“I don’t care if I am bad at it,” Ben shouts from the rooftops. At this point in their lives Ben and Amanda have got used to being failures. They accept that being a failure is part of the process! They also know that the moment you make it through is just too good of an opportunity to pass up.In this episode we unpack the power of a growth mindset. What is it? How does it help instructors reframe their interactions with students? How does it help students succeed and persevere in the face of challenge? From the language you use to opportunities for reflection to the structure of your course, Ben and Amanda look at what things that you can do in your classroom to help foster a growth mindset for students.

Ben and Amanda kick off Episode 5 with some fun news – They are top 119 in “how to” podcasts through Apple. This is a wild fact considering that when this was recorded, they have been only live for less than a week! As long as no welders or basket weavers start podcasts, they might even start climbing the ranking.

Getting into the core of the episode, Ben and Amanda are doing something new! Every once and a while, they want to take some time to reflect on their experiences, share stories, and get perspectives.

For the first Office Hour, Ben considers the age-old phrase: You can lead a student to water, but you can’t make them drink. He shares a story of a challenging student – one who was egregiously and regularly late, who would ask questions about what to do but not follow through on itemized feedback, and who would constantly struggle but never make progress. This episode looks at how Ben worked with the student to provide structure and support despite the continued and growing challenge. Ultimately, with some probing questions from Amanda, the dynamic duo work to reframe the situation and consider the bigger picture (e.g., what else could be going on for the student? What can we do within the boundaries of our jobs as educators?) Spoilers, the answers are a lot was probably going on and there wasn’t much more Ben could have done.

You, yes you, can join in by sending your stories, successes, and struggles to coffeebreakclassroom@gmail.com! Our hosts want this to be a space for everyone to come together. Tell us about your stories, successes, and struggles. Do you have an assignment that you are struggling with assessing? Do you have students who are doing things you don’t expect? Are you a student that is listening to this for some reason and want to tell us about your experiences. We want to here from you!

New episodes every other week! Check out coffeebreakclassroom.carrd.co for more Amanda and Ben as they continue to update on the professional development they cannot stop churning out. Keep it real!

After discussing the need for a skip intro button and... did Amanda say she wanted to eat a baby? Uh, anyway, the syllabus is often the first thing that students see for a course. It sets the tone for both the class and how they see us as instructors. How do we make a syllabus that brings students in?

Amanda and Ben unpack the syllabus. They first discuss how you communicate why the class matters, why the assignments/assessments matter, and why the policies matter. Communicating expectations goes a long way. Amanda and Ben discuss late policies and attendance policies and how they show up in the syllabus. They discuss ways to make the syllabus welcoming and how avoid a list of “DON’T DO THIS” to account for that one time a student did a thing that you didn’t like.

Lastly, we take on ways to deal with the length of the syllabus. Apparently, Amanda remembers a time where syllabi were a single page and Ben thinks she is dreaming. How do you avoid a wall of text? Amanda and Ben talk sharing the syllabus in ways that students can walk away with the information that you want them to have.

Syllabus tips you can take away today. Even Ben and Amanda each picked up something new from each other! Grab a cup of coffee or tea and enjoy!