GEP Update January 2022

Winter Conference IGEP Plenary Recap

BY WAYNE BOWEN, PH.D., INTERIM ASSOCIATE DEAN, COLLEGE OF UNDERGRADUATE STUDIES
The Integrative General Education Program (IGEP) Leadership Team presented a plenary session at the FCTL Winter Conference, December 13, 2021. The event, attended by sixty-one faculty, successfully continued the Fall 2021 dual focus on assessment and faculty development. The overall goal was to provide examples, updates, and best practices from each of the five GEP Foundation Areas, to encourage faculty to answer students’ perpetual question: “Why do I have to take this GEP course?” The faculty presenters were:

• Wayne Bowen – Introduction to the Integrative GEP
• Annabelle Conroy – GEP Assessment & Focus Group Update
• Amy Darty – Overview of Faculty Engagement Opportunities and GEP Webcourse

• Communication – Brandy Dieterle (Writing and Rhetoric) 
• Cultural Interactions –  Alicia Duffy (History) and Jeanine Viau (Philosophy)
• Interpretation and Evaluation – Lana Williams (Anthropology)
• Knowledge Application – Bo Chen (Physics) 
• Problem Solving – Lori Dunlop-Pyle (Mathematics) 

In the discussion that followed, key questions focused on the collection and use of GEP assessment data, how to participate in the upcoming assessment task force, and shared examples from other GEP courses. Additionally, during the plenary, the team enabled six faculty members to join the General Education Faculty Learning Community in Webcourses. 

The plenary was possible thanks to the active support of FCTL. Eric Main, Interim Director, guided the development of the theme and approach, and Will Dorner, Instructional Specialist, assisted with outreach and technology.

IGEP Ideas

BY AMY DARTY, M.A., GEP FACULTY FELLOW  Fascinated but feeling overwhelmed by your “To Do” list? Never fear, Amy is here! Take advantage of the following Integrative General Education Program (IGEP) faculty development opportunities and activities to incorporate into your courses and presentations. 

New IGEP Adventure Game

Use an interactive way to teach students about the IGEP Foundations and Learning Outcomes. Created using UCF’s Materia gaming technology, it integrates the IGEP Advising Sheet and Word Art graphics, reflecting every foundation, learning outcome, and course in the core GEP. Use the shareable link to engage your students in the new UCF IGEP Adventure. 

Virtual Teaching Squares

IGEP faculty development is progressing with the launch of the Virtual Teaching Squares (VTS) group for Spring 2022.

• Over the next five weeks, we are developing embedded polling for assignments, discussions, wiki pages, and gamifying course materials with Materia, as well as incorporating new tools in Webcourses to engage students in the IGEP. These free tools and easy-to-build methods can be adapted for any course type and connect with Learning Outcomes rubrics for grading or assessment. 
• Our VTS group members have joined active Webcourses as observers to view methods in practice, offer advice on quick integrations, and share questions about integrative learning across disciplines.
• Still interested but forgot to sign up? Need inspiration but thought you didn’t have time? It’s not too late. Just email me to join the VTS.

Effective Communication in Coursework We are discussing more effective communication in coursework about the role of GEP Learning Outcomes by exploring reflective Integrative General Education Experience (IGEE) – College of Undergraduate Studies practices for student engagement. 

IGEP Materials 

Add these IGEP activities and images into your courses and/or presentations for your students. Dip a toe in the water without committing to the swim lessons – no sharks, all minnows.

• Introduce the IGEP Foundations using our matching game to help students “See the IGEP.”
• Want some fast images to show your students which IGEP Foundation(s) your class is part of and make it look like you have some next level graphic designer skills? Grab and go banners, icons, buttons, descriptions and more are readily available in color-coded abundance from the General Education Faculty Learning Community (GEFLC) Webcourse.
• How about our GEP advisors out there? Our GEFLC Webcourse has the updated and color-coded IGEP Course Planning worksheet with explanations linked on our homepage. It is also available on the Student Success and Advising website for student use. 

If you have questions regarding these opportunities and resources, please email me.

Assessment 

BY ANNABELLE CONROY, PH.D., GEP FACULTY FELLOW
The GEP team held five focus group meetings during the Fall 2021 term. The focus groups yielded information regarding issues, questions, and needs for expanding the implementation of assessment across the various GEP foundations. The information is being used to build and update the GEP Faculty website. To facilitate the exchange of ideas and information, we have set up an Assessment in Large Classes discussion forum in Webcourses. Please join the conversation! If you need access to the GEP Webcourses page, please let us know. During the Spring 2022 term the GEP Assessment Task force will continue to work on a comprehensive assessment plan. If you are interested in being part of the task force, please email me.