THE REDESIGN ALLIANCE

AGENDA
FOURTH ANNUAL CONFERENCE
THE ROSEN CENTRE
ORLANDO, FLORIDA
March 28 - 30, 2010

NOTE: Presentation slides are linked to the presenters' names.
Descriptions of the redesign projects are linked to the presenters' institutions.
Slides from the Sunday sessions are linked to the session titles.

Sunday, March 28
1:00 – 3:00 pm	Changing the Equation Orientation (pre-registration required)
	An orientation for those interested in participating in Changing the Equation, a program to engage the nation’s community colleges in a successful redesign of their remedial/developmental math sequences supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
3:00 – 4:00 pm	C2R Round III Debriefing Session (by invitation)
	A meeting of Round III participants in NCAT’s Colleagues Committed to Redesign (C2R) program.
4:00 – 5:30 pm	Orientation for those new to course redesign
	An orientation for conference participants who are new to course redesign. Learn how to make the most of your conference experience.
5:30 – 7:30 pm	Opening Reception and Corporate Exhibits
	Join your fellow conference participants for an opening reception in the Corporate Exhibit hall. Learn about products and services provided by the corporate members of the Redesign Alliance: Blackboard, Carnegie Learning, Cengage Learning, Hawkes Learning Systems, McGraw-Hill Higher Education, Pearson Education, and SMARTHINKING.
Monday, March 29
7:30 – 8:30 am	Continental Breakfast - Sponsored by McGraw-Hill Higher Education, an NCAT Corporate Associate
8:30 – 9:30 am	Opening Keynote Kay McClenney, Director, Center for Community College Student Engagement, the University of Texas at Austin Building and Sustaining Critical Connections
	Colleges and universities today are being asked to rise to new challenges and increased expectations for quality, performance and accountability set by governing boards, state and federal governments, accrediting organizations and the public. Key among those expectations is that institutions should emphasize assessment and improvement of student retention and learning. To respond effectively to these challenges, colleges and universities need assessment tools appropriate to their unique missions and the characteristics of their diverse student populations. The Community College Survey of Student Engagement (CCSSE) is designed to obtain information directly from students about their participation in programs and activities that institutions provide for their learning and personal development, including how they spend their time and what they gain from attending college. This presentation will discuss how institutions can use data generated by CCSSE, other assessment surveys and student focus groups to build and sustain critical connections among students, faculty and staff and how colleges across the country can learn from the voices of students--both qualitative and quantitative--about the educational practices that matter most in helping them succeed.
9:30 – 10:00 am	Break
10:00 – 12:00 pm	Disciplinary Showcase Sessions
Session Type:	Showcase session - a moderator introduces three speakers from different institutions/organizations each of whom makes a separate presentation. The moderator invites questions from the audience.
Description:	The purpose of these sessions is to enable participants to learn about three successfully completed course redesigns. Those new to course redesign will be inspired to begin and those experienced in course redesign can learn from their colleagues and contribute to the discussion. The goal is to achieve a 50/50 split between presentation and interaction with the audience. NOTE: Each presenter has fully implemented a course redesign and will provide comparative data on student learning outcomes and instructional costs in the traditional and redesigned formats. To read an abstract of each presenter’s redesign project, click on the presenter’s institution.
Sessions:	Redesigning Developmental Mathematics Presenters: Betty Frost, Jackson State Community College; Latonya Garner, Mississippi Valley State University; John Squires, Chattanooga State Community College. Moderator: John Squires, Chattanooga State Community College.
	Redesigning College-Level Mathematics Presenters: Jamie Glass, University of Alabama; Tammy Muhs, University of Central Florida; Phoebe Rouse, Louisiana State University. Moderator: Phoebe Rouse, Louisiana State University.
	Redesigning Developmental English: Reading Presenters: Ellie Bunting, Edison State College; Leslie Jones, University of Texas at Brownsville/Texas Southmost College; Xiaoping Wang, Northeast State Community College. Moderator: Treva Berryman, Tennessee Board of Regents.
	Redesigning Science and Engineering Presenters: Jennifer Hearne, University of Maryland Eastern Shore (Chemistry); Julia Johnson, Arizona State University (Geology) Masoud Rais-Rohani, Mississippi State University (Statics). Moderator: Bill Graves, SunGard Higher Education.
	Redesigning Social Sciences Presenters: Megan Bradley, Frostburg State University (Psychology); Michelle Miller, Northern Arizona University (Psychology); Donna Seagle, Chattanooga State Community College (Psychology). Moderator: Michelle Miller, Northern Arizona University.
	Redesigning Other Disciplines This session is designed for attendees from disciplines other than those listed above. Carol Twigg will give an overview of redesign in the “soft” disciplines, including the arts and humanities, and Carolyn Jarmon will give an overview of redesign in the “hard” disciplines, including business, computing, statistics and engineering. Presenters: Carol Twigg and Carolyn Jarmon, NCAT.

