| Achievement, Equity, and Retention: Craig Nelson This lecture will be broadcast on cable channel 8 on Wednesday, October 12, at 5:30 p.m.; Thursday the 13th at 7:30 p.m.; and Sunday the 16th at 8:00 p.m.
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Biographical Sketch:
CRAIG E. NELSON is Professor Emeritus of Biology at Indiana University in Bloomington, where
he has been since 1966. His biological research (60+ articles and chapters) has been on evolution
and ecology, most recently on sex-determination in turtles. His articles on teaching (20+) address
critical thinking and mature valuing, diversity, active learning, teaching evolution and the
scholarship of teaching and learning. He has presented invited workshops these and related
topics at numerous national meetings and at many individual institutions (in 36 states,
Puerto Rico, Canada, Denmark, Iceland, Ireland, England, and South Africa). He has taught
several courses in biology as well as intensive freshman seminars, great books and other
honors courses, several collaboratively taught interdisciplinary courses (mostly in environmental
studies) and regularly taught a graduate course on "Alternative Approaches to Teaching College Biology."
He has been instrumental in the development of IU's award winning Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SOTL)
program (www.indiana.edu/~sotl/) and was founding Director of environmental programs in it's School of Public
and Environmental Affairs. He has received several awards for distinguished teaching from IU and nationally
competitive awards from Vanderbilt and Northwestern. He has been a Carnegie Scholar since 2000. He was named
the Outstanding Research And Doctoral University Professor Of The Year 2000 by the Carnegie Foundation for
the Advancement of Teaching and the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE). He received
the President's Medal for Excellence, "the highest honor bestowed by Indiana University," in 2001.
Abstract:
When diversity issues are cast in content-centered ways, many faculty may view
them as irrelevant to their own teaching. However, examination of pedagogical
practices reveals a need for major changes in nearly all courses. We will
examine at least three types of pedagogical changes that can make a real
difference in achievement and retention in almost any college or university
classroom. Specific topics will include: 1. How can I radically reduce or
eliminate low grades in lecture courses without lowering standards? 2. How can
I make my students brighter and harder working using only 1 hour of class time
(in ways that level the playing field for all groups)? 3. Does my assessment
system unfairly and unnecessarily favor particular groups? 4. In sum: How
do many traditional teaching techniques unnecessarily disadvantage many non-
traditional students (first-generation, rural, inner-city, etc.) and how can we
make our courses fairer without lowering standards?