News2018August
News from the Graduate Program in Critical & Creative Thinking
University of Massachusetts Boston2 August 2018
Student Matters
Fall 2018 course offerings have some spaces remaining and open to both matriculated and non-degree students (all times Eastern). See full descriptions. Register for the class # corresponding to how you will attend.
Note course formats -- hybrid courses combine two section for weekly meetings, where face-to-face section comes to campus, and online students participate directly at the same times via web video conference:
CRCRTH 601, Critical Thinking (hybrid; Thursdays, 4:00-6:45pm). Face-to-face: register for class #9621. Online: register for class #9855.
CRCRTH 603, Foundations of Philosophical Thought (hybrid; Wednesdays, 7:00-9:45pm). Face-to-face: register for class #9622. Online: register for #9856.
CRCRTH 618, Creative Thinking, Collaboration, and Organizational Change (hybrid; Tuesdays, 4:00-6:45pm). Face-to-face: register for class #9623. Online: register for #9857.
BIOL 654, Sustainability Science: Environment, Economy and Equity (Thursdays, 5:30-8:15pm; face-to-face class #14288). Note that this course serves as a substitute for CRCRTH 640, Environment, Science, and Society: Critical Thinking that was originally planned but will not be offered this fall.
CRCRTH 655, Metacognition (synchronous online; Thursdays, 7:00-9:45pm). Register for #9866.
CCT Community
CCT Faculty Nina Greenwald and David Martin offer their Thinking Matters special presentation to your organization, school, staff or personnel, on ways critical and creative thinking can assist everyone to become better problem-solvers. Increasingly, in this "beyond Google” age, standard thinking practices aren’t sufficient to avoid thinking traps and move us forward. In a fast-moving technological world, increasing interconnectedness, and new forms employment, learning new tools and techniques is essential for improving our thinking for life and work. Thinking effectiveness improves dramatically when practiced within relevant areas of focus and real-world contexts. It's why we like to talk with people internal to a group or an organization to understand important goals and objectives. From this, we can tailor presentations to incorporate relevant examples and exercises that address specific needs and interests. Our interactive sessions incorporate both learning and coaching in enjoyable formats that engage humor, and promote thinking agility and beneficial thinking attitudes in a climate of personal safety. As well, we are prepared to make presentations designed to engage localities or wider communities in problem-solving based on overarching matters of concern. Please share this announcement with others who might like to know about what we do. Currently, we are scheduling presentations for fall 2018 and can be reached at: nlgreenwald@comcast.net and davidmartindr@aol.com
CCT Events
Please see upcoming newsletters for announcements of fall and winter CCT events.
Alum and CCT associates Notes
CCT alums and associates are encouraged to send items of interest to the Critical and Creative Thinking community to be included in future newsletters. Please submit events, announcements, and opportunities through this form: http://bit.ly/CCTSICWi
Events
The Teaching Professor Annual Conference
June 7-9, 2019 in New Orleans, Louisiana
Description: This two-and-a-half-day event presents the newest thinking on improving teaching and learning. Meet and network with like-minded colleagues, and learn from innovators whose presentations showcase the proven methods and approaches that they’ve used with their students.
At the 2019 Teaching Professor Annual Conference, you can also participate in quality plenary sessions, poster sessions, optional preconference workshops, and a welcome reception.
During the interactive sessions, presented by leaders from around the country, you’ll explore topics such as recent pedagogical research, innovative classroom techniques, the latest technology tools, emerging challenges of a global classroom, and proven best practices in teaching.
For registration and full program information, see the web site.
Opportunities
Call for Proposals and Presentations: Online Learning Consortium 2019 Innovate Conference: Education Reimagined
Proposals due by September 12, 2018.
Conference to be held from April 3-5, 2019 in Denver, Colorado.
Description: The OLC/MERLOT Program Committee seeks proposals that reflect and showcase our vibrant community of practice — promoting theory, research, methodology and/or applied effective practices in online, blended, and web-enhanced teaching and learning. Both research and evidence-based proposals are encouraged for submission.
For full details about requirements and presentation themes, see the web site.
Call For Proposals: SITE 2019 (annual conference of the Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education).
