PsychSessions: Conversations about Teaching N' Stuff

Latest Episodes:

PsychSessions: AI - Artificial "Intelligence"? An interview with Robert McEntarffer (S1E3) Mar 21, 2025

Show notes

In this episode, Dr. Robert McEntarffer, a former high school teacher and current college educator, discusses the cognitive offloading potential offered by AI and on those types of thinking it would be wise not to let AI replace. Rob offers a critique of the term artificial "intelligence", suggesting that "large language model" may be a more appropriate term given that AI doesn't truly understand or derive meaning from text. Rob highlights both the potential benefits and drawbacks of AI in education and the need for a deeper understanding of cognitive processes in learning.

References:

David, L., Vassena, E., & Bijleveld, E. (2024). The unpleasantness of thinking: A meta-analytic review of the association between mental effort and negative affect. Psychological Bulletin, 150(9), 1070–1093. https://doi.org/10.1037/bul0000443

Hicks, M. T., Humphries, J., & Slater, J. (2024). ChatGPT is bullshit. Ethics and Information Technology, 26(2), 38. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10676-024-09775-5

Theme music was written by Thad Bromstrup

PsychSessions: AI - Jordan Wagge and Alexander Swan on how professors can use LLMs to help with "All the things" (S1E2) Mar 21, 2025

Show notes

Join veteran educators Dr. Jordan Wagge, Professor and Chair of Psychology at Avila University in Kansas City, Missouri, and Dr. Alex Swan, Associate Professor of Psychology at Eureka College in Eureka, Illinois, as they share insights and lessons learned from incorporating AI tools into their professional lives and classrooms. This episode offers valuable perspectives for educators navigating the evolving landscape of AI in education.

Theme music was written by Thad Bromstrup

PsychSessions: AI - The Conversation Begins (S1E1) Mar 21, 2025

Show notes

In this first episode of the PsychSessions: AI and Education, host Joe Slade speaks with Garth Neufeld, co-founder of the Psych Sessions podcast. They discuss Joe's research and experiences with AI in education, including the use of AI avatars, ChatGPT's voice mode, and the potential for AI workflows as teaching and learning tools. Joe shares his optimistic perspective on integrating AI into education while addressing the ethical and philosophical questions it raises. They also discuss future podcast series directions and the importance of diverse viewpoints on AI's impact on education.

Theme music was written by Thad Bromstrup

E220: Melissa Maffeo: Classroom innovations, academic life, the supernatural, and neuroscience Mar 11, 2025

Show notes

In this episode Eric interviews Melissa Maffeo from Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, NC. Melissa shares insights about her freshman seminars on alcohol history, use, and misuse, emphasizing harm reduction over abstinence. The conversation delves into her biopsychology class and creative teaching methods, such as murder mysteries to teach neurobiology. The episode also covers Melissa's career path, her role as an associate teaching professor, and advocacy for teaching-focused faculty. Highlighting her passion for neuroscience and education, Melissa discusses her upcoming book 'Science of the Supernatural' and the Neuroscience Teaching Conference she co-founded.

[Note. Portions of the show notes were generated by Descript AI.]

S1E8: Fun, Not Dour (Jane Halonen and Dana Dunn) Mar 07, 2025

Show notes

Dave talks with Jane Halonen (University of West Florida) and Dana Dunn (Moravian University) about opportunities to choose to do what brings us joy and also allowing opportunities for our more junior colleagues to gain experiences that will help with their career development. We discuss the frustration of dealing with burdensome and unnecessary processes that can take time away from our teaching. Listen closely for an appearance by Dana's dog, Arno!

S1E7: Disappearing Like Yoda (Ken Carter and Pat Puccio) Mar 07, 2025

Show notes

Ken Carter (Oxford College of Emory University) and Pat Puccio (Depaul University; retired from the College of DuPage) discuss a range of topics having to do with negotiating late career chapters and retirement. We chat about the different ways that "late career" can be interpreted and different pathways in retirement. We also comment on the need for support for late career and retired psychology faculty, particularly in terms of community connections that may become less accessible after one retires. We also discuss preparing our departments for our retirement versus "disappearing like Yoda."

S1E6: Retirement: The Great Unknown (Loretta McGregor and Randy Smith) Mar 07, 2025

Show notes

In this episode, Loretta McGregor (Arkansas State University) and Randy Smith (retired) chat with Dave about knowning when it's time to retire or to make a career change, based on what we personally find rewarding. We reflect on technology-related changes in teaching, especially with regard to writing (ever wonder where "cut and paste" came from?). Randy and Loretta also offer some practical suggestions for earlier career faculty about setting themselves up for a successful late career and retirement.

S1E5: Bring Back the Overhead Projector (Suzie Baker and Drew Christopher) Mar 07, 2025

Show notes

Dave talks with Suzie Baker (James Madison University) and Drew Christopher (Albion College) about the "late career" label and the changes, as our careers have progressed, in how we decide how to invest our time. We also discuss what aspects of our teaching have stayed the same or changed over time, and how we have adapted (or not) to changes in available technology. We mention some older forms of technology used in teaching, particularly overhead projectors. The discussion concludes with some ideas about resources that would be helpful for educators as they start to plan for retirement.

S1E4: Let the High Times Carry the Low Times (Stephen Chew and Ken Keith) Mar 07, 2025

Show notes

Stephen Chew of Samford University and Ken Keith, retired from University of San Diego, talk with Dave about factors that go into the decision to retire, what makes a for a healthy department based on their experience as department chairs, and how our teaching has evolved over the years. A theme that emerges is creating environments to support student learning. Ken and Stephen also offer some advice to early career faculty.

S1E3: The Importance of Being Intentional (Ellen Carpenter and Alan Strathman) Mar 07, 2025

Show notes

Dave talks with Ellen Carpenter of Virginia Commonwealth University and Alan Strathman of the University of Central Missouri about what "late career" means and how we make decisions about what things to take on and when to say no. It is possible to be late career in a broad sense but also be early in the process of taking on different responsibilities. We also chat about our experiences using teaching technology over the years, and how to make decisions both about what technology to use and about improving our teaching in general.

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