Disciplinary Boundaries and Professional Skill Development in the Digital Classroom

Concurrent Session 7

Brief Abstract

We invite the audience to engage in a conversation envisioning solutions that are cross-disciplinary and experiential while working within the constraints of the virtual classrooms.

Archivist Notes

Presenters

Lead Presenter: Kim Grippa, Daytona State College

Kim Grippa, an accomplished attorney who joined the faculty ranks at Daytona State in 2009, became chair of DSC’s School of Business Administration in July 2015. The business school enrolls more than 2,000 students a year, including some 1,100 in the Bachelor of Applied