Casual Academics Conference

2018 Casual Academics Conference

DATE: Wednesday 12 September 2018
TIME: 9.00am - 5:00pm, followed by drinks
VENUE: Broadway campus, building 6, level 3
PROGRAM: download here

The UTS Casual Academics Conference is a great opportunity to hear from interesting keynote speakers, participate in a range of practical workshops and meet other casual academics working across the university. The conference provides a forum for sharing experiences and information on learning and teaching; and recognises the valuable contribution casual academics make at UTS. 

The Conference will offer a range of activities that examine different aspects of learning and teaching in the context of Learning.Futures at UTS, including:
• A Keynote address by Professor Shirley Alexander Deputy Vice Chancellor (Education and Students)
• A Keynote Panel of Casual Academic Award and Citation winners 
• A range of popular and practical workshops
• Learning.Futures Technology and Tools Showcase
• Networking and refreshments throughout the day

Conference workshop descriptions

These workshops have been developed in response to feedback from previous participants and university priorities for new casual academics at UTS. Please consider the workshop you would like to participate in carefully so as to ensure the best match with your current needs and interests before registering using the link below.

Morning Workshops

USING FEEDBACK TO DEVELOP STUDENTS WRITTEN AND ORAL COMMUNICATION CAPABILITIES
In this interactive workshop we will share a range of practical strategies to enable you to provide students with timely and useful feedback on their communication practices. We will focus on explicating assessment task requirements and incorporating scaffolded learning activities to provide formative feedback. Participants are asked to bring sample assessment tasks from the subjects they teach to ensure the relevance and interactivity of the workshop.

ACTIVE LEARNING IN QUANTITATIVE TUTORIALS
This workshop is designed for casual academics who are tutoring in subjects such as maths, finance, economics, accounting, science, and engineering, where is there is a quantitative focus and an expectation that students will develop their problem­solving skills and their understanding of difficult concepts. The session will suggest and demonstrate approaches for making these classes more active, engaging and inclusive so they produce better learning outcomes for students. You will also be introduced to the UTS services provided for students who may be need extra support for the subjects you are teaching.

ONLINE MARKING AND FEEDBACK
Join us for a tour of the online marking environment available at UTS. We will outline how each tool works and the context in which a particular tool might be a better choice over another. Particular focus will be placed on using these tools from a casual academic’s perspective and how you might be able to use various features to be more efficient. Tools covered in this workshop will include Canvas, Review and Turnitin Feedback Studio.

ACTIVE AND COLLABORATIVE LEARNING IN THE CLASSROOM
This session is relevant for new and ongoing casual academics. In this workshop we will explore ways of starting off well with your students and encouraging effective learning and teaching from the beginning of semester in lectures and tutorials. Interpersonal interactions and engagement techniques aligned to the UTS Learning.Futures strategy will be explored. This highly participative session will enable you to experience the effects of various techniques and how your students may benefit from them.

Afternoon Workshops

DEVELOPING YOUR APPROACH TO TEACHING
How do you go about your teaching and how does the way you teach help or hinder your students learning? How might you develop your approach so that you enhance learning for your students as well as begin to build a teaching case for your career? In this session we will explore these questions and how you might draw from your own experiences, those of your colleagues and students as well as current research about learning to develop your teaching approach. We will also examine some practical strategies to guide you to make your classes more engaging for your students.

ENGAGING STUDENTS WITH AUTHENTIC ASSESSMENT AND FEEDBACK
This session for anyone who is assesses student’s, provides feedback or designs formative or summative assessments. The Learning.Futures approach to assessment at UTS prioritises authentic assessment opportunities, as well as significant opportunities for students to receive feedback on their learning. In this workshop we discuss how more traditional forms of assessment, such as essays and examinations, can be adapted to have greater application to real world settings. The session will also enable you to apply the principles of good assessment practice and feedback, not only as part of formal assessment, but also by making use of class or online activities; peer feedback; self­ assessment and criteria benchmarking: which can all help make this important part of learning more effective and engaging for students.

INCLUSIVE TEACHING APPROACHES FOR LINGUISTICALLY DIVERSE CLASSES
This workshop is for casual academics who would like to develop strategies for their teaching in tutorials or other small group contexts. In the workshop, we consider linguistic diversity in the UTS student cohort and discuss the needs of linguistically diverse students. You will be introduced to and experience a number of inclusive teaching approaches and you will have the opportunity to develop these approaches to meet the needs of students in your own teaching contexts. Finally, you will be introduced to a range of resources at UTS and beyond which can support you in your teaching.

OPTIMISING STUDENT ENGAGEMENT WITH UTSONLINE
This workshop is for tutors and coordinators who would like improve their students’ experiences of learning with Canvas. Canvas is utilised in all undergraduate subjects taught across the university to support students active learning on campus, as well as online. In this session you will be introduced to ways of optimising the most significant and practical uses and features of Canvas including organising and communicating with your students, adding items to your subject and engaging your students in online activities. You will have an opportunity to engage in hands-on site design and to select from the workshop the elements that best meet your needs.

Registration

Paid attendance is for 7 hours at the ’Other Academic Activity’ (1) rate of $46.60 per hour and will be restricted to participants with an eligible current casual academic teaching contract at UTS*.  To register your interest please go to the conference registration form at:https://futures.uts.edu.au/events/2018-casual-academics-conference/  Places fill quickly so please register soon to avoid disappointment. Priority will be given in the first instance to casual academics who are new to UTS, or have not participated in previous UTS Casual Academics Conferences and Workshops. Casual academics who have attended our conference in the past can register their interest on the conference registration form, and will be advised if a place is available 1 week prior to the conference. Confirmations for new participants will be sent by email within 3 working days of receipt of your registration. We will notify you of whether a place is available and will confirm the room numbers for the conference which will be held at the Broadway Campus in Building 6.

* Please note: Staff who are in full-time or fractional academic employment at UTS in addition to their casual academic contract are not eligible for payment.

For more details and to register your interest in attending this exciting professional development event please see the conference registration form. For general inquiries please contact Enza.Mirabella@uts.edu.au

 
UTS Casual Academics Conferences are hosted by the Institute for Interactive Media and Learning (IML) in the division of the DVC (Education and Students) and are supported by UTS strategic funding.