TRANSFORMATIVE  (CLASSROOM)  LEARNING:  INTEGRATING  STUDENT  AFFAIRS  INTO  AN  

ACADEMIC  ENVIRONMENT  Tessa  Brow  and  Graham  Hunter  

Miami  University  

ACPA  2014  

PROGRAM  OVERVIEW  

  Opening  Reflective  Activity  

  Overview  of  Scholarly  Personal  Narrative  (Nash,  2004)  

  Case  Study:  Honors  190R:  Scholarly  Personal  Narrative  

  Transferring  SPN  to  Other  Contexts  

  Small  Group  Activity  

  Final  Takeaways  

OPENING  REFLECTIVE  ACTIVITY  

What  was  your  most  meaningful  learning  experience  from  your  own  college  experience?    What  about  the  context  and  content  of  this  experience  was  particularly  impactful?  

OVERVIEW  OF  SCHOLARLY  PERSONAL  NARRATIVE  

“[Y]our  own  life  tells  a  story  (or  a  series  of  stories)  that,  when  narrated  well,  can  deliver  to  your  readers  those  delicious  aha!  moments  of  self  and  social  insight  that  are  all  too  rare  in  more  conventional  forms  of  research.”  (Nash,  2004,  p.24)  

 

CONNECTION  TO  LEARNING  PARTNERSHIPS  MODEL  

   Journals  situate  learning  in  student  experience  

  Workshops  allow  for  students  to  challenge  and  support  their  peers  

   Instructors  are  viewed  as  equal  partners  who  share  authority  

  Uses  the  variety  of  personal  narrative  truths  to  explore  multiple  realities  and  critique  power  dynamics  in  writing  

Learning  Partnerships  Model  (Baxter  Magolda,  2004)  

 CASE  STUDY  -­‐  HONORS  190R:  SCHOLARLY  PERSONAL  NARRATIVE  

Course  Development  and  Implementation    Planning  the  course  –  reign  in  enthusiasm    Make  connections  to  Honors  Program  values    Logistics     2  credits    One  105  minute  session  per  week     Student  Demographics:     5  men,  3  women     1  student  of  color     3  business,  3  STEM,  1  Education,  1  Health  Professions     4  first-­‐years,  1  sophomore,  1  junior,  2  seniors  

Syllabus  

 CASE  STUDY  -­‐  HONORS  190R:  SCHOLARLY  PERSONAL  NARRATIVE  

 “By  far  my  greatest  memory  so  far  at  college  is  this  class.  This  class  is  the  only  thing  I  really  like  at  Miami,  and  the  dedication  of  you  guys  makes  me  reconsider  transferring  schools  because  if  I  had  more  professors  like  you  I  would  want  to  stay.  Although  I  don’t  care  that  we  don’t  get  credit  for  it,  I  really  think  that  is  dumb  because  this  class  has  already  given  me  more  applicable  tools  than  any  of  my  others.  I  actually  use  the  information  outside  of  class,  and  I  truly  think  I  see  some  things  differently  now  because  of  what  I  have  learned.  I  really  am  just  thankful  that  I  have  this  class  because  without  it  I’m  not  sure  I  could  get  through  everything  I  am  going  through  right  now  in  my  life.”      

 CASE  STUDY  -­‐  HONORS  190R:  SCHOLARLY  PERSONAL  NARRATIVE  

Successes  

  Students  challenge  their  previous  perspectives  and  assumptions  

  Classroom  space  is  truly  student-­‐centered  

  Fills  a  gap  in  the  current  academic  experiences  of  the  students  

Challenges  

  Content  and  reflections  are  outside  their  initial  comfort  zone  

  Time  consuming  

  Student  issues  surface  with  limited  locus  of  control  for  instructors  to  address  concerns  

TRANSFERRING  SPN  TO  OTHER  CONTEXTS  

    It  is  possible  to  narrow  the  parameters  for  what  students  are  processing  through  reflective  writing  

   If  you  give  them  the  space,  students  will  share     In  order  to  engage  in  this  kind  of  process,  you  have  to  be  similarly  invested  and  vulnerable  

  Always  ask  yourself:  Is  the  content  really  as  important  to  the  student  as  YOU  think  it  is?  

 

SMALL  GROUP  ACTIVITY  

   What  are  the  essential  areas  of  growth/learning  that  students  should  take  away  from  your  functional  area?  

  What  are  existing  courses  of  this  nature  at  your  institutions?      Are  there  specific  subpopulations  that  you  would  like  to  tailor  a  course  around?  (e.g.  RA’s,  students  on  academic  probation,  peer  mentors)  

  Where  are  there  gaps  in  student  learning  that  could  be  addressed  through  a  reflective  and  critical  classroom  environment?  

 

FINAL  TAKEAWAYS  

  Based  on  this  session,  what  is  one  course  that  your  unit  could  revise  or  implement  that  would  focus  on  holistic  student  development  in  the  classroom?  

   What  format  and  activities  would  be  most  effective  for  advancing  your  unit’s  learning  outcomes?  

 

THANK  YOU!  

Contact  Information:    Graham  Hunter  huntergf@miamioh.edu    Tessa  Brow  browtj@miamioh.edu    

References:  

Baxter  Magolda,  M.  B.  (2004).  Learning  Partnerships  Model:  A  framework  for  promoting  self-­‐authorship.  In  M.  B.  Baxter  Magolda  &  P.  M.  King  (Eds.),  Learning  partnerships:  Theory  and  models  of  practice  to  educate  for  self-­‐authorship  (pp.  37-­‐62).  Sterling,  VA:  Stylus.  

Nash,  R.J.  (2004).  Liberating  scholarly  writing:  The  power  of  personal  narrative.  New  York,  NY:  Teachers  College  Press.