Innovating the Curriculum

Innovating the Curriculum:

A Student Reflection on Outdated or Underrated

By Eli Kramer, Mary Krome, Ariel Glazer, Alaina Cornell, and Anne Desilva

This paper is the summation of a discussion that occurred on October 4, 2010. Below are problems, ideas, and stipulations that we feel are of vital importance for the continued development of the class. Please read below and be ready to discuss this at some point during the next class.

Frustrations:

• Some of us feel we have a lack of guidance about course material

-is it possible to have discussion questions?

• Some of us also are having difficulty putting the course material into context

-skimming the surface, hard to see where we’re supposed to go with it all

--Agenda building is on us, though

• Many students feel the availability of course readings is inadequate

-Have Amazon and other sites (for out of print readings) available two weeks before the class in addition to other options?

Ideas:

• We would like hands-on activities.

-teach classes according to different pedagogical approaches (For October 4, we would like to do a St. Johns style seminar!)

• We (the students) would like to meet once a week to discuss the class.

• We would like to use the Browsing room or Johnston itself as our classroom.

• Can we go to Deep Springs, and other schools!?

--In place of two separate classes, visit Deep Springs and Pitzer

--can still have readings, discussions while we visit, and reflection paper as well.

--8 classes left

Learning Outcomes:

• Learn more about innovative education and success stories in order to be more confidant of our own educations.
• Learning about, and identifying with, Johnston History and Innovative Institutional histories in general.
• Pedagogical approaches-what does it mean to be part of a living/learning community?

--What does it mean to be a professor in a living/learning community?

--What did early professors think of it all?

Topics to Cover in the Next 8 classes:

• Close to Home: Innovating into the future. (from syllabus)
• What can experimental campuses teach conventional schools? (from syllabus)
• Creative Pedagogy and Learning Communities. (from syllabus)

Stipulations:

1. We will have two designated classes to visit other experimental campuses if at all possible. One trip to Pitzer, and One to Deep Springs
2. Students will facilitate during classes and use innovative pedagogical approaches. (For example on October 4, Alaina and Eli would like use the St. Johns seminar pedagogy)
3. We will work as a class to have readings easily accessible for students.
4. In leu of a reflective paper, students can meet in weekly meeting to discuss the readings and create a shared reflection paper. This is a quintessential example of living learning, and will be another approach to reflecting on the reading. Students can also do a classical reflection paper.

Tentative Syllabus and Facilitation Dates:

(Note: dates will change according to if and when we have time to go to Pitzer and or Deep Springs)

October 4-The Neoclassical

October 18-Reform Meets the Sixties?????

October 25- Telic Reform?????

November 1- Pitzer (Could be weekend of)

November 15- Deep Springs (Could be weekend of)

November 22- Celebration (N/A)

November 29- Guest Speaker (N/A)

Monday, December 13- Seminar Research Presentations (N/A?