CurrentsACADEMIC In Teaching and Learning JOURNAL VOLUME 11 NUMBER 1 AUGUST 2019 CURRENTS | AUGUST 2019 About Us Currents in Teaching and Learning is a peer-reviewed electronic journal that fosters exchanges among reflective teacher-scholars across the disciplines. Published twice a year, Currents seeks to improve teaching and learning in higher education with short reports on classroom practices as well as longer research, theoretical, or conceptual articles and explorations of issues and challenges facing teachers today. Non-specialist and jargon-free, Currents is addressed to both faculty and graduate students in higher education, teaching in all academic disciplines. Subscriptions If you wish to be notified when each new issue of Currents becomes available online and to receive our Calls for Submissions and other announcements, please join our Currents Subscribers’ Listserv. Subscribe Here Source of Cover Image: iStock.com/Bulat Silvia Table of Contents EDITORIAL PROGRAM REPORTS “Authenticity, Dialogue, and Diversity: 4 “Better Together? Sense of Community 96 Paths to Transformational Learning” in a Pre-Service Teacher Cohort Model” —Martin Fromm —Kristen Ferguson and Natalya Brown “Diversity and Inclusion Pedagogy: 112 ESSAYS Addressing Multicultural Teaching Competency and the Achievement Gap “Digital Selves: Personal Narrative 7 at a Racially Diverse University” Pedagogy in the Online Writing Course” —Duke W. Austin, Matthew Atencio, —Bethany Mannon Fanny Yeung, Julie Stein, Deepika Mathur, Sukari Ivester, and Dianne Rush Woods TEACHING REPORTS BOOK REVIEW “Understanding Purpose(s): Connecting 20 Students’ Metacognitive Awareness of James M. Lang’s Small Teaching: 135 Genre and Reading Practices” Everyday Lessons from the Science of —Rachel Hall Buck Learning —Daniel Guberman “An Assignment Model for Teaching 35 Students to Write from Sources” —Elizabeth Kleinfeld and Abby Wright THE BACK PAGE About Us, Subscriptions, Submissions, Inquiries “The Crowdsourcing Classroom: 45 Engagement in the Age of Boaty McBoatface” —Brandie Bohney “Crowdfunding in the Classroom” 54 —Vanessa Ruget “Educational Instruction for Group Work 67 with Diverse Members: Innovative Student Classroom Engagement using a Game-Based Learning Activity” —Kirsten S. Ericksen “The Threshold Concept Map: Plotting 79 the Liminal Space of Students’ Struggle to Learn to Write in College” —Bryna Siegel Finer, Emily Wender, Oriana Gatta, and Daniel Weinstein CURRENTS | AUGUST 2019 EDITORIAL Authenticity, Dialogue, and Diversity: Paths to Transformational Learning —Martin Fromm In our cultural and political climate today, social alien- al backgrounds and perspectives requires a conscious ation and isolation are increasingly prevalent, polariza- effort both at the institutional and individual faculty tion threatens to undermine the pluralistic foundations levels, from collaborative initiatives in faculty training to of democratic society, and politicization of identities dis- specific assignments tailored to working with culturally torts and hides the rich complexity and contextual nuanc- diverse groups. This attention to diversity and inclusion es of the human social condition. With these challenges is also critical for identifying the transformative tension at hand, how can college and university educators create between students’ struggles and learning, prompting us a learning environment where students feel connected to as educators to find multiple ways to conceive of and each other and to a broader fabric of constructive cultur- trace the thresholds of learning that students must cross. al dialogue? What kinds of assignments and projects can generate meaningful and equitable participation from Much attention recently has focused on students’ students with different cultural backgrounds, learning deteriorating reading habits in a world of constant dis- styles, and preferred modes of self-expression? How can tractions and information overload. In “Understanding educators capitalize on the proliferation of digital media Purpose(s): Connecting Students’ Metacognitive Aware- to enrich students’ engagement with each other and their ness of Genre and Reading Practices,” Rachel Hall Buck communities within and beyond the classroom? reminds us that, to be effective, reading practices need to be tied to a deeper cognizance of context, structure, The contributors to this issue take up this challenge on and purpose. She argues that placing more emphasis in multiple levels. One area of focus is on eliciting students’ reading assignments on metacognitive awareness of how understanding of the socio-cultural contexts of what genre informs not only the structure and form of texts they read, approaching the discussion of different genres but also the purposes