Intentional Teaching, a show about teaching in higher education

In the last year, we’ve seen many stories of college and university faculty being accused by students of teaching something that the student didn’t think the instructor should be teaching. These incidents have a lot of instructors worried about teaching controversial topics—and just about any topic can be controversial these days. Previously on the podcast, we've explored pedagogical responses to the current political climate. Today, we look at our legal options.Our guest is Kent Kauffman, author of the 2024 book Navigating Choppy Waters: Key Legal Issues College Faculty Need to Know. Kent knows the caselaw on academic freedom, and he has a lot of insight to offer faculty who are who are making hard decisions about what to leave on or take off their syllabi. In our conversation, he argues that academic freedom is under attack and he provides practical suggestions for preventing and responding to these attacks.However, we start the conversation in a little lighter mode. I invited Kent to give me a pop quiz of sorts by describing a few scenarios faculty might encounter and challenging me to identify the legal issues involved. You’ll have the chance to test yourself as you listen—and to find out how I did on Kent’s quiz. Episode ResourcesNavigating Choppy Waters: Key Legal Issues College Faculty Need to Know (Bloomsbury, 2024)Teaching in Higher Ed Episode 557 featuring Kent Kauffman Support the showPodcast Links:Intentional Teaching is sponsored by UPCEA, the online and professional education association.Subscribe to the Intentional Teaching newsletter: https://derekbruff.ck.page/subscribeSubscribe to Intentional Teaching bonus episodes:https://www.buzzsprout.com/2069949/supporters/new Support Intentional Teaching on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/intentionalteachingFind me on LinkedIn and Bluesky.See my website for my "Agile Learning" blog and information about having me speak at your campus or conference. 

Last November, University of Virginia English professor James Seitz offered a workshop through the UVA Center for Teaching Excellence titled “Teaching in the Age of AI: How Students Can Do All Their Writing in the Classroom.” When I saw the workshop announcement, I have to admit that my initial reaction wasn’t a positive one. Was this another call to return to the days of blue books, with high stakes essay exams depending on students being able to practice the lost art of handwriting? No! I’m excited to have Jim Seitz on the podcast today to share how he has moved the writing his students do into the classroom. This move is a response to generative AI’s disruption of writing instruction, yes, but it’s also the latest in a series of teaching choices Jim has made to teach his students writing as a way of thinking and to change their relationship with writing. Jim takes a very thoughtful and intentional approach to his in-class writing days, as you’ll hear in our conversation. Episode ResourcesJames Seitz’s website, https://jamesseitz.com/ “What Happens After A.I. Destroys College Writing?” by Hua Hsu in The New Yorker“Bringing the Term Paper into the Classroom,” an interview with Lily Abadal on the Designed for Learning podcast“Getting Started with Specifications Grading,” a Teaching Hub collection by Dorothe Bach“Strategies for Avoiding AI” and “More Strategies for Avoiding AI” on the UVA Teaching Center websiteSupport the showPodcast Links:Intentional Teaching is sponsored by UPCEA, the online and professional education association.Subscribe to the Intentional Teaching newsletter: https://derekbruff.ck.page/subscribeSubscribe to Intentional Teaching bonus episodes:https://www.buzzsprout.com/2069949/supporters/new Support Intentional Teaching on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/intentionalteachingFind me on LinkedIn and Bluesky.See my website for my "Agile Learning" blog and information about having me speak at your campus or conference. 

