Support materials for First Year Seminar courses to cultivate critical communication skills
Notes from the small group discussions
Dr. Carolyn Shaw carolyn.shaw@wichita.edu
- I draw on content from our common read books (often biographies) and invite students to share their own stories with each other. This builds community and trust for hard conversations. Sample discussion questions from 2023-24.
- I also encourage students to reflect on different aspects of their identity and see how those align with others' experiences in the classroom. This helps build common ground and establish trust in the group for further conversations. ex. Identity exercise.
Dr. Kelly McFall
- A key component in my first year seminars are games taken from the Reacting to the Past Consortium.
Dr. Kimberly Engber
- Initial Essay "Once I was ____; Now I am ____"
- Initial Group Research Exercise - Exploring topics
- Final Reflective Essay: Create a portfolio page that reflects your intellectual, professional, innovative
and transformative development this semester.
Dr. Kevin Harrison