[454] MT Engage seeks more MTSU faculty buy-in with summer institute

MTSU continues its push for more interactive teaching inside and outside the classroom with its 2017 MT Engage Summer Institute for interested faculty.

MT Engage, the university’s latest Quality Enhancement Plan, is hosting a day and a half training session for over 30 faculty members to enhance the skills needed while teaching MT Engage-related courses.

Training sessions will be held all day Thursday, May 11, and wrap up with a half-day of activities Friday, May 12, at the Learning, Teaching, and Innovative Technologies Center conference room located in the James E. Walker Library. Topics covered in breakout sessions include integrative thinking, e-Portfolio training, rubrics, beyond the classroom activities and student support services.

“The Summer Institute offers faculty the chance to learn more about the MT Engage program, especially its focus on integrative thinking and reflection across academic experiences,” MT Engage Faculty Fellow Director Mary Hoffschwelle said. “Faculty will use information and ideas from institute sessions to certify their courses in the MT Engage program.

“The MT Engage designation means that the faculty who teach that course use high-impact teaching practices, beyond-the-classroom experiences, and reflection to support integrative thinking. MT Engage faculty create what we call a ‘signature assignment’ for their course that students save in their D2L e-Portfolios to document their integrative learning.

While selecting classes for the school year, MTSU students have the opportunity to enroll in courses that involve taking a step out of the classroom and into the world of integrative thinking. This involves making connections between different academic disciplines, ranging from biology to business administration.

MT Engage allows students to take what they know and utilize that knowledge in scenarios not specifically related to their field of study.

Hoffschwelle and Dr. Mark Byrnes, interim university provost, are set to open the training with welcome remarks followed by 20-minute to one-hour sessions led by MTSU faculty and staff representatives throughout the summer institute.

“Faculty are passionate about teaching and student learning,” said Hoffschwelle. “Many MTSU faculty members already use high-impact teaching practices such as experiential learning, problem-based learning, collaborative projects, and Reacting to the Past games.

“MT Engage interests faculty because the program supports their efforts to help students build connections between the general education program and their major as well as their co-curricular activities.”

The motto of MT Engage is “engage academically, learn exponentially, showcase yourself.” It fulfills the QEP requirement set by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, or SACSCOC, the regional accreditation body for higher education institutes in the South.

For more information about MT Engage, visit http://mtsu.edu/mtengage, email mtengage@mtsu.edu or call 615-904-8281.