The Washington Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Committee (referred to in this report as "the Committee" and "Committee") was established in 2019 through Senate Bill 5082 (SB 5082) to address the growing body of evidence that shows the need for improving a student's social and emotional competencies which are critical to every…

The creation of new knowledge in the form of scientific models is a cornerstone of the process of science. In physics laboratory instruction, students are very often stuck in a confirmatory mindset; they have been conditioned to believe that the role of experimentation in the classroom and in the world is to verify known facts. This mindset is…

The literature on civic engagement in higher education is rich with examples of courses and programs that promote the development of students as engaged citizens in our democracy. However, few of them involve the arts. This fact is unfortunate because all forms of engagement with the arts is an important and effective means of achieving our civic…

The underrepresentation of minorities from rural communities in U.S. health professions has resulted in a lack of cultural understanding and inadequate healthcare for people of color and the poor. Described is the Roots to Wings (RTW) program, a partnership between higher education institutions and Native American tribes and schools. The heart of…

Gonzaga University is a small, private, liberal arts institution that values engaging, humanistic learning environments. During the coronavirus pandemic, the University moved its in-person learning to a distance-learning format, and an extra week of spring break was given to faculty to oversee this transition. This communication focuses on how our…

Online classes in teacher education are becoming more common in higher education in the United States as universities realize that the same outcomes can be achieved without requiring preservice and in-service teachers to enter a physical classroom. This provides savings to both the student and university and fosters broader access to higher…

Co-inquiry represents a distinctive relational model for partnering with students in SoTL that focuses on the process of seeking itself, and in particular, the importance of shared questions. We use case studies from two institutions to illustrate "co-inquiry" in action and highlight the importance of shared questions in changing the…

The Covid-19 pandemic has vividly illustrated the centrality of frontline workers to the everyday functioning of the American economy and daily life. But while some articles have mentioned the high proportion of immigrant workers in these roles, there has been much less attention paid to the high number of English learners in particular. The…

One of the most serious challenges facing higher education today is the erosion of academic culture--a declining sense that faculty form a community whose members reflect, deliberate, and make decisions together in the name of a shared educational vision. Our experience with Gonzaga University's Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL)…

Supporting adult learners as they complete their postsecondary certificates and degrees is essential to meeting our state's educational attainment goals and meeting the employment needs of students and Washington employers. Academic Credit for Prior Learning (ACPL) is awarded when a student's prior learning is assessed and found to be the…

Passive, lecture-based forms of instruction are often ineffective in helping students develop deep conceptual understanding of scientific concepts. Student-centered forms of instruction based in a constructivist framework, where students are guided toward actively constructing their understanding, have been met with greater success. However,…

In the rapidly changing world of higher education, innovative approaches to teaching adults are needed to drive instructional practices for helping to prepare the professionals of the future. The papers collected in "Innovations in Teaching Adults" were originally presented at a conference at City University of Seattle. The authors of…

For over a decade, Western Washington University has sponsored the Teaching-Learning Academy, bringing students, faculty, staff, and community members together as co-inquirers into overarching questions about teaching and learning. In this safe space, participants frame one research question of interest each year; sharing their perspectives and…

This article explores civic development and its roles in the lives of emerging adults, and the ways in which college contexts--particularly Christian colleges and universities--may foster adaptive civic development. First, the article presents an argument for the importance of fostering civic development as rooted in historic truths of the…

The Higher Education Opportunity Act (E2SHB 1795), passed by the Legislature in 2011, identified prior learning assessment (PLA) as an innovative means for improving degree and certificate attainment and improving cost effectiveness and efficiency within Washington's higher education system. The Act defines prior learning as "the knowledge…