This is the first of a three-part series by CRLT and the Ginsberg Center outlining strategies and resources that instructors can use to plan, frame, and facilitate conversations about the 2020 Election. Many of the strategies and commentary in this post are drawn from previously published work on the 2016 Election by CRLT that remain applicable to this election season.

The 2020 Presidential Election, with its high stakes and controversy, is adding even more tension to an already fraught year that has highlighted and exacerbated racial, social, health and economic inequities across the country. In 2016, many instructors were unprepared for the strong emotions and reactions that bubbled up after election results were announced and in the days that followed. In some courses, discussions about the election were directly related to course content, theme, or focus. In other classes, discussion arose because students and instructors recognized the election as a part of the broader conditions that shape teaching and learning. For this reason, we encourage all instructors to be prepared by proactively thinking about how the 2020 Election may impact their students, their classrooms, and themselves.

U-M instructors have invested in the idea of gameful learning as a response to the question “How do I better motivate students to learn?” since as early as 2008. Similarly, in the current climate of increased remote or hybrid learning, gameful learning is one possible answer to another question instructors are asking: “How do I build flexibility for students into my course?” As interest in this approach continues to grow steadily at UM and beyond, many instructors seek assistance in better understanding what it means to teach gamefully, including practical guidance for how to get started transforming their course(s). CRLT’s newest Occasional Paper “Motivating Students to Learn: Transforming Courses Using a Gameful Approach” (developed in collaboration with the Center for Academic Innovation), provides a starting point for instructors interested in exploring this teaching method. 

U-M has now officially transitioned to entirely remote instruction, but we know that instructors’ process of figuring out how to navigate this enormous change will be ongoing. CRLT consultants are available to provide ideas, tools, and resources as you think through ways to shift your teaching methods and expectations -- and then rethink them as the trial and error process unfolds. We know that instructors will continue to navigate a series of pedagogical, technological, and social-emotional challenges in their teaching for the remainder of the term, and we’re committed to providing support for U-M’s teachers throughout. Following public health recommendations for, CRLT staff are primarily working and consulting remotely. But there are many ways you can get in touch with us to arrange a phone call, video meeting, email exchange, or online chat:

Are you interested in a faculty career after graduation, but aren’t quite sure how to get started? “Preparing Future Faculty” (PFF) can help. This month-long seminar offered by CRLT supports graduate students who will be navigating the transitional period between graduate school and becoming a faculty member. Come join a community of fellow graduate students from across the university as we discuss developing inclusive teaching practices, preparing for the job market, and what to expect after you receive a faculty position. In this blog post, PFF alum and this year’s PFF Program Assistant, Anoff Nicholas Cobblah, gives an overview of the Seminar and how he found it beneficial as he began preparing for the academic job market. 

Like many students, I entered graduate school inspired by my undergraduate professors, but with little understanding of the obstacles I might face in applying for and succeeding in a faculty position. As I began to envision the end of my graduate career, it was hard not to feel powerless in the face of stories about the arbitrary whims of the job market and the burdens placed on junior faculty (especially those who already occupy a disadvantaged position due to race, gender, sexual orientation, class, or nationality). PFF offers hope by providing graduate students with knowledge and concrete skills to help navigate this daunting process. Those who attend the seminar receive guidance in inclusive teaching practices and developing job materials, such as teaching philosophies, diversity statements, and syllabi. During my PFF seminar experience in 2018, for example, I drafted a syllabus for an upper-level English course on “The Evolution of the Victorian Novel.” Like many graduate students, I had no experience designing my own upper-level course. PFF taught me the importance of backwards course design and setting clear course objectives. PFF also allowed me to get productive feedback on my syllabi and other job materials from fellow graduate students both within and outside of my discipline. Articulating the value of my research and pedagogical interests for those unfamiliar with the norms of my field motivated me to more carefully consider the role I hope to play as a faculty member.

We wish we did not have so many occasions to provide guidance to instructors on teaching in tumultuous times. The campus community is beginning yet another new term amidst a range of distressing events:  from hate-based violence in the U.S. and around the world (including but certainly not limited to a series of anti-Semitic attacks in New York, a church shooting in Texas, and violence against Muslims in India), to environmental disasters in many parts of the world, to escalating conflict between the US and Iran. As we return from the break to the regular work of teaching and learning, many people in our community are feeling threatened and terrorized, grieving deeply, experiencing intense anger, or fighting a sense of despair at a swelling of hatred and violence in our nation and world. CRLT regularly re-posts the guidance below because it is important to remember that these emotions enter our classrooms, studios, and labs, and they can understandably and significantly affect students’ ability to focus on their learning and work with peers in our intellectual community.