GEDI / Grad 5114 – Fall 2015
In this segment, Shankar Vendantam, author of “The Hidden Brain” discusses the role the human subconscious plays in cultural stereotypes. Vendantam suggests that negative associations with certain races, genders and sexual preferences begin when we are very young. Not surprisingly, this is thought to be a result of parenting or upbringing, not genetic predisposition. Our subconscious […]
Next week we will continue to explore inclusive pedagogy with a focus on the tenets of critical pedagogy and work of Paulo Freire. Before seminar, please read the Kincheloe article and go through Dr. Fowler’s PowerPoint slides (on Scholar) to familiarize yourself with Paulo Freire’s pedagogy. Many of you are likely familiar with the often-anthologized chapter two from Pedagogy of […]
Read moreAs a foreigner in the USA, I have always been very surprised with this nation’s obsession with race. Being myself a Western European –in Western Europe only the British Isles have a race/ethnicity section in their census – all this racial classification of society seems quite contradictory to me. I understand that the USA have […]
As I was reading the Herring article entitled, “Does Diversity Pay?: Race, Gender, and the Business Case for Diversity”, all I kept thinking was I wonder if one were to repeat this study in an academic setting, would the find similar results? After taking the future professoriate course last semester, it made me realize how […]
In this article, we see how our brain can play tricks on us and lead us to act in a way that we don’t like without even noticing. This comes to play whenever we interact with people who are different, people who might think differently, look differently, have different traditions, beliefs, … A classroom is one […]
Next week we will examine contemporary diversity issues and think about how to use inclusive pedagogy in our classrooms. Just as our learning environments are complex, so are the individuals that comprise them. Everyone has visible as well as “invisible” cultural identities, and inclusive pedagogy attends to those differences. Inclusive pedagogy seeks to engage learners in ways that are inclusive […]
Read moreSorry, but I fall asleep like in lectures like it was my job. I don’t think it’s just being an abnormally large human in a tiny seat or anything do to with the lecture but… Temperature: yeah, that does it for me. Too hot; out Too cold; out It keeps changing though. I can be psyched […]
Read moreCatchy title, right? Before I started teaching classes, instructor-of-record here at VT, I had never thought about teaching. Never gave it serious consideration, never gave thought to a teaching philosophy, making connections with students, creating an environment conducive to learning. As I stumbled through my first semester, I figured it might just be a good […]
Read moreIn “Finding my teaching voice”, Sarah Deel narrates her story of teaching, from being thrown into teaching undergrads as a graduate student, to finally accepting her teaching voice, which she considers freeing. I believe her story of teaching and the evolution of her perception of her own teaching is not very different than that of […]
Last night’s GEDI seminar provided plenty of action and interaction, as we thought about various ways to engage the imaginations of 21st-Century learners, debated whether or not gaming might save the world (or condemn it once and for all), and concluded with an impressive round of Massively Multi-Player Thumb Wrestling guided by Jane McGonigal herself. […]
