Teaching and Learning for Social Impact

Being an Instructional Specialist embedded in a school afforded me access to faculty and courses in an unprecedented way. My work focused on engaging with faculty in the course (re)design process, from the development of learning outcomes, creating authentic assessments, and prioritizing student learning.

The shift to remote learning in 2020 forced faculty and our institution to grapple with teaching in a pandemic, a racial injustice crisis, and a tumultuous election cycle. I partnered with colleagues in the Gephardt Institute and the Center for Teaching and Learning to create a digital publication that served as a pedagogical response to the current moment.

This publication gives faculty a guided way to pause and refocus on the true purpose of their courses: student learning. My work in this publication highlights instructional design strategies such as backwards design, transparency in assignment and assessments, ways to foster belonging in a trauma-aware classroom, and highlights pedagogies of freedom and liberation including critical digital pedagogy, open pedagogy, trauma informed pedagogy, and inclusive pedagogy.