“Communication” emerged as a common theme in recent episodes of Let’s Talk Teaching, a podcast produced by the Center for Teaching, Learning, and Technology (CTLT). Instructors and students met through Zoom for two separate conversations about the challenges and successes, so far, during the fall semester. They all highlight the online teaching strategies which are helping students learn despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the extraordinary steps Illinois State has had to take to cope with the outbreak.

Working Through Student Absences

Three faculty members discuss their approaches to teaching this fall, with a special emphasis on supporting students’ attendance and helping them to keep learning, even when the novel coronavirus has other plans. We discuss how to set expectations with students, how to encourage them to ask for help, and how to make ourselves available, whether we’re teaching synchronously, asynchronously, or somewhere in between. Special thanks to our panel, Dr. Gina Hunter, Dr. Abby Stone, and Tina McGuire who shared their unique perspectives from a variety of teaching situations.

Visit the show page for helpful links.

COVID-19 – Students Speak

To say the Fall 2020 semester has been a challenge is to undersell it. But still, students say they’re having positive learning experiences despite the global pandemic and all it means for higher education. In this episode, we talk with three returning Illinois State undergraduates, who bring a unique perspective about how things have changed since last fall. They share what their professors are doing to help them. They highlight the communication practices, flexibility, and organization that helps them to succeed. Plus, they emphasize the importance of empathy and genuine concern in the student-teacher relationship.

Visit the show page for helpful links.

About the Show

Let’s Talk Teaching is a free podcast for instructors at Illinois State University, produced by the Center for Teaching, Learning, and Technology. You can listen to past episodes and subscribe using your favorite podcast app or through iTunes by going to CTLT.IllinoisState.edu/Podcast.

A captioned version of the podcast series is available through the listening help page.