Teachers as Scholars Summer Seminars

Middle and secondary school teachers from public and private schools are invited to participate in the Teachers as Scholars seminars. Approved by the Pennsylvania Department of Education for Act 48 Professional Development, participants can receive ten (10 hours) credits per seminar. Seminars and workshop are free of charge, including lunches. 

In collaboration with your school district administration, we have scheduled summer seminars to maximize the availability for teachers outside the academic year (with an hour break for a provided lunch). All seminars take place in Ernest L. Boyer Hall and are limited to 16 participants. You will therefore be able to include these seminars in your annual professional development plan of in-service for Act 48 credit in conjunction with your district office.

When: Mon, June 9 & Tues, June 10
Presented by: Brian Smith, Department of Biblical, Religious and Philosophical Studies

What does religion have to do with literature? How do stories work within faith traditions? In this course we will explore how narrative intersects within religion. We will examine the canonical status and uses of stories from several different religious traditions (e.g., Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, Judaism, indigenous religions). We will wonder together about the religious purposes of the texts and consider their craft, noting their particular conventions and characteristics. Our focus will be canonical stories, but we will also briefly consider the role of narrative in the spiritual life of the religious practitioner, in which some of the faithful write their own extra-canonical stories. Finally, we will briefly consider how the study of canonical stories might facilitate interreligious dialogue. This course will be of interest to anyone who teaches in the areas of literature, religion, or social science.

When: Mon, June 9 & Tues, June 10
Presented by: Oksana Moroz, Department of Language, Literature and Writing.        

In an era where digital and physical worlds merge, educators face the challenges of understanding Gen Z student identities and their own intersectional identities that undoubtedly impact their teaching. Thus, this interactive seminar invites attendees to examine how identities—shaped by gender, culture, technology, religion, and personal experiences—affect teaching practices and student learning. Participants will explore strategies for integrating creative personal writing into the classroom to reflect on and amplify their identities while fostering a similar process for students. Drawing from research on teacher identity as pedagogy, creative writing genres, and the impact of digital technologies, the seminar will focus on practical pedagogical approaches that emphasize the intersectional nature of the identities and reflect on how students' and teachers’ digital and physical lives are intertwined. Through various reflective writing exercises, case studies, and group discussions, participants will gain practical skills to adopt self-awareness and develop critical thinking in their students, encouraging them to examine their own identities in relation to the world around them. Seminar’s participants will also be encouraged to consider their own evolving roles in the postdigital age, exploring how their lived experiences shape their teaching practices and the impact of these practices on student learning. By the end of the seminar, participants will leave with concrete strategies for using narrative forms of writing and reflective practices to create more inclusive, humanistic, and dynamic learning environments.

When: Wed, June 11 & Thurs, June 12
Presented by: Krista Imbesi, Department of Communication

In this seminar we will study various modes and styles of non-fiction filmmaking and their ethical considerations. Through case studies, we will use this information to critique artistic and structural decisions in popular non-fiction mediums and discuss how this information can be used to increase media literacy through critical analysis. We will then move to hands-on application where technical and aesthetic choices in interview, filming and editing styles will be demonstrated and practiced in our campus production studio. No previous experience or technical knowledge in filmmaking is required, but you will need a smartphone with space available for recording video and the free app CapCut downloaded to your phone for editing your footage during the practice portion of the workshop.

When: Wed, June 11 & Thurs, June 12
Presented by: Ryan Rickrode, Department of Language, Literature & Writing

We read a few words at the beginning of [a] book . . . and suddenly we find ourselves seeing not words on a page but a train moving through Russia, an old Italian crying, or a farmhouse battered by rain. We read on—dream on—not passively but actively, worrying about the choices the characters have to make, listening in panic for some sound behind the fictional door, exulting in characters’ successes, bemoaning their failures. In great fiction, the dream engages us heart and soul. - John Gardner, The Art of Fiction

Before literature can be interpreted, it must first be experienced. “The poem,” writes literary theorist Louise Rosenblatt, “must be thought of as an event in time. It is not an object. . . . It [is]a coming together . . . of a reader and a text.” Encouraging students to approach stories and poems as experiences arising from a collaboration between themselves and a text can instill in those students an openness to ambiguity, a capacity for empathy, and a sense of curiosity that prepares them not only for writing thoughtful analyses, but also for pursuing a lifetime of reading.

In this two-day seminar participants will explore the practice of aesthetic reading—reading simply for the experience of reading, as opposed to reading for the purpose of extracting information—as outlined by Rosenblatt in her theory of “transactional reader response.” After discussing and experiencing different strategies for encouraging students to engage in aesthetic reading, participants will reflect on and discuss how these strategies, activities, and assignments can be adapted for their specific teaching contexts.