Ahead of the start of the fall semester, Advance at The University of New Mexico, the Office of Academic Affairs and the Center for Teaching and Learning are hosting a series of workshops on developing communities in academic settings and responding to conflict and stress in the classroom. The workshops on Aug 12 - 15 will be held in separate sessions for faculty and staff, and for graduate students.
The workshops will be led by Mikhail Lyubansky, a teaching associate professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. Lyubansky, who teaches several restorative justice and positive psychology classes, presented at UNM earlier this year on keeping campus conversations civil. Steph Posey, a doctoral student in the School of Information Sciences, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign who is also a youth development practitioner, will co-lead the sessions for graduate students.
The two workshops, Developing Community in Academic Settings and When Things Go Wrong: Responding Effectively in the Moment to Classroom Conflict and Stressful Situations are each two hours long and will include time for interactive exercises and discussion.
The series includes two workshops, each of which lasts two hours and includes time for interactive exercises and discussion. Each workshop is offered twice in separate sessions for faculty and staff and for graduate students. The workshops are:
Developing Community in Academic Settings
Monday-Tuesday, Aug. 12-13
While the traditional “banking model” of pedagogy, in which the instructor makes deposits of knowledge into students who receive, file, and store the deposits, continues to have a place in higher education, the easy availability of information and the emergence of generative AI make critical thinking, problem-solving, perspective-taking, and adaptation to different contexts increasingly essential. At the same time, the political polarization and culture wars make classroom dialogue, collaborative learning, and even self-reflection assignments more fraught than ever for both students and instructors. The purpose of this workshop is to examine the potential benefits of dialogue and collaboration in the classroom and the various strategies for building the sense of community that makes such activities possible. Consistent with the philosophy and goals of community building, the workshop will include a variety of interactive exercises.
When Things Go Wrong: Responding Effectively in the Moment to Classroom Conflict and Stressful Situations
Wednesday-Thursday, Aug. 14-15
Despite our best efforts to anticipate and minimize classroom conflicts and stressful situations in the classroom, not everything is preventable. The purpose of this workshop is to examine our own tendencies during moments of stress and conflict and discuss strategies for responding effectively in the moment to the different things that can go wrong. Among other issues, which will be gathered from those present, we’ll discuss student expressions of mental health symptoms, escalation of tension between students during class discussion, and hostility towards the instructor. Participants will be provided with information on UNM support resources as part of this session.
Each workshop will be offered more than once. Visit Advance’s website to see event times and to register.