Today we had our first lunch and learn and I am happy to report that I could not have hoped for a better outcome. The workshop was scheduled for 12:00 noon and was scheduled for one hour.
Six faculty attended the session and we had three items on the agenda – a short summary of my PME course, sharing best practices using Padlet and sharing best practices using Seesaw. I was responsible to present the first two items and one of our faculty agreed to share her experiences using Seesaw.
What Went Well
Although early responses seemed to indicate that attendance would not be as good as I would have liked, the turnout for the workshop was better than expected.
Lunch and Learn session was delivered informally and with ease. The intent of these session was to provide an informal forum for faculty to share best practices. I was sat ease sharing my information with regard to my project and also shared SRL principles that I learned in working toward my goal. Following our discussion about my project, I then went on to review the use of Padlet and how I was able to implement the application into my teaching and learning practices.
Faculty were well engaged and active throughout the Lunch and Learn. Throughout the session faculty were asking questions and great conversation ensued regarding all the ways the application(s) could be used. After my own presentation, another faculty took over and discussed her use of an application called Seesaw. Again, there was great discussion and genuine interest in how the application could be used in the classroom.
More to come in December! As we concluded our first Lunch and Learn, faculty were very excited to hold another. We’ve set a date for December 7th and the plan is for two new faculty (faculty who did not present today) to bring an idea to the table next time. I am very optimistic that we made a good start.
Moving Forward
I think we made a great start today, but in reflecting on the future I know that there are a few things that I will need to be mindful of:
I need to continue to engage with the group and lead discussion on the online forum (Facebook Group). To keep discussion alive, I will need to work on keeping interest alive and continue to highlight interesting articles and information for the group.
I will need to solicit individuals to participate and ask them to consider what they can present as a best practice at the next meeting.
I will investigate how I can adapt the sessions and videotape and upload some of the session to reach a wider audience (faculty who cannot attend the Lunch and Learn).
I will consider (in the future) opening up the Lunch and Learn session to include other program areas such as our sister program “Communications”.
Overall, I am extremely proud of the inception of our Faculty Learning Community. In looking back on the short hour we spent together, I think that the most obvious takeaway was the knowledge we gained related to Padlet and Seesaw. However, intrinsically what I witnessed was a reinforcement of enthusiasm for teaching practices and growth in our ties as a community.