This past December, I had the honor of being a guest on the Grading Podcast ("reimagining grading as a tool for student success") hosted by Sharona Krinsky and Robert Bosley. We had such a great conversation that I thought I would return the favor and invite Sharona and Boz on my podcast.Sharona Krinsky is the executive director of the Center for Grading Reform, a non-profit that hosts an annual conference on grading, among other things. She’s also a math instructor at California State Los Angeles. Robert Bosley, better known as Boz, is director of programming for K12 at the Center for Grading Reform and an instructional coach in the Los Angeles Unified School District. In our conversation, Sharona and Boz share why they named their podcast the Grading Podcast and not the Alternative Grading Podcast. They also share the state of the grading reform movement here in 2026 and talk about the barriers that teachers face when trying to adopt alternative grading practices. And they have advice for centers for teaching and learning on supporting grading reform on their campuses.Episode ResourcesThe Grading PodcastThe Center for Grading ReformThe Grading ConferenceDerek’s appearance on the Grading PodcastSupport the showPodcast Links:Intentional Teaching is sponsored by UPCEA, the online and professional education association.Subscribe to the Intentional Teaching newsletter: https://derekbruff.ck.page/subscribeSubscribe to Intentional Teaching bonus episodes:https://www.buzzsprout.com/2069949/supporters/new Support Intentional Teaching on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/intentionalteachingFind me on LinkedIn and Bluesky.See my website for my "Agile Learning" blog and information about having me speak at your campus or conference. 

Sarah Gibson, a communication professor and AI faculty fellow guiding campus AI policy, and Windy Frank, an adjunct who creates AI-infused Bible course assignments, discuss student-designed Old Testament chatbots. They explain how students research, build personalities, test bots, handle objections, and how the university scaled campuswide AI tools. Conversations cover tools, ethics, accommodations, and plans to run the assignment again.

Derek Bruff, education researcher and author of Intentional Tech, shares updates and reflections six years after his book. He highlights times-for-telling, learning communities, and authentic audiences. He discusses using AI for critique and simulations, staying pedagogy-first when choosing tools, and small practical steps faculty can take each semester.

Annette Vee, an Associate Professor of English at the University of Pittsburgh and author focused on computation and writing, dives into the evolving landscape of AI and education. She discusses how AI reshapes coding literacy and why it should be part of the college curriculum. Vee critiques the term 'AI literacy', emphasizing hands-on knowledge and equity. Through her research, she reveals students' complex feelings about AI, highlighting the need for collaborative teaching and safe spaces for dialogue. Practical strategies for engaging students in these discussions are also shared.

About a year ago, I appeared on the Ed Up Provost podcast hosted by Gregor Thuswaldner to share some educational technology advice for academic leaders. Topics included strategic planning around edtech adoption to managing innovation and organizational change to investing in faculty and staff, and I think my advice holds up well. Today, I'm sharing that interview here on the Intentional Teaching podcast feed. Whether your job title includes the word provost or not, I hope you find the conversation useful.Episode ResourcesThe Ed Up Provost podcastGregor Thuswaldner on LinkedInSupport the showPodcast Links:Intentional Teaching is sponsored by UPCEA, the online and professional education association.Subscribe to the Intentional Teaching newsletter: https://derekbruff.ck.page/subscribeSubscribe to Intentional Teaching bonus episodes:https://www.buzzsprout.com/2069949/supporters/new Support Intentional Teaching on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/intentionalteachingFind me on LinkedIn and Bluesky.See my website for my "Agile Learning" blog and information about having me speak at your campus or conference. 

Ken Bain was the author of What the Best College Teachers Do, a book that has helped many college educators apply the science of learning to their teaching practice. He was also the founding director of the Vanderbilt University Center for Teaching, which is why I interviewed him in 2023 for an oral history I was producing about the CFT.Ken Bain passed away in October 2025, and I wanted to honor his legacy by sharing my full interview with him from 2023. In this episode, Ken talks about his work starting the teaching center at Vanderbilt and how that work helped faculty at Vanderbilt and elsewhere develop teaching strategies for deep learning. I was honored to talk with him that day in 2023, and I've always been honored to follow in his footsteps in faculty development.Episode ResourcesKen Bain’s obituaryJim Lang’s post about Ken’s passingWhat the Best College Teachers DoAn Oral History of the Vanderbilt Center for TeachingPhotos from the CFT’s 35th Anniversary Support the showPodcast Links:Intentional Teaching is sponsored by UPCEA, the online and professional education association.Subscribe to the Intentional Teaching newsletter: https://derekbruff.ck.page/subscribeSubscribe to Intentional Teaching bonus episodes:https://www.buzzsprout.com/2069949/supporters/new Support Intentional Teaching on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/intentionalteachingFind me on LinkedIn and Bluesky.See my website for my "Agile Learning" blog and information about having me speak at your campus or conference. 

