My name is James Courtney and I hold a Doctorate of Education (Ed.D.) in Higher and Postsecondary Education with an emphasis on Teaching and Learning.  Additionally, I have two graduate degrees; an MBA with an emphasis on International Business and an MS-ISM (Master of Science in Information Systems Management).

My mission is to leverage innovative learning strategies that engage today’s diverse students; to motivate them, and to ultimately help them develop their own critical thinking skills so that they may find success and happiness after their collegiate experience.

When preparing course material and learning objectives I assign a variety of tasks and exercises that facilitate reflective learning.  As an advocate of the transformational learning theory, I want my students to walk away from the experience thinking and reasoning independently.  Reflective and critical thinking are key to tying concepts back to the real world, and to their own personal experiences.

A few more examples of how I encourage reflection and assessment:

Make Learning Meaningful – Allow students to create their own project to apply the concepts learned to real-world practice.

Understanding “Why?” Up Front – Review all learning goals early on.

Don’t Rely on One Method – Diversify assessments to alleviate anxiety.

Reflection through Journals – Allow creative activities for self-assessment that relate back to their own life, and are ungraded.

I believe that to be a great teacher, you must be a great learner.  In my courses, we incorporate experiential learning exercises, interactive group activities like affinity clustering, video instruction, and student teach backs.  I wish to not only teach a lesson and show someone how to do a task, but to teach them how to learn and understand who they are as a learner.  Discovering the self-awareness of one’s personal learning characteristics, and the techniques that go best to instill knowledge, can provide for a full life of self-directed learning.  It then becomes much less about the lesson and more about the journey of self-discovery and enlightenment.

Fostering a culture of continuous learning at the institution along with improvements in how educators evoke the application of learning management, self-discipline, and their “grit” (sustaining interest in and effort toward very long-term goals) are key in helping students internalize their motivations to complete their degree and improve overall student outcomes.

For additional context, please read my post on Learning Centered Instruction.