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Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

SoTL @ NYU: Events, Resources, and Projects

On this page you can find an overview of current and recent SoTL efforts at NYU. Check back often, as this page is being constantly updated.

Also, if you are involved in a SoTL project, or would like to share one you are familiar with, we would love to know about it. Please tell us about it here: https://forms.gle/cJnM2KimEf7K7aJp9.


Events

NYU Symposium on the Scholarship of Teaching & Learning 

The Office of the Provost and NYU Information Technology was pleased to host a Symposium on the Scholarship of Teaching & Learning on April 19th, 2023. The symposium included a keynote address by Harry Hubball and a panel discussion involving SoTL practitioners from around NYU. 

Watch recordings of the event here:

You can also find more several resources shared by Prof. Hubball here: 


Resources

NYU Libraries 

Reference Services; External Engagement (Events & Exhibitions), Research Services (Consultations, Self-Archiving, Digital Scholarship Services, etc), Collections and Content Strategy

The NYU Division of Libraries offers a variety of learning opportunities, from in-person appointments to formal research classes to “self-help” subject guides. Some examples of this support are below: Faculty can hold consultation sessions with librarians to support their designing of purposeful, engaging research assignments, as well as provide consultation and instructional support for students, researchers, and instructors using quantitative, qualitative, survey design, and geospatial (GIS) software. The Data Services team advises on projects across the entire research data lifecycle, including access, analysis, collection development, data management, and data preservation. For the Digital Studio, we help scholars create, use, store, and share multimedia materials (video, audio, text, images) for their research, teaching, and learning. Scholars work hands-on with Digital Studio hardware, software, and online tools to accomplish their projects. We train users on the tools and software to accomplish their work, and we consult on best practices, project scoping and design. We also supply guidance to copyright law as it relates to academic research, teaching, and publication. Other publication opportunities are supported via the Faculty Digital Archive (FDA) which is a highly visible repository of NYU scholarship, allowing digital works—text, audio, video, data, and more—to be reliably shared and securely stored. Collections may be made freely available worldwide, offered to NYU only, or restricted to a specific group.

Learn more: https://library.nyu.edu/
Contact: Shawnta Smith-Cruz, Associate Dean for Teaching, Learning, and Engagement, NYU LIbraries | sds8537@nyu.edu

Bern Dibner Library, NYU Libraries

NYU Libraries

I can help researchers engaging in literature reviews, or with finding needed information. Specifically in the Engineering Discipline.

Contact: Matthew Frenkel, Engineering Librarian | matthew.frenkel@nyu.edu

Digital Scholarship Services

Digital Scholarship Services, NYU Libraries

Digital Scholarship Services helps NYU faculty and students incorporate digital scholarship tools and methods into their research and teaching.

Learn more: https://library.nyu.edu/departments/digital-scholarship-services/ 

Contact: Zach Coble, Head, Digital Scholarship Services | zc14@nyu.edu

IRB guidance

Institutional Review Board/Human Research Protection Program, 

Advise and provide guidance to researchers conducting human subjects research.

Learn more: nyu.edu/irb | ask.humansubjects@nyu.edu 

Contact: Scott Fisher, Director, IRB/HRPP

Learning Analytics Research Network

The Learning Analytics Research Network (LEARN) combines deep expertise in advanced data science methods with practiced skill in the research and development of innovative pedagogical approaches to support instructors in understanding and improving learning in their classroom.

Learn more: http://www.nyu.edu/learn-analytics | learn.analytics@nyu.edu

Contact: Alyssa Wise, Director, NYU LEARN| aw116@nyu.edu

Learning Analytics Service for Faculty, Data Request Service

Research, Instruction, and Technology, NYU IT

Our analytics service provides out of the box and custom built dashboards for faculty to aid in data informed teaching and course improvement. Our dashboard service is often a first stop for faculty to investigate themes of engagement and assessment in their course, before moving on to developing their own SoTL project. We can also work with individual faculty to build dashboards that help gather data for SoTL projects while they are underway. Our data request service can help gather, collate and reshape data as needed for SoTL projects, where a faculty member needs data from an NYU supported instructional tool.

