging in the field? Older content from previous courses that students have not absorbed yet? Some combination?

Prioritizing content and deciding on the coverage requirements for a course can lead to some painful decisions. Whether it’s trimming content from your existing syllabus or squeezing in more, the task can be daunting for educators and students alike.

One strategy for managing this dilemma involves taking a fresh look at the teaching and learning of information. For an illuminating take on this approach, watch Taming the Monster: Rethinking the Role of Content, an online seminar from Magna Publications.

Benefits

Educators are on the front line when it comes to handling the daily explosion of new information and providing a balanced classroom experience. While watching Taming the Monster: Rethinking the Role of Content, you’ll:

• Discover tools and resources for addressing this topic that you can use over time
• Help your students focus on content essential to course objectives
• Learn new ways to prioritize content efficiently
• Be able to ask questions of the presenter for a dynamic interactive format
• Be polled during the presentation to ensure your comprehension of the material
• Learn through case scenario examples

When you watch, you’ll gain an enhanced ability to view content from a new perspective to solve the ongoing problem of too much content. This will allow you to:

• Use content to enhance student learning, rather than as “material to be covered”
• View yourself as a “content curator” who demonstrates discerning judgment
• Get specific strategies for making content decisions based on backwards planning, outcome-based models, and threshold concepts

Learning Goals

After participating in this seminar, you will be able to:

• Identify pervasive problems created by the “content coverage” model of teaching
• Answer critical questions about content problems
• Analyze the role of content in learning from new perspectives
• Implement strategies for effectively using content to enhance student learning

The presenter delivers pragmatic questions and explore potential answers in this interactive presentation.

Learn innovative ways to think about the content that is critical for your students to learn and remember. Explore the mission of content in the classroom and how to use it to provide high-quality instruction.

The discussion highlights practical ways to develop a flexible curriculum that minimizes the painful choices of deleting existing material or wedging in more.

Topics Covered

Finding new ways to think about and manage content in teaching and learning is the core theme of this online program. During this seminar, you:

• Reexamine the role of content in learning
• Consider the problem beyond “adding” or “deleting” specific topics
• See how backwards design can assist in framing content
• Use the notion of “threshold concepts” to evaluate what content is vital to learning
• Explore the benefits of focusing on learning outcomes rather than “covering” content

Acquiring a grounding in these concepts can prepare you to design fulfilling course material and an effective syllabus.

Audience

Selecting the key parts from a mass of content to create a workable syllabus is an ongoing challenge. Educators who are tasked with designing course material to fulfill the learning requirements of students will need to learn new techniques.

Watch Taming the Monster: Rethinking the Role of Content can give you a reliable foundation for making those decisions. Educators from all parts of an academic institution can find tools they can use, in particular:

• Instructors
• Adjunct professors
• Assistant professors
• Associate professors
• Professors
• Faculty developers
• Department heads
• Educators at both two- and four-year schools
• Educators at both public and private institutions

Members of the academic community with an intermediate level of experience with this topic will likely derive the greatest benefit from looking at content in new ways for learning and teaching.

Purchase

The problem of “too much content” is likely here to stay. This online seminar equips you with bold insights and sound techniques to address the problem and still provide a substantive educational experience for your students. Order now.

Product Code: PC15PA