Proposals due by September 15, 2018 for papers, poster sessions, and facilitation of sessions.
Conference to be held from March 18-22, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Proposals are sought across a range of issues spanning teacher education and information technology. This society represents individual teacher educators and affiliated organizations of teacher educators in all disciplines, who are interested in the creation and dissemination of knowledge about information technology in teacher education and faculty/staff development. You are invited to attend and participate in this annual international forum which offers numerous opportunities to share your ideas, explore the research, development, and applications, and to network with the leaders in this important field of teacher education and technology.
For full details about proposal requirements and the agenda for the conference, see the web site.
Resources
Book: Cracking the Leadership Code: Connection, Communication, Collaboration
by Alain Hunkins.
We’re facing a crisis of leadership. Less than half of workers trust their employers. Only 23% believe their leaders lead well. 87% of employees worldwide are not engaged. If there’s one constant in today’s workplace, it’s change. But most leaders are ill-equipped to lead in these turbulent times, drawing on theories from the 1950s and 1960s. It doesn’t have to be this way. Cracking the Leadership Code offers a new map, helping aspiring leaders to excel in this new world of work. This map was created from wisdom gained from the author’s 20+ years in the field as a leadership practitioner, mixed with insights from psychology, neuroscience, and behavioral economics. After an introduction and overview, leaders learn the dirty truth of their inherited leadership legacy, and why it no longer works. Next, they’re introduced to the key principles of Connection, Communication, and Collaboration. The remainder of the book explores each of these principles in depth. Using a blend of stories, data, and practical tools, leaders learn how to become more empathic, strengthen credibility, communicate more effectively, unleash motivation and eliminate unnecessary complexity. Written in a highly engaging style, and filled with dozens of practical take-aways and specific behavioral checklists, leaders will be inspired to think differently, and informed to act differently.
Book: Music and the Brain
an eBook now available through Scientific American
Description: When you hear a favorite song do you smile involuntarily? Tap your feet? Start humming? Music’s strange power over our emotions and memories has a deep history dating more than 30,000 years ago when early humans were playing instruments made of bone – and we’re still trying to explain its sway over us. Charles Darwin called man’s inclination for music “among the most mysterious with which he is endowed.” In recent years, neuroscientists have shown that music recruits nearly every area of the brain, fostering connections across brain regions. In this eBook, we examine the latest imaging studies and discuss the effects of music on emotion, cognition, sensation and motor function. This includes an examination of the brain’s anatomy when listening to or creating music, of music’s relationship to learning math and language skills and of its role in promoting social connections and treating brain disorders and injuries.
Food for Thought
(additional web links and posts can also be found on CCT's Diigo pages. General critical and creative thinking focus: https://groups.diigo.com/group/ccreflect; Science in a Changing World focus: https://groups.diigo.com/group/sicwumb)
Video:
Impressionism and the Art of Medicine (Vimeo)
Why Stoicism Matters (YouTube)
Monkeys react to magic (YouTube)
Articles:
Schools are expanding the application of design thinking (EducationDrive)
Games to Cultivate a Creative Attitude (Horsky Projects)
David Whyte on the True Meaning of Friendship, Love, and Heartbreak (BrainPickings)
We Got to Visit the Exclusive LA Mural that Only “Verified Influencers” Can Photograph (Hyperallergic)
Can Beyoncé and Jay-Z’s Louvre Video Change Perceptions of Who Belongs in Museums? (Hyperallergic)
On Critical Thinking (3 Quarks Daily)
Every step you take: How companies use geolocation data to target you — and everyone around — in ways you're not even aware of (Boston Globe)
A very short guide to the most creative part of your brain (Fast Company)
The lonely world between the hearing and the Deaf (Washington Post)
Timeless Advice on Writing: The Collected Wisdom of Great Writers (BrainPickings)
The Origin of Emojis is Way More Mysterious Than You'd Think (Thrillist)
More Recycling Won't Solve Plastic Pollution (Scientific American)
Six Steps To Becoming A Master Of Critical Thinking (Forbes)
Five Ways to Build Community in Online Classrooms (Faculty Focus)
What Marketers Can Learn from the Neuroscience of Creative Thinking (Skyword)
Humor
Overcomplicated Life Hacks