Faculty Excellence at UMUC

Interviewer:

Please tell us about yourself—what made you decide to teach at UMUC? What kind of work do you do when you are not teaching at UMUC? Are there any life experiences that have influenced your teaching at UMUC? If so, please share one story.

Cynthia Whitesel

In 1973, I was hired as an assistant to the UMUC English coordinator at that time, Dr. Jack Barnes, who coordinated the English classes for UMUC worldwide. When I left graduate school in 1975, Dr. Barnes asked me to develop the first technical writing class for UMUC to be taught on the home campus. I taught my first UMUC course in 1976 and enjoyed working with adult learners. I’ve been with UMUC since then. Over the years, I’ve taught for many other institutions, but always come back to UMUC because of the working environment and the adult learners.

In the early 1990s, I became involved in online teaching and faculty development, working with our faculty on learning how to use WebTycho. I became interested in pedagogy and faculty development at that time, mostly because the online teaching really caused me to rethink how I teach, what I teach, and who I am teaching. That experience led me to return to graduate school to seek a Ph.D. in higher education policy studies where my research focus became teaching and learning.  

I retired from a career of technical editing and writing some years ago and turned to teaching full time as an adjunct when UMUC moved classes online. 

In addition to faculty development, I also teach for another online school. Outside of teaching, I have many activities. My husband and I play in a bluegrass band called Crabgrass (http://www.crabgrassband.com). We play in Annapolis as well as locally here in the Nottingham, PA, area. I also teach T’ai Chi locally as well as take T’ai Chi classes.

In spring 2009, I founded an environmental organization called Friends of the State Line Serpentine Barrens, where I also volunteer to help manage these rare ecological sites and educate on them as well (http://statelineserpentinebarrens.org). Our organization offers unpaid internships where students can get hands-on experience in environmental studies as well as in communication studies.

I serve on the Board of Directors of the Arts Alliance here in Oxford, PA., and I am also actively involved with my grandchildren, most of whom live in the local area.

I grew up in a military family and lived on various military bases during those years. When I was in Munich, Germany, during the late 1960s, I took two UMUC courses for my major in Comparative Literature, both of them German language and literature courses. At that time, I was an adult learner myself. The professors were German, and the classes were taught completely in German. I loved it! These two classes gave me a perspective on being an adult learner and introduced me to the quality of teachers at UMUC. When I was given the opportunity to teach for UMUC, I was excited about joining the ranks. Later, in the early 1990s, when UMUC became involved in online learning, I jumped at the chance to be a part of that innovation through faculty development and course design.   

Interviewer:

How would you describe your teaching style or philosophy? What experiences or person(s) have influenced your style or philosophy?

Cynthia Whitesel

My teaching style is a balance of hands-on with a watchful distance that enables students to work out their own learning patterns and to encourage them to try new ones. Teaching writing is teaching problem solving in communication. Students can learn to solve any writing situation once they learn the fundamental principles of audience, purpose, persuasion, organization, style, and delivery.

With a 40-year teaching career, it’s difficult to say who or what influenced my teaching style. My style has changed over time, adapting to new demands as they arise. I enjoy learning from others, trying out new strategies and assignments, and experimenting with different ways to teach the same classes. Certainly, my dissertation work in teaching with technology influenced and deepened my perspectives on teaching online. Over time, I have come to see teaching less as a repertoire of teaching strategies and more of a relationship with students, my discipline, and their learning.

Interviewer:

Please explain if you do something special or unique in your teaching and what made you develop this.

Cynthia Whitesel

I don’t really know what I do that is unique, if anything. Each time I facilitate a CTL workshop, I’m impressed with how many really thoughtful and effective teachers we do have. Over the years, I have learned that other teachers have discovered what I have.

Interviewer:

What do you think it is about your teaching style that appeals to students?

Cynthia Whitesel

My students tell me that my high level of interaction with them is what appeals to them. They describe me as an effective communicator who takes a personal interest in them and their learning and that the classes I teach make them feel welcome. They also explain that my classes build their confidence and help them to gain new skills and understanding that they can apply in their workplaces and lives.

Interviewer:

Do you teach face-to-face, online, or both? Do you have a preference between teaching face-to-face and online? If so, please explain.

Cynthia Whitesel

I have taught in all formats, from face-to-face, online, hybrid, 8-week accelerated classes, and weekend classes. I’ve also taught at different kinds of institutions, including an HBCU, as well as privately contracted workshops for industry and government. I now teach online and hybrid classes. 

The hybrid format is one of my favorites – one week online and one week in the classroom. Although this format requires more planning, seeing students in person and then online really enhances both modes. However, I do love teaching online because learners have to write more. As a bonus, I can come to class from the comforts of my own home office.

Interviewer:

Please tell us about your chosen discipline-i.e., what made you interested in the area initially? What do you do to stay current in your discipline? What do you like best about teaching in your discipline?