Topics and Session Descriptions

The Benefits of Departmental Redesign: Moving Beyond a Single Course

Description: Many institutions begin the course redesign process by focusing on a single course. Others move on to redesign more than one course, either in a single department or across departments. Some institutions have gone beyond redesigning an individual course to redesign an entire department. This session will discuss two strategies for successful departmental redesign, one at a community college and one at a research university, including the details of how departmental redesign was initiated and fully implemented as well as the benefits that have accrued to both institutions. Learn how you can adapt and use these techniques in course redesign plans at your institution.

Presenters: Tristan Denley, Austin Peay State University, and John Squires, Chattanooga State Community College. Moderator: Tristan Denley, Austin Peay State University.

So You Want To Do a Course Redesign? How To Get Started

Description: Course redesign sounds like a great idea - improving learning while reducing costs - who wouldn’t want to do that? But how do we get started? What do we do first? Among other things, this session will discuss what it means to be “ready,” initial data collection, generating buy-in, getting the right people on the redesign team and linking the redesign effort to larger institutional initiatives. Learn what to do first and why from those who have been through the experience and get your questions answered.

Presenters: Dennis Pearl, Ohio State University; Randy Smith/Alexis Collier, Ohio State University; Karen Wells, Lorain County Community College; Karen Wyrick, Cleveland State Community College. Moderator: Karen Wells, Lorain County Community College.

Engaging Students in New Ways of Learning

Description: Course redesign always succeeds when we engage students in doing the coursework, yet typically 30% or so may fail to participate in scheduled learning activities. Some institutions have been more successful than others in addressing the issue of “non-participating” students. Learn how to ensure that students spend sufficient time on task by using techniques such as scaffolding, mastery quizzing and giving points for participation that lead to greater course completion rates. Learn how techniques such as peer learning teams, undergraduates peer tutors and small learning communities can lead to greater student success.

Presenters: Megan Bradley, Frostburg State University; Masoud Rais-Rohani, Mississippi State University; Phoebe Rouse, Louisiana State University. Moderator: Ben Hambelton, Boise State University.

How-To Session: Developing a Valid Assessment Plan

Description: Course redesign requires assessing student learning in both traditional and redesigned formats to “prove” that the new way is superior to the old. As such, assessment is a powerful instrument for change. Disagreements among faculty about the “best” way to teach can often be resolved by collecting data about the “best” way to learn. But the data must be both valid and reliable—i.e., comparing grades is not sufficient. Learn from those who have done it how to create a valid assessment plan and how to avoid potential pitfalls.

Presenters: Peter Ewell, National Center for Higher Education Management Systems; Julia Johnson, Arizona State University; Renee Fisher, Carnegie Mellon University. Moderator: Peter Ewell, National Center for Higher Education Management Systems.

Linked Courses: A New Strategy for Developmental Studies

Description: All institutions are searching for ways to move students more quickly through remedial and developmental studies and into college-level courses. One effective strategy that has been used in several course redesigns involves linking developmental activities to college-level courses, allowing students to accomplish both levels of study at once. This presentation will discuss strategies for linking courses in developmental writing, reading and math. Learn from those who have done it how to implement this new model as well as its strengths and challenges.

Presenters: Loretta Griffy, Austin Peay State University; Jennifer Mauldin, Regis University; Leslie Jones, University of Texas at Brownsville/Texas Southmost College. Moderator: Carolyn Jarmon, NCAT.

Modularization: A Fast Track to Student Success

Description: Many students get to the end of a course having mastered a large percentage of the material but not enough to pass the course but then are forced to repeat the entire course. Others are required to take a developmental course because of low placement scores when they only lack a small part of the course content. Students bring different backgrounds, interests and abilities to college courses, yet typically we treat them the same. Course modularization offers institutions a way to accommodate these differences by letting students study only what they don’t know and in ways that fit their individual circumstances. Learn about different ways to modularize your course and what implementation issues need to be considered in advance.

Presenters: Betty Frost, Jackson State Community College; Xiaoping Wang, Northeast State Community College. Moderator: Carol Twigg, NCAT.