2024 Breakout Sessions

Creating Effective Social Contracts

Creating course norms can set the stage for a strong course community that can collaboratively engage in nuanced learning experiences. But once you’ve created a social contract with your students, how do you carry it through for the rest of the semester? What are your responsibilities as an instructor and what responsibilities do you share with students? How can you hold each other accountable if a norm is violated? How might we view difficult conversations as a critical part of the learning process rather than a challenge to be avoided?

Featuring:
Harry Harding, Instructor (DCE); Vice President of Innovation and Strategic Partnerships at Children Services of Roxbury
Zoe Marks, Lecturer in Public Policy (HKS)

Facilitators:
Adrienne Phelps-Coco, Executive Director of Teaching and Learning (DCE)
Sejal Vashi, Director of Learning Design and Instructional Support (HSPH)

Leveraging Technologies to Give Everyone a Voice

This session will demonstrate various technological tools that instructors have utilized to enable constructive conversation around challenging topics in their courses. Many of the examples will showcase when anonymity can be used as an effective lever for tempering conversation. Through practical demonstrations and real-world examples, the session will highlight how technology can be a powerful enabler in giving voice to diverse perspectives, particularly those from marginalized or underrepresented groups. Participants will learn how to leverage these tools to create a more inclusive and dynamic learning environment.

Featuring:
Kelly Miller, Senior Lecturer on Applied Physics (SEAS)
Charles Nesson, Weld Professor of Law (HLS)
Rebecca Nesson, Dean for Academic Programs; Associate Senior Lecturer on Computer Science (SEAS)
Teddy Svoronos, Senior Lecturer in Public Policy (HKS)

Facilitators:
Christine D’Auria, Assistant Director of the Learning Lab (FAS-Bok)
Esther Brandon, Manager of Learning Design and Technology Adoption (HMS)

Open Dialogue Within and Across Disciplines

This session will delve into productive ways of fostering an open dialogue within and across academic disciplines. What classroom approaches are most effective in increasing student engagement? When and how can those approaches be adapted effectively in other disciplines? Participants will have an opportunity to experience specific pedagogical practices used in various fields and reflect on how they can bring these methods into their contexts.

Featuring:
Salma Abu Ayyash, Electrical Engineer; Preceptor in Education Innovation (SEAS)
Kristin Mugford, Melvin Tukman Senior Lecturer of Business Administration (HBS)
Dan Rothstein, Adjunct Lecturer on Education (HGSE); Co-Director, Democracy-Building Programs for the Right Question Institute
Luz Santana, Adjunct Lecturer on Education (HGSE); Co-founder and Co-Director, Democracy-Building Programs for the Right Question Institute
Karen Thornber, Harry Tuchman Levin Professor in Literature and Professor of East Asian Languages and Civilizations (FAS); Faculty Director of the Bok Center

Facilitators:
Odile Harter, Head of Library Engagement and Experience (FAS Harvard Library)
Alexandra Sedlovskaya, Associate Director of the Christensen Center for Teaching and Learning (HBS)

Small Moves for Big Topics: Transforming Hard Conversations into Learning Opportunities

This session will examine strategies and classroom practices to turn challenging classroom discussions into valuable learning experiences. Panelists will share their process to planning and teaching their class sessions and their approach to using hard topics as a vehicle for impactful learning. Participants will then be invited to explore difficult conversations or moments in their own teaching with panelists and each other.

Featuring:
Eram Alam, Assistant Professor of the History of Science (FAS)
Aimee Hollander, Director of the Curriculum Fellows Program, Lecturer on Microbiology (HMS)
Matthew Weinzierl, Joseph and Jacqueline Elbling Professor of Business Administration, Senior Associate Dean, Chair, MBA Program (HBS)

Facilitators:
Karina Lin-Murphy, Associate Director, Course Design and Pedagogical Innovation (HBS)
Robert Haussman, Research Associate in the Learning Incubator (SEAS)

Student Perspectives: From Lived Experience to Critical Engagement

This session features Harvard undergraduate and recent graduate students who have stepped forward in various roles to foster open dialogue in academic settings. Their own experiences in the classroom–and leadership among their peers–will ground us in practical strategies to critically examine complex issues and controversial topics from student perspectives. Through this lens, we will explore how instructors can effectively incorporate students’ lived experiences into the curriculum to craft authentic educational experiences involving challenging conversations.

Featuring:
Tega Ajise, Senior at Harvard College and Undergraduate Pedagogy Fellow at Bok Center
Chukwudi “Chudy” Michael Ilozue, Senior at Harvard College and senior fellow with the Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Ethic’s Intercollegiate Civil Disagreement Program
Cassandra Montenegro, Esq, Harvard Divinity School 2024
Pratyush Rawal, MPA Harvard Kennedy School 2024 and leader of Engaging Across Differences student HKS caucus

Facilitators:
Maria Flanagan, Senior Associate Director for Digital Learning Design (HKS)
Ashlie Sandoval-Lee, Assistant Director, Equity and Inclusion (FAS-Bok)