Learn more: https://wp.nyu.edu/learninganalytics | Learning.Analytics@nyu.edu

Contact: Andrew Brackett, Assistant Director, Learning Analytics

Manifold Publishing Platform

Digital Scholarship Services, NYU Libraries

Within the libraries, I consult with faculty on a variety of digital projects including Web Hosting, Seed Grants for Digital Humanities, and Manifold publications, all of which may serve SoTL efforts. NYU Libraries manages and provides access to an instance of Manifold hosted by Manifold Digital Services. Manifold is a digital publishing platform that provides users with a means of creating annotatable, iterative projects that pull from documents authored in multiple file formats (EPUB, HTML, Word, Google Doc, Markdown). NYU Manifold, the NYU Libraries instance of Manifold, is meant to support NYU research and teaching activity by providing a space to self-publish within a library of NYU projects. The primary uses of NYU Manifold include Open Educational Resources, Open Access journals, ebooks and other edited collections of longer form works, and student publications. Seed Grants are meant to support faculty developing larger digital humanities projects for the purposes of seeking external funding. SoTL may be included in these projects. Web Hosting offers space for one-click installation of a variety of open source softwares which may support SoTL efforts.

Learn more: https://nyu.manifoldapp.org/ , https://digitalhumanities.nyu.edu/funding/seed-grants/ , https://hosting.nyu.edu | digital.scholarship@nyu.edu 

Contact: Jojo Karlin, Digital Scholarship Specialist

Program Assessment Support and Consultation

Office of Academic Program Review and Assessment (OAPRA), Office of the Provost 

Academic assessment is the process of using evidence to understand and improve student learning in academic programs. At its core, it is a collaborative form of research designed to answer one simple question—did students learn what they should have upon completing a program? Most importantly, assessment provides faculty with diagnostic information about gaps in student learning that can be used to tailor efforts for program and curricular improvement.

Learn more: www.nyu.edu/academics/accreditation-authorization-assessment/academic-assessment.html

Contact: Amy Becker, Academic Assessment Officer | amy.becker@nyu.edu

Research and Outcomes Assessment

Research, Instruction, and Technology, NYU IT

We collaborate with faculty and administrative staff to conduct scholarly research on which learning strategies, when enhanced with media & technology, improve student learning outcomes. We help with planning and designing research projects, perform literature reviews, complete IRB forms, implement the research design, collect and analyze data, compile reports, and assist in the writing for journal publication. Whether aiming for publication or a reflective teaching and learning practice we provide a full service support model.

Learn more: https://wp.nyu.edu/tlt/research-outcomes-assessment

Contact: Elizabeth McAlpin, Director of Research & Outcomes Assessment | elizabeth.mcalpin@nyu.edu

SoTL Support for Arts & Science Faculty

Arts & Science Office of Educational Technology,Arts & Science (College of Arts & Science; Graduate School of Arts & Science; Liberal Studies)

Our office is involved in all three of the above: projects, services, and resources.

Learn more: https://wp.nyu.edu/fas-edtech/services/scholarship-of-teaching-and-learning-sotl/

Contact: Timothy Schaffer, Senior Educational Technologist | ts1877@nyu.edu 


Sample Projects at NYU

Contingencies: A Journal of Global Pedagogy

Arts & Science (College of Arts & Science; Graduate School of Arts & Science; Liberal Studies)

Online peer-reviewed journal of Global Pedagogy in Higher Education; I serve as Project Manager for the journal (it had a publication gap, but has two upcoming issues in process).

Learn more: https://wp.nyu.edu/contingenciesjournal/

Contact: Bob Squillace, Clinical Professor, Ed Tech Liaison (currently interim Assoc Dean)| robert.squillace@nyu.edu

Creating a Play in Collaboration with NYU Playwriting Students and Faculty

Rory Meyers College of Nursing

In partnership with a faculty at the Rita and Burton Department of Dramatic Writing, playwriting students created 2 original plays based on interviews with current nursing students and alumni on their experiences during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. This pilot project touches on the powers of narrative medicine and dramatic expression as pedagogy.

