CoLab Podcast

Josh Luckens of the Wentworth Institute of Technology, Joan Zaretti of Bryant University and Karen Hopkins of Auburn University discuss their experiences creating playful and play-based programs and activities aimed at engaging learners and building community. They share strategies for cultivating a sense of belonging, purpose, and trust among students and faculty through the joy of play. This epi...

Josh Luckens interviews Dr. Igor Minevich, Professor of Applied Mathematics at the Wentworth Institute of Technology. Minevich explains why the Teaching and Learning Collaborative’s New Faculty Orientation and Instructional Coaching program “changed the way I feel about teaching,” inspiring him to “lead the classroom like a partnership” and “teach from the heart.” He discusses why he shifted away...

Josh Luckens interviews Dr. Kevin Gannon, who shares how he finds spaces of possibility to question the status quo in higher education, working alongside his students to build a more just and sustainable future. He discusses ways to stop inequities from reproducing themselves in the classroom, how he has moved from focusing on the product to the process of learning, and why he leads with compassio...

The Teaching & Learning Collaborative’s Josh Luckens and Megan Hamilton Giebert are joined by Wentworth’s Dean of Students Jenn Kosses to discuss the “Seven Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education,” a classic study by Arthur Chickering and Zelda Gamson. Our conversation explores how we bring these best practices to life at Wentworth and illuminates the many ways in which Chicke...

Josh Luckens interviews Dr. Lisa Forbes and Dr. David Thomas, the co-founders of Professors at Play , an organization that invites professors to explore the transformative power of play in the higher education classroom. They are the co-editors of the Professors at Play PlayBook , an anthology of playful teaching techniques applicable across the disciplines, sourced from their network of nearly 1,...

Josh Luckens interviews Dr. Thomas J. Tobin, who discusses the power of “the big five: voice, choice, agency, safety, and belonging” in teaching and learning. Dr. Tobin is a specialist in Teaching, Learning, and Academic Technology at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. He is a celebrated scholar and speaker on technology-mediated education and is the co-author of Reach Everyone, Teach Everyone:...

Josh Luckens interviews a team of Wentworth colleagues who he collaborates with to design hands-on, experiential learning opportunities for students at Accelerate, Wentworth's Entrepreneurship and Innovation Center. The team shares how they create fertile learning spaces where failure is seen as necessary for growth, offering strategies for empowering students with the tools to be innovative and b...

Josh Luckens interviews Dr. Tracie Addy, who shares strategies for implementing inclusive teaching practices in the college classroom. They discuss the relationship between active learning and equity, why student-centered teaching promotes feelings of belonging, and the pedagogical power of authentic human connection. Dr. Tracie Addy is the Director of the Center for the Integration of Teaching, L...

Josh Luckens interviews Nic Voge, who offers strategies for transforming fear and reframing failure in academic settings. He shares ways to design courses that emphasize student engagement and intrinsic motivation as central features in an experience of meaningful inquiry. Nic Voge is a nationally recognized expert in teaching, learning, and student motivation, and the senior associate director of...

In a spooky Halloween adventure, hosts Josh Luckens and Megan Hamilton Giebert are thrust into an educational encounter with the supernatural world. We feature an oracular radio drama in which a lost professor contends with ghosts, zombies, and a truth-telling student, and teaching tips are conveyed from the great beyond via Arioch Wentworth's gramophone. Beware: this episode features course desig...

Wentworth instructional designers Josh Luckens, Megan Hamilton Giebert, and Lucy Wolski discuss strategies to implement Universal Design for Learning (UDL) in college classrooms. UDL is a framework that seeks to improve and optimize teaching and learning for all people based on scientific insights into how humans learn best. Research shows that the ways in which people learn are as unique as their...

Josh Luckens interviews Dr. Susan Blum, who shares how she uses “ungrading” principles and practices to reinvigorate her role as a college professor and empower her students to be lifelong learners. Dr. Blum is a professor of anthropology at The University of Notre Dame and the author of nine books, including her 2016 publication " I Love Learning; I Hate School: An Anthropology of College ,” and...

Wentworth instructional designers Josh Luckens, Megan Hamilton Giebert, and Lucy Wolski team up again to discuss actionable ways to bring trauma-informed teaching strategies into the classroom. Trauma-informed pedagogy is a holistic approach to teaching and learning that recognizes and responds proactively to the collective and individual traumas that both students and faculty experience. Underpin...

Josh Luckens interviews Dr. Saundra McGuire, who shares personal philosophies and inspiring stories from her decades as a leader in higher education. Dr. Saundra McGuire is internationally acclaimed learning specialist who has been teaching students a rich tapestry of strategies for improving their study skills and achieving academic success for over 50 years as a Professor of Chemistry and as the...

Twenty-one strategies. Two instructional designers. One timer. Can Josh Luckens and Megan Hamilton Giebert relay every strategy in just one minute each? Part-game, part-inspiration, this episode presents evidence-based strategies to increase intrinsic motivation that can be implemented in any classroom. These strategies are drawn from the book: Teach Students How to Learn: Strategies You Can Incor...

Three TLC instructional designers – Josh Luckens, Megan Hamilton Giebert, and Lucy Wolski – discuss the benefits of the TILT framework, which is used to clearly state a course assignment’s purpose, task, and assessment criteria. TILT is an easy and impactful adjustment that instructors can make to help their students succeed. Additional resources: Video: TILT's developer Mary-Ann Winkelmes describ...

Josh Luckens interviews Ilyas Bhatti, Professor of Construction Management at Wentworth, who reflects upon his rich career in public service and the connections that have defined it by sharing stories and lessons learned. Ilyas Bhatti is the Interim Dean of the School of Management at the Wentworth Institute of Technology and has been a beloved professor of Construction Management at Wentworth for...