Report on AY 2022 Winter Term Brown Bag Lunch & Learn

In addition to facilitating the proactive sharing of skills and specialist knowledge among faculty, Brown Bag Lunch & Learn (BBL&L) seeks to enable faculty members to learn from one another’s classroom experiences, including both things that went well and not so well, and meet colleagues from outside their own programs and departments. Furthermore, BBL&L aims to provide opportunities for faculty members to share information with one another as well as with staff members.

In the BBL&L sessions held in the AY 2022 Winter Term, topics such as cognitive bias, ChatGPT, and quantitative skills were covered. Many faculty and staff members attended the sessions and engaged in lively discussions.

BBL&L #22: January 17, 2023

Theme: How can critical thinking contend with the emerging challenge of cognitive bias?　

Facilitator: Mr. Guy Smith, English for Liberal Arts Program (ELA)

The English for Liberal Arts Program (ELA), which Mr. Smith teaches on, is a program that fosters not only academic English skills but also critical thinking skills. In this session, Mr. Smith discussed the impact that cognitive bias (subjective tendencies or predispositions in thinking processes) has on critical thinking and described strategies to reduce the negative effects of cognitive bias. In the latter half of the session, the participants asked a flurry of questions about the 9 practical strategies that were presented and engaged in a lively discussion. The session was attended by 10 faculty members and 2 staff members, in addition to the CTL Associate Director and 4 staff members who manage BBL&L.

BBL&L #23: February 20, 2023

Theme: How does OpenAI’s ChatGPT change student learning?

Facilitator: Prof. Takashi Kaburagi, Department of Natural Sciences

Since the launch of OpenAI’s ChatGPT in November 2022, ways to use ChatGPT and its advantages and disadvantages have been discussed in various fields. In educational settings, to what extent does ChatGPT provide answers for assignments that instructors usually set for their students? In this session, Prof. Kaburagi first explained how Chat GPT works and provided a real example. This was followed by a discussion between Prof. Kaburagi and the participants on the effects that ChatGPT would have on student learning, the types of assignments that would be affected, and what advice should be given to students to enable them to use technology “correctly.” The session was attended by 31 faculty members and 26 staff members, in addition to the CTL Director and 4 staff members who manage BBL&L.

BBL&L #24: February 27, 2023

Theme: Supporting students' development of quantitative skills

Facilitator: Prof. Tomoo Matsumura, Department of Natural Sciences

Prof. Matsumura, a Mathematics faculty member, described the current state of courses covering basic mathematics which he teaches, and opened the floor for discussion on how we might in future support students at ICU who find mathematics challenging. In light of the fact that there are a certain number of students who have not encountered mathematics in the past two years or who feel that they are not good at it, the following topics were discussed: motivating students and the significance of learning quantitative skills, fostering information skills, and bridging the gap between high school mathematics and university-level studies. We will continue discussions on establishing a structure for collaborative learning, such as students solving problems and teaching one another what they have understood, and on creating a mechanism for working across disciplines where quantitative skills are needed to support learning, among other things. The session was attended by 1 trustee, 11 faculty members, and 8 staff members, in addition to the CTL Director, CTL Associate Director, and 4 staff members who manage BBL&L.