Being hypercritical, judgmental or holding others to established standards doesn't lend support or help each other grow, Palmer said. We need to establish these new ground rules if we are going to move to a community of discourse the world is calling us to create. The two-day dialogue was sponsored by the Council for Ethical, Spiritual and Religious Dialogue, which was appointed as an advisory committee by Maureen Hartford, vice president for student affairs. Following Palmer's presentation, reactions and discussion from seven panelists brought more experience to the floor. CRLT is trying to get the word out that it can help faculty and graduate student instructors develop and design courses and find resources for innovative and creative teaching and learning.
Teaching matters more and more, and the commitment to that is a result of good leadership.
Rush said that he entered his first class of the year making a clown of himself to help students understand there were no limits. Boundaries that might stunt the growth of that creativity are removed early in the teaching process, he noted. Hornof plans to teach in higher education when he completes his degree. In determining his career path, he talked with 10 faculty members about what they liked least and most about their jobs, and, invariably, they said teaching was what they enjoyed least. He also noted that one must be motivated to go to CRLT and benefit from its programs.