Contact: Fidelindo Lim, Clinical Associate Professor | fl9@nyu.edu

Evaluating the effectiveness of a virtual reality simulation for preclinical local anesthesia dental education

Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, NYU College of Dentistry

Traditional manikin training has limitations that virtual reality can address. This study investigated the effectiveness of two part-task training simulation methods, a virtual reality (VR Sim) versus a plastic manikin (PM Sim), on learning outcomes for local anesthesia skills for second year pre-clinical dental students. In an experimental study, fifty-eight second year students were randomly assigned to one of two groups, VR Sim or PM Sim. Both groups completed the same pre-post survey. The VR Sim group practiced with a VR simulation, completed a built-in treatment test and a transfer test with a live person and evaluated by an expert teaching assistant (TA) with a rubric. The PM Sim group practiced with a plastic manikin, completed a treatment test on the same manikin evaluated by a TA, followed by the same transfer test with a live person and evaluated by a TA with a rubric. Covering knowledge and skills in the delivery of local anesthesia, mean final transfer test scores were statistically significantly higher for the PM Sim compared toVR Sim, F(1, 57) = 9.719, p = 0.003 with an effect size, η2p = .148. Scores on respective treatments tests were similar to final transfer test scores for each group suggesting differences were localized to the practice methods. Pre-survey results indicated participants had low prior experience with VR technology. While outcomes showed higher results for plastic manikin tutor training over the VR training method, they are complementary. As students practice more with the technology and the VR simulation they may improve further. Likewise, as the technology for haptics with VR improves beyond hand controllers so may the experience and learning of this skill for students.

Learn more: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/eje.12854

Contact: Marci Levine, Clinical Associate Professor| marci.levine@nyu.edu

Integration of Design Thinking in the Undergraduate and DNP Program

Rory Meyers College of Nursing

Design Thinking has been integrated as a core concept and used as a teaching strategy in NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing undergraduate and DNP curricula to stimulate creative problem solving for healthcare issues emphasizing innovation in practice and addressing the Social Determinants of Health among diverse populations.

Contact: Mary Jo Vetter, Clinical Associate Professor; Director, DNP Program |  mjv5@nyu.edu

Medicinal Media

Nursing, Rory Meyers College of Nursing

I am a recipient of an NYU Teaching Advancement Grant during the 2022-2023 year, titled Medicinal Media/ Medicinal Rhymes. The purpose of the grant is to enhance student learning in the undergraduate nursing pharmacology course by leading formal study groups in which students are invited to produce creative media about pharmacology concepts. I have worked with students to develop, revise, and preserve student-produced memes, TikTok videos, and songs. While the grant is still in its early stages, students who participated in the study group so far have achieved pharmacology exam scores that are, on average, 4% higher than students who did not participate, indicating that there may be some correlation between creative application of pharmacology concepts and learning. As part of my work, I forged a collaboration between NYU and the non-profit Hip Hop Public Health (HHPH). HHPH has expressed enthusiasm for Medicinal Media/Medicinal Rhymes and has agreed to lead songwriting workshops to help our students improve their songs. I have been accepted to the Faculty Resource Network Summer 2023 Seminar in audio-visual pedagogy to improve my competence in integrating media into course lessons.

Contact: Kelseanne Breder, Clinical Assistant Professor| kb3897@nyu.edu

A Multiyear Comparative Study on Flipping a Dental Hygiene Course

Dental Hygiene & Dental Assisting, NYU College of Dentistry

The flipped classroom model changes the learning dynamic from an instructor-centered design to a student-centered design whereby the student has more opportunities for practice with guidance and feedback from the instructor. The present study is an investigation on the impact of employing the features of a flipped educational model compared with a traditional model on student course grades across several years. We compared outcomes on performance measures (e.g., grades for quizzes, exams, and competencies) as well as overall course grades for students who engaged in a traditional model of the course to students who engaged in a flipped model of the course. The flipped method showed higher outcomes overall compared to the traditional method.

