The John M. Burns Conference on the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning is co-sponsored each year by the Teaching, Learning, and Professional Development Center and the Teaching Academy. Named in honor of Dr. John M. Burns, who helped found the Teaching Academy, this conference is held each fall and features two keynote sessions from an invited teacher-scholar and a poster session from recipients of the Annual Lawrence Schovanec Teaching Development Scholarship Award. Past speakers include Noah Finkelstein, Bryan Dewsbury, Peter Felten, Claire Howell Major, Michele DiPietro, and Derek Bruff.

The 23rd annual John M. Burns Conference will be held on Friday, September 27, 2024, with Dr. Lindsay Masland. Registration is now open!

Morning Keynote

In Defense of Teacher-Centered Teaching…and Other Things I'm Not Supposed to Say

10:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | TLPDC 151

Over the past few years, college instructors have been surprised, confused, and occasionally outraged by the students who show up in our classrooms. Lamentations over missing skills, low attendance rates, and disappointing work quality are centerstage in many pedagogical discussions. Not surprisingly, the recommended antidote is to double down on our use of student-centered teaching.  In our quest to be student-centered, though, we can end up making choices that can overwhelm us with their unsustainability. In this talk, we'll explore how centering our own needs in pedagogical decision-making provides fertile ground for sustainable, effective teaching that benefits both our students and ourselves.

Lunch and Poster Sessions

Food will be provided and recipients of the Lawrence Schovanec Teaching Development Scholarships will present posters sharing information from the conferences they attended.

12:00 - 1:30 p.m. | TLPDC Lobby

Afternoon Workshop

Should It Stay or Should It Go? Aligning Your Teaching Decisions to Your Values and Context

1:30 - 3:00 p.m. | TLPDC 151

It's one thing to commit to a sustainable teaching approach that honors your own values and needs as much as those of your students. It's quite another to actually overhaul your teaching in the way that "walking the talk" demands. In this workshop, we'll examine our syllabi, policies, and other teaching artifacts in the context of the real (not ideal) world we inhabit. For example, is a high-feedback approach to grading actually sustainable if you have care responsibilities? Do you have the margin to teach "out-of-the-box" if you don't have a tenured position? Do teaching choices land differently according to who's making them? By using our context and values as "bouncers," we'll make the tough but important decisions of what should stay and what should go in our teaching.

2024 Registration

Speaker Bio

Recordings of Previous Sessions

*Please Note: While this conference is intended to be face-to-face, we may offer a virtual option for remote faculty. If you have a remote appointment, please email Molly Jacobs to request a Zoom link.