Theresa Tinkle, Arthur F. Thurnau Professor of English, wins Provost's Teaching Innovation Prize.
- All News
-
- Search News
- Archived News
- "RayFest" Honors Professor Ray Van Dam
- Leap Year: A Glitch in Time
- The Humanity of the Medieval Wildman
- How Islam Became a Matter of State
- Sharon Herbert named Distinguished University Professor
- Linda Gregerson to present Henry Russel Lecture
- Helmut Puff Named Director of Eisenberg Institute of Historical Studies
- Peggy McCracken Appointed to Lead U-M Institute for the Humanities
- The Impostor Sea: A Report from the Archives
- Sacred Scriptures in a Secular Society: Hand-copying Buddhist Texts
- Medieval-Early Modern Theme for 2018-19 Frankel Fellows
- Animals in Late Antiquity
- Premodern Japanese Crests in Play at Ann Arbor Downtown Library
- Alum Alison de Simone Wins Ruth Solie Prize for Outstanding Article on British Music
- New Gifts to Support Medieval Art Scholarship
- Alice Sullivan and Theresa Tinkle Featured in Latest Speculum
- All Events
- The Premodern Colloquium
Teaching Smarter, Not Harder: Improving Students' Close Reading Skills Through Interactivity.
Among innovations that stand out in this reinvention of English 350, a survey of literature before 1660: The instructional team prioritized undergraduates' development of close reading skills, replacing an earlier focus on highly specialized knowledge of cultural contexts. Students spent much more time performing close readings themselves, rather than merely observing while an instructor modeled close reading.
Making these changes in a large-lecture setting required the incorporation of technologies and assessments more commonly used outside the humanities. CTools quizzes and forum postings, along with i>clicker questions "massively increased student engagement with the material without requiring a commensurate increase in grading time," wrote the department chair.
One student wrote that in a hall "filled with more than 50 students, every single one showed complete engagement with material that was truly difficult, but was made amazingly accessible."