Learn more: http://elizabethmcalpin.hosting.nyu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/A-Multiyear-Comparative-Study-on-Flipping-a-Dental-Hygiene-Course.pdf

Contact: Dianne Sefo, Clinical Associate Professor and Chair| dlp6@nyu.edu

Nursing Humanities

Rory Meyers College of Nursing

I received a grant (project is concluded) on synthesizing humanities into nursing education. A vast array of extracurricular activities were offered integrating music, performing arts, museum visit, narrative medicine etc. were implemented.

Contact: Fidelindo Lim, Clinical Associate Professor | fl9@nyu.edu

A Pedagogically Effective Use of an Audience Response System to Increase Learning

Mathematics, NYU Courant

We introduced a question-driven method facilitated by an audience response system, namely TopHat,™ that allows the instructor to engage students in solving calculus problems across the entire class, as well as to provide uniform immediate feedback to both the students and the instructor as an opportunity to reflect and remediate. In Fall 2016, we compared outcomes for students who solved problems facilitated by TopHat™ in one section (041) to those who solved problems using paper in another section (046). Results from statistical tests found the section (041) using a question-driven method facilitated by TopHat™ was associated with statistically significantly improved performance measures resulting in a 4.98% increase in final grades.

Learn more: https://www.learntechlib.org/p/182457/

Contact: Selin Kalaycioglu, Clinical Professor of Mathematics| kalaycioglu@cims.nyu.edu

Tutoring for Academic Success, Sunflower Diagram

Rory Meyers College of Nursing

Tutoring – Faculty identified a need for tutoring sessions in two medical-surgical courses, Adult & Elder I and Adult & Elder II. Co-requisites such as pathophysiology and pharmacology is taught, respectively. These tutoring sessions are taught for the 12-week semester on a weekly basis and cover the lecture content that was covered in class that week.

Sunflower- Faculty in the first sequence medical- surgical course sought to introduce an innovative method to help students conceptualize critical thinking and empathy in the nursing process using a sunflower diagram.

Contact: Karla Rodriguez, Clinical Assistant Professor| kgr215@nyu.eduTheresa Bucco, Clinical Assistant professor | tb107@nyu.edu

Virtual Reality: An Immersive Tool for Social Work Students to Interact with Community Environments

Silver School of Social Work

Research supports various benefits of using virtual reality (VR) within social work education. As a pilot study, this paper describes the impact of a 360 VR simulation designed to immerse students at a New York school of social work in a typical New York City neighborhood, with the goal of helping them learn about how its history, resources, demographics, and physical space impacts its inhabitants. This, in turn, is intended to support novice students in gaining familiarity with new social contexts and communities, and in connecting macro and micro nuances with practice. An overview of the role of VR in social work education is provided, followed by a description of the pilot 360 VR simulation developed by the authors of this paper, including the rationale for that development and the theoretical framework for its design. Using a mobile device and Google Daydream headset, students are guided through a panoramic urban environment by a pre-recorded voiceover that promotes reflective and analytical thinking as they observe the community through the lens of a social worker. Independent sample t-tests showed statistically significant changes in average scores between pre-and-post tests. Results of the pilot as indicated by pre- and post-survey of student perceptions and test of their knowledge are provided. Pedagogical and clinical practice implications for the 360 VR simulation are identified and discussed.

Learn more: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10615-021-00803-1

Contact: Nick Lanzieri, Clinical Associate Professor | nick nicholas.lanzieri@nyu.edu

A VR Simulation to Enhance Clinical Decision Making for Midwifery Students 

Rory Meyers College of Nursing

This project is in its final development stages and will undergo research in my course in Fall 2023.  A storyboard was initially scripted with a clinical scenario along with branching prompts for students to engage with a virtual client. After consultation with the research & outcomes assessment team and VR developer, the solution was to create a VR simulation to help students prepare for clinical interactions with patients. 

Contact: Regina Cardaci, Clinical Assistant Professor | rc4299@nyu.edu