October 9

Categories: Weekly Digest Tags: 2023

Please be mindful that some of your students may be fasting during upcoming religious holidays and may request accommodation. As part of the University Policy: 409, Religious Accommodation for Students, faculty are asked to make reasonable accommodations for religious observances. This includes the opportunity to make up a test or other work missed due to an excused absence for a religious observance. Students may not perform at their peak during times of fasting, therefore accommodation may be requested. View dates of religious holidays.

Digital Media Literacy Modules in Canvas Commons
Atkins Library is introducing a newly-created series of modules covering various aspects of digital media literacy that can be incorporated into Canvas courses. The modules contain readings, videos, and evaluation activities on the topics of evaluating sources, information disorder, and social media. As media literacy is applicable to any subject area, faculty members can consider how these modules might be integrated into their courses. To access the media literacy course content, go to Canvas Commons and search for “Digital Media Literacy Resources for Canvas Course.” Natalie Ornat Bitting, the library’s Humanities librarian, created a resource guide outlining the content of the modules, suggestions for using them in class, and directions for adding them to Canvas courses. We hope that you will find these modules useful, and we encourage you to provide us with feedback on your experience. Please contact Natalie Ornat Bitting or Catherine Tingelstad with any questions or comments.

Antisemitism and the Origins of Critical Theory
Antisemitism is on the rise and critical theory is in the news. Can we learn something by going to the origins of critical theory, developed in Frankfurt, Germany exactly in response to the conditions that birthed Nazi Germany? Join Dr. Martin Shuster, Professor of Philosophy and the Isaac Swift Distinguished Professor of Jewish Studies, for a talk and cocktail hour focused on the origins of critical theory in the work of the so-called Frankfurt School. The event also serves to mark the remarkable acquisition by Atkins library of a founding text of critical theory, Max Horkheimer and Theodor W. Adorno’s Philosophical Fragments (1944), a rare book of which only 300 copies exist, but which later was reworked to become their path-breaking and hugely influential text, Dialectic of Enlightenment (1947).

  • Thursday, October 12, Atkins Library (Register)

5:00 PM – Presentation of Max Horkheimer and Theodor W. Adorno’s Philosophical Fragments (1944) Special Collections, 10th floor

6:00 PM – Talk and cocktail hour with Dr. Martin Shuster, Isaac Swift Distinguished Professor of Jewish Studies
Halton Reading Room, 1st floor

Autumn’s Echoes of Moonlit Poetry
Meet us at “midnight” (aka 3:00 p.m.) in the clover-covered woods for Autumn’s Echoes of Moonlight Poetry. Find your coven or troupe of woodland creatures as you read and enjoy dreamy, thought-provoking poetry and delicious treats. If you would like to read at this event, please share which poem you’d like to read by Friday, October 13. The forest floor will also be open for when the spirits inspire you to share your favorite poem or one of your own. Feel free to don your favorite costume or cloak as you enjoy a forest of dreamy rhymes and unsettling verse.

  • Wednesday, October 18, 3:00 – 5:00 PM, Halton Reading Room, Atkins Library

CEI will host Dr. Art Gooray for his workshop, Commercialization Part Two: The ‘Engine’ of the Time to Market Process. This workshop will focus on developing the technology state of understanding, with supporting data and tools, from which a product can be designed and implemented on a predictable schedule and that the product will perform in a predictable manner (Absence of Failure Modes). 

  • Friday, October 13, 12:00 – 1:30 PM, PORTAL (Register) – Lunch provided.

Gradescope is a feedback and assessment tool that dramatically reduces the pain and time associated with grading exams, homework, and other assignments.  Increasing numbers of faculty at UNC Charlotte have been utilizing this tool for the last three years.  During this webinar, faculty members will discuss how they have implemented Gradescope in their courses.  They will provide examples of the types of assignments which they utilize and the advantages they have discovered while using Gradescope.

  • Wednesday, October 11, 2:00 – 3:00 PM (Register)
  • Thursday, October 12, 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM (Register)

Part 2: Canvas Studio for Video Quizzes
Canvas Studio’s in-video quiz feature allows instructors to embed interactive quiz questions at specific points in videos. Students can respond to multiple-choice, true/false, or other types of prompts while watching the video. This feature enhances student engagement, reinforces key concepts, and provides a way for instructors to assess understanding. Customization includes time limits and multiple attempts. Learn how to use this tool with your videos to increase student engagement!

  • Monday, October 16, 1:00 – 2:00 PM (Register)

Enhancing Cultural Awareness
This course is facilitated by the Office of International Programs. The training will present an overview of the common definition and assessment of culture at UNC Charlotte and explore cultural dimensions based on theory and research. Participants will receive resources for sample assignments and a mapping exercise to enhance student cultural awareness. This workshop counts towards the Essentials of Teaching and Learning Certificate.

  • Tuesday, October 17, 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM (Register)

*NEW* Part 3: Canvas Studio Analytics
Canvas Studio Analytics can enhance your instructional practices utilizing the power of data to understand student engagement with video content. Learn how to track views, comments, and participation, and gain valuable insights to optimize your teaching strategies.

  • Thursday, October 19, 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM (Register)

Whether you are a reticent skeptic or an enthusiastic adopter, join Communication Across the Curriculum (CxC) to learn how you can have productive conversations about the ethics of generative AI tools like ChatGPT with students. This webinar will provide an overview of ethical implications regarding bias, privacy, and learning and explore how faculty can use this knowledge to help students and themselves make informed decisions about AI use. 

  • Wednesday, October 25, 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM (Register)

Join the UNC Charlotte Urban Institute for a virtual conversation about mixed-income housing and place-based initiatives and their role in building connections and community. We’ll discuss why that matters, as well as examine the barriers to cross-class and cross-race relationships. The panel will include Dr. Mark Joseph, Founding Director, National Initiative on Mixed Income Communities, Case Western Reserve University; Dr. Andrew Case, a Gambrell Faculty Fellow and UNC Charlotte associate professor of Psychological Science & Health Psychology; Tiffany Capers, Executive Director of CrossRoads Corporation; Julie Porter, Executive Director of DreamKey Partners; and moderator Dr. Byron White, UNC Charlotte’s Associate Provost for Urban Research and Community Engagement.

  • Thursday, October 26, 12:00 – 1:15 PM (Register)

Please visit the Faculty Governance website for the latest news from the Faculty Council including: 

The dissertation defense is one of the ways a new scholar demonstrates readiness to join the academy and is an opportunity to share their research widely. View All Dissertation Defense Announcements.

For up-to-the-minute news from Academic Affairs (faculty awards, research, recognition, initiatives), visit the Academic Affairs Division News webpage.

To have items included in the digest, complete the NEWS DIGEST REQUEST FORM

Deadline for submission is 11:00 a.m. every Friday.