and motivations behind writing of writing and methods of citation as an opportunity to them can make the reading process more meaningful for develop in students a more socially situated purpose in students. This awareness of how purpose and context reading and a consciousness of themselves as critically inform the reading and writing of texts is also critical for engaged participants in a wider dialogue with scholars students’ research endeavors, of which the proper cita- and other creative voices. Another concern that emerges tion of sources is a key dimension. In “An Assignment in these articles is with using digital media to stimu- Model for Teaching Students to Write from Sources,” late more inclusive avenues for students’ participation, Elizabeth Kleinfeld and Abby Wright contend that self-expression and shared sense of purpose. Whether “framing source citation as rhetorical moves rather than this involves collective class projects, anonymous post- a simple formality” helps students to situate themselves ings for class discussion, or individual digital narratives, in relation to “a larger disciplinary conversation.” This the contributors to this issue suggest ways to adapt way of approaching source citation, they argue, provides online platforms for the cultivation of more dynamic “an ethos-developing move, a way to create and build so- learning communities in the classroom, the integration cial capital” that empowers students by “pushing [them] of rigorous standards of academic analysis with authentic toward practices that acknowledge authorial power and modes of self-narration, and the creation of a safe and in- responsibility.” clusive zone for sharing ideas and perspectives on course materials and issues brought up in class. Whether online The proliferation of digital media and online learn- or in the classroom, this research indicates that fostering ing platforms pose new challenges and opportunities greater awareness of and sensitivity to differing cultur- for engaging students in critical reflection on writing 4 EDITORIAL | AUTHENTICITY, DIALOGUE, AND DIVERSITY CURRENTS | AUGUST 2019 Authenticity, Dialogue, and Diversity continued and reading practices. Acknowledging the prevalence Together? Sense of Community in a Pre-Service Teacher of social isolation and “a perceived lack of community Cohort Model,” Kristen Ferguson and Natalya Brown and interaction” in online learning, in “Digital Selves: share their findings about “the impact of a section (co- Personal Narrative Pedagogy in the Online Writing hort) model on the sense of community of students Course” Bethany Mannon presents as an antidote a enrolled in a one-year Bachelor of Education program.” “‘personal narrative pedagogy’” [that] invites students to They conclude that “compared to their peers who are not situate their writing in personal perspectives and lived organized in sections, the sectioned education students experiences.” Given that “much of students’ day-to-day report an overall higher level of sense of community and writing takes place online…and finds currency through score higher on all four dimensions of sense of commu- verbal and visual self-representations,” Mannon presents nity,” which they suggest could also relate significantly “thoughtful uses of personal narrative in online writing to “a positive experience of belonging as well as positive courses” as a way to “affirm the relevance” of writing feelings about university recruitment and alumni dona- in their lives while “acknowledge[ing]” for them “that tions.” Kirsten S. Ericksen shifts our attention to the knowledge is constructed and situated in individual ex- design of specific in-class activities to promote critical perience, in social positions, and in complex identities.” awareness of and cultural skills for working in groups Several other contributors point out ways in which the with diverse members. In “Educational Instruction for use of digital technologies can stimulate students’ partic- Group Work with Diverse Members: Innovative Student ipation and sense of community in the classroom. One Classroom Engagement using a Game-Based Learning strategy that Brandie Bohney proposes is the application Activity,” Ericksen’s research shows that the adaptation of crowdsourcing to classroom learning through stu- of a common card game activity “increase[d] [partici- dents’ use of “shared documents online…to safely and pants’] knowledge/awareness about the types of diversity anonymously share thoughts, ideas, questions, feedback, and impact of diverse members in groups.” At a broader and other forms of their work and thinking.” In “The level, Duke W. Austin, Matthew Atencio, Fanny Yeung, Crowdsourcing Classroom: Engagement in the Age of Julie Stein, Deepika Mathur, Sukari Ivester,