Returning to the classroom after the Covid-19 pandemic challenged educators to reconsider traditional teaching techniques. Educators had to reconsider traditional teaching styles and discover new ways to keep students engaged. One way many college First Year Experience Courses engage students is through peer academic leaders. These student leaders act as guides in the classroom to first time freshmen by sharing their experiences, success tips and acting as a resource for students. Students benefit immensely from this restricted classroom approach (Bonner, Keiler and Mills 2023), but the peer leaders themselves benefit just as much, if not more. This interactive session will explore ways peer leaders benefit and discuss ways to utilize peer leaders in the classroom.
The pandemic has created significant learning gaps, requiring innovative solutions to support student progress. This session explores how AI can help pre-service teachers facilitate small-group instruction as a targeted differentiation strategy to address pandemic learning loss. Aligned with the conference theme of innovation in education, we will examine where AI integration fits within teacher preparation programs, equipping future educators with the tools to enhance engagement, provide real-time feedback, and personalize learning experiences. The presentation will also explore data on learning loss, teacher retention, and burnout, highlighting how AI can alleviate instructional challenges. Attendees will gain insights into practical applications of AI in the classroom and strategies for ethical implementation, leaving with concrete ideas to support both student learning and educator sustainability.
This talk addresses how Padlet and Perusall were used in the International Studies capstone course in spring to increase engagement outside of class, and as an alternative to discussion board or assignments that only the instructor would read. Padlet is similar to jamboard and allows users to create interactive posts with images, text, links, videos, polls, and more. Perusall allows students to comment on and pose questions about a text or video that others also see and can interact with. Both technologies are a great way to prepare for a class discussion, or to follow-up on a topic after class. Padlet and Perusall have free versions, though they are very limited in their use, so we will briefly discuss the different pricing structures.
As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to transform education, college instructors must adapt innovative teaching strategies to engage students in hybrid learning environments. This interactive presentation explores how AI, including ChatGPT, can enhance student engagement in both virtual and physical classrooms. Attendees will learn how to integrate AI-driven activities such as role-playing, discussion generation, personalized learning pathways, and real-world applications. Through hands-on exercises—including an AI-powered teaching philosophy icebreaker, hybrid scavenger hunts, and student-led AI discussions—professors will gain practical strategies to create dynamic and interactive learning experiences. By the end of this presentation, instructors will have actionable insights into leveraging AI tools to foster meaningful learning, critical thinking, and engagement in hybrid educational settings.
As health professions education evolves, faculty seek innovative ways to integrate technology into assessment and experiential learning. This session explores how artificial intelligence (AI) tools enhance clinical exams, case-based learning, academic assignments, and grading rubrics. Our AI-assisted approach, successfully implemented in the Doctor of Audiology program at the University of South Alabama, has been used to develop clinical cases for comprehensive exams, generate interprofessional case studies, and create interactive assignments and labs. Additionally, AI has helped design competency-based rubrics to ensure objective and consistent student assessment. We will share our development process, implementation strategies, and early outcomes. Attendees will engage in hands-on exercises using AI to generate clinical cases, design assignments, and build rubrics, leaving with actionable strategies to integrate AI into their teaching.
Generative AI is a rapidly advancing technology that has significantly impacted the field of education. Many professional sectors now expect incoming employees to be proficient in its application. As educators, we are responsible for integrating generative AI into our curricula to better prepare students for the digital landscape of the professional world. This workshop will develop assignments designed to help students understand and effectively use generative AI tools, such as chatbots, for composition and research. Participants will also engage in an activity to teach students how to utilize generative AI for brainstorming and outlining an essay, demonstrating how these tools can enhance composition in any college-level classroom
Our campus launched the LevelUp QEP in 2023. The overall mission of LevelUp is to prepare students for what comes next. With LevelUp and its faculty fellows, our office, Career Development is tasked to increase students' career readiness skills and awareness. Our office sits under the Student Academic Success Division, which includes Academic Advising and Transfer Services (AATS). In 2024 we transitioned to a Career Consultant Model to allow us to meet the needs of our students, faculty, educational partners, and the LevelUp QEP. This model provides individualized support to assigned colleges, academic departments, and specific student populations. Each student is on a unique career journey, and our Career Consultants provide individualized support to their student caseload. This model has significantly increased student interactions, bolstered career readiness skill development, and enhanced campus partnerships and collaboration.
Discover how proven, research-backed strategies can remove the certification exam barrier, leading to higher enrollment, retention, graduation rates, and dramatically improved pass rates.
