Welcome to the Intentional Teaching newsletter! I'm Derek Bruff, educator and author. The name of this newsletter is a reminder that we should be intentional in how we teach, but also in how we develop as teachers over time. I hope this newsletter will be a valuable part of your professional development as an educator.
Upcoming talks and workshops
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It's August, always the busiest month of the year in my world. I just spent a few days "on Grounds" at the University of Virginia last week leading or co-leading several workshops on teaching and generative AI, including an all-day institute for UVA's new cohort of Faculty AI Guides. That's why there was no newsletter last week! This week I'm giving three presentations at other institutions, one in person and two virtual. If you're a newsletter reader and will be attending any of these talks, please say hi!
Looking ahead to September, I'm giving a virtual talk on generative AI in mathematics teaching and learning for Bunker Hill Community College in Massachusetts on Friday, September 26th, and I'm leading a session titled "Through a New Lens: Photography as Spiritual Formation" at the Visio Divina conference on art and faith organized by my amazing wife Emily Bruff on Saturday, September 13th. That's a lot of range in one month! If you might be interested in bringing me to your campus (in person or virtually) for presentation on one of these or other topics, you can find some useful information on the speaking page on my website. I have some openings in my schedule left for later in the fall, and I'm booking now for the spring semester as well. |
Intentional Teaching with Derek Bruff
Welcome to the Intentional Teaching newsletter! I'm Derek Bruff, educator and author. The name of this newsletter is a reminder that we should be intentional in how we teach, but also in how we develop as teachers over time. I hope this newsletter will be a valuable part of your professional development as an educator.
Managing Hot Moments in 2025 If you've been around a center for teaching and learning in the last twenty-five years, you might have seen Lee Warren's article "Managing Hot Moments in the Classroom." Lee wrote this while at the Derek Bok Center for Teaching and Learning at Harvard University, and it's been a favorite handout at teaching center workshops ever since. From the article: "Sometimes things seem to explode in the classroom, and what do we do then? Knowing strategies for turning...
You've heard of Google NotebookLM and its "audio overview" feature, right? This is the AI-powered tool that can create a podcast-style audio summary of one or more files submitted to NotebookLM. Within a minute or two, you can hear two chatty podcast hosts talk to each other about whatever reading you've given them. I've heard faculty worry that students might start listening to NotebookLM's summaries of course texts instead of doing the hard work of actually reading the course texts. How...
Digital Accessibility with Amy Lomellini You may have been hearing the term “digital accessibility” a lot lately, especially if you teach at a public institution. Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (or ADA) was updated in 2024 to require greater levels of accessibility for web and mobile app content provided by state and local governments. Public colleges and universities have until April 2026 to ensure that, among other things, the learning materials they provide to students...