Cynthia Whitesel

I was fascinated with literature initially for its reflections of who we are and its ability to make our human experiences comprehensible through language. Therefore, literature became intimately tied to my teaching of literature and writing. Although I have two degrees in Comparative Literature, I have spent most of my teaching career teaching all kinds of writing: creative, academic, technical and business writing, and several sub-genres in those areas. When I returned to graduate school in 1999 to complete my Ph.D. in higher education policy studies, I chose phenomenology as my research method because of its relationship to writing to understand our experiences. After all these years, I’m still fascinated by the mysteries of what writing can teach us about ourselves.  

To stay current in my discipline, I participate in professional organizations such as the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), communicate about the discipline through listserves with colleagues, and do my own classroom research on teaching and learning writing, which I present at conferences. I enjoy reading books and journals on writing, teaching writing, and teaching adult learners.

Writing is the path to thinking. Our language creates our reality for us. I enjoy teaching students to write to think, think in writing, and write to learn. Introducing them to writing, no matter at what level, and encouraging them to trust their learning is a big part of my satisfaction with teaching writing.

Interviewer:

What is the most challenging to you in teaching in this area? What teaching strategy do you use when you encounter the challenge? Are there any special challenges in teaching this subject matter online?  If yes, please explain what could be done to meet the challenges.

Cynthia Whitesel

Adults often feel “exposed” in their writing and lack confidence in their abilities to express themselves. Most of our adult learners seem alienated from the underlying nature of the way that writing structures the brain for their thinking. Showing them how writing and rewriting actually improve their thinking is difficult to explain to them, especially online.

In a classroom, I can show them examples where we can discuss the iterative nature of writing. Online, this involves having many writing opportunities that must have direct feedback that both encourages as well as teaches. To teach these concepts, I use examples of types of writing and give them writing assignments. I also give them feedback directed at their individual level. In a class of 25 adult writers, I can easily have several different levels of writing skills.

Teaching writing online has made a big difference in how quickly students learn to write. Online, they are forced to write many different ways, in their journals, conversations in the discussion forums, in conversations with others, in study groups, and in their final papers and projects. The online forum is definitely conducive to teaching writing of all kinds. In many ways, the online classes can be a language immersion experience for students and teachers alike.

Students whose reading or writing may not be strong are challenged by online learning. Since these are often individualized situations, each student may need individualized attention and more resources. In many cases, I refer students to our Effective Writing Center (EWC) with its many resources and excellent tutors. I also invite these tutors and our librarians to my class to present material to my students.   

The special challenges for me are that writing intensive courses also have at least six writing intensive papers with fairly long word lengths. With 25 students to a class, I’m challenged to give sufficient individual comments to students, especially since I also teach other writing classes with 25 students each. And because our students have such a variety of writing and language abilities, it’s difficult to create a one-size-fits-all rubric for feedback.

Grading and returning the written assignments of 25 students in a writing intensive class can be a challenge, and the assignments need to be returned in time for students to use the information in their next papers.

To meet these challenges, first, we need to recognize the writing-intensive nature of online learning and ask questions about how many lengthy assignments are really needed to meet our learning objectives.

In considering the sometimes vast differences in skills our students bring to the classes, we also need to use more multimedia in teaching writing. For example, audio presentations with accompanying graphics or text often explain concepts better than strictly written explanations. With audio presentations, students can hear how we writing teachers think. This assists the mentoring of our students as they learn how to solve writing problems to find effective written solutions.

Interviewer:

What suggestion would you give to students who are interested in majoring or working in your discipline?

Cynthia Whitesel

First, I would suggest that these students get a solid degree in communication studies and professional writing. Most of our students already work in the discipline in some way, but some are actually trying to change disciplines or earn a second bachelor’s degree. Join one of the professional organizations, such as Society for Technical Communications and the IEEE, so you can network for jobs. Next, set up a Web site where you can showcase your résumé and skills, and connect through social networking on LinkedIn. Learn how to search with Google so you can find career opportunities. Comb the classifieds to see what software technical and business communicators are using and what skills organizations are looking for.  

Interviewer:

In your opinion, what makes UMUC the college of choice for students?

Cynthia Whitesel

UMUC accommodates adult learners through curricula that balance necessary workplace skills with theoretical academic training. Learners get the best of both worlds. Our teachers are or have been working members of their disciplines and bring workplace savvy to their classes. UMUC supports students in the form of tutoring math and writing. We also offer opportunities for students to earn academic credit from their work experience. We have internship opportunities as well.   

Interviewer:

In your opinion, what makes UMUC the employer of choice for future faculty members?

Cynthia Whitesel

UMUC introduces teachers to very interesting students through well developed courses. UMUC encourages and supports high standards in teaching. In addition, UMUC offers a wide variety of professional development opportunities in workshops facilitated by other faculty at UMUC. A real bonus is that UMUC supports teachers’ attending Sloan-C workshops as well. Even adjunct teachers have a voice through our Faculty Advisory Council.

Interviewer:

What suggestion would you give to new faculty who are interested in teaching in your discipline at UMUC?

Cynthia Whitesel

For new faculty who want to teach in communication studies and professional writing, I would recommend having experience in the discipline as well as an advanced degree with teaching experience.