What if your college or university decided that every undergraduate student there would be an entrepreneur, not just studying entrepreneurship but doing it? That’s exactly the decision made a few years ago by the leadership at Paul Quinn College in Dallas, Texas.Paul Quinn is an HBCU with a small student body, just 700 students. This year, the college has launched a new program called Every Quinnite Is an Entrepreneur. The goal? Every student, regardless of major, launches and operates a real venture before graduation.On the podcast today, I talk with Jeff Meade, founding director of Every Quinnite Is an Entrepreneur. Jeff came to Paul Quinn last year with 20 years experience growing companies and advising businesses. We talk about his institution’s bold approach to preparing students for life after college and what venture-based learning looks like as this new program gets moving.Episode ResourcesJeff Meade on LinkedInPaul Quinn CollegeEvery Quinnite Is an EntrepreneurSupport the showPodcast Links:Intentional Teaching is sponsored by UPCEA, the online and professional education association.Subscribe to the Intentional Teaching newsletter: https://derekbruff.ck.page/subscribeSubscribe to Intentional Teaching bonus episodes:https://www.buzzsprout.com/2069949/supporters/new Support Intentional Teaching on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/intentionalteachingFind me on LinkedIn and Bluesky.See my website for my "Agile Learning" blog and information about having me speak at your campus or conference. 

I’m back with another “Take It or Leave It” panel! This one is a little different. On October 2nd, in my role as associate director of the UVA Center for Teaching Excellence, I hosted a virtual panel titled “Take It or Leave It: AI’s Role in Online Learning” featuring three fantastic UVA colleagues. The conversation went very well, and the panelists and the CTE gave me permission to share the audio from the panel here on the Intentional Teaching podcast. The panelists for this edition of Take It or Leave It are all at the University of Virginia. Michelle Beavers is associate professor and coordinator of the Administration and Supervision Program in UVA’s School of Education and Human Development. Leo Lo is dean of libraries and university librarian, advisor to the provost on AI literacy, and professor of education. Sara McClellan is assistant professor of professional studies and program coordinator of the Public Administration Certificate Program at UVA’s School of Continuing and Professional Studies.You’ll hear me briefly describe five recent op-eds on teaching and learning in higher ed. For each op-ed, I’ll ask each of our panelists if they “take it,” that is, generally agree with the main thesis of the essay, or “leave it.” This is an artificial binary that I’ve found to generate rich discussion of the issues at hand. Episode Resources·       Michelle Beavers’ faculty page·       Leo Lo’s LinkedIn page·       Sara McClellan’s website·       Essay 1: “Are You Ready for the AI University?”, Scott Latham, April 4, 2025·       Essay 2: “AI Risks Undermining the Heart of Higher Education,” Zahid Naz, April 21, 2025·       Essay 3: “Urgent Need for AI Literacy,” Ray Schroeder, April 30, 2025·       Essay 4: “Sometimes We Resist AI for Good Reasons,” Kevin Gannon, September 24, 2025·       Essay 5: “On AI, We Reap What We Sow,” Chad Hanson, September 10, 2025Support the showPodcast Links:Intentional Teaching is sponsored by UPCEA, the online and professional education association.Subscribe to the Intentional Teaching newsletter: https://derekbruff.ck.page/subscribeSubscribe to Intentional Teaching bonus episodes:https://www.buzzsprout.com/2069949/supporters/new Support Intentional Teaching on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/intentionalteachingFind me on LinkedIn and Bluesky.See my website for my "Agile Learning" blog and information about having me speak at your campus or conference.