CIHE Speaker Series: Online Learning Communities as Subversive Activity: Countering the Isolation and Silos in Graduate Supervision

Session Description

Online Learning Communities as Subversive Activity: Countering the Isolation and Silos in Graduate Supervision With Dr. Michele Jacobsen

Key to student thriving in graduate school is mentorship from an effective graduate supervisor. Graduate supervision is a complex and demanding mentoring, advising, and teaching role and responsibility. Effective supervisors can be the difference between masters and doctoral students completing their degrees or leaving the program. Unfortunately, too many professors are on their own when developing supervision skills on the job. Timely and flexible access to online faculty development on graduate supervision helps faculty to navigate the many complex issues and situations that can arise while mentoring diverse graduate students and increase their agility in responding to changes, such as the pandemic pivot to online supervision. Michele is leading a research team that designed and offered the Quality Graduate Supervision MOOC to academic researchers from across faculties and departments at six Canadian universities. The MOOC offers an online community of practice for graduate supervision that enables faculty to transcend isolated disciplinary silos to interact and learn with diverse colleagues across faculties and institutions via tailored learning conversations, peer engagements and goal setting activities. Michele will describe how supervision pedagogy can be enhanced and transformed when faculty have opportunities to engage with diverse peers and rich resources in transdisciplinary online communities of practice focused on effective graduate supervision.

Michele Jacobsen, a Professor in Learning Sciences at the University of Calgary, studies combinations of design, learning, technology, and change in education. Michele is currently leading research on online faculty development for graduate supervisors that has included faculty from across disciplines at six Canadian universities. Michele co-edited a book of Canadian research on online and blended learning and teaching from kindergarten to graduate school.