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Dr. Fariba Kashan, assistant professor of Mathematics and STEM mentor, attended the On Course workshop on Innovative Strategies for Empowering and Engaging Students in California from May 30-June 2, 2023.

The purpose of the workshop was to provide educators with learner-centered structures and strategies for helping students learn more deeply, as well as empowerment strategies for helping students become active, responsible, and successful learners who thrive in a learner-centered environment.

Strategies for empowering students to accept greater personal responsibility, self-motivation, and self-management, including using a monthly calendar, actions list, and tracing form, were discussed. Additionally, collateral learning, which includes self-responsibility, self-management, self-motivation, interdependence, self-awareness, lifelong learning, emotional intelligence, and self-efficacy were discussed, specifically under seven domains of influence: program & curricula, college & classroom policies/rules, college & classroom activities, homework assignments, feedback & evaluation, college & classroom environment, and modeling.

Workshop activities helped Dr. Kashan and other attendees better understand students’ experience. For example, the workshop started with a reading about a paper titled “The Late Paper.” All educators were asked to rank the most responsible to the least responsible for the students who failed based on the scenario.

“It was interesting that we had different rankings and was a very good point for discussion and listing choices of successful students and struggling students which are very common in students,” Dr. Kashan said.

Another activity included working in smaller groups on assigned projects. At the end, group members wrote down the most important points of the project to share.

“It was interesting and surprising that sometimes it was not as easy as we thought. Sometimes we struggled a little bit to complete the job,” Dr. Kashan said. “This was helping us to feel students’ feeling when we assign a project as group work in the class and adopt some strategies to help students who struggle. We also practiced how to help ourselves and our students go through the wise choice process.”

Workshop attendees watched short, interesting, and meaningful videos.

“I believe playing some of them in class will be fun and attractive and will transfer some points which we love to discuss in class,” Dr. Kashan said.

Dr. Kashan wants to share the following videos with the campus community:

Stuck On An Escalator - Wake Up and Go After Your Dreams!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq65aAYCHOw

The Fun Theory 1 – Piano Staircase Initiative | Volkswagen
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SByymar3bds

5 Minute Mindfulness Meditation
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ssss7V1_eyA

Why do you procrastinate even when it feels bad
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWTNMzK9vG4

It's smarter to travel in groups
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zyIkgi2LDbk

Photo: Dr. Fariba Kashan, Assistant professor of Mathematics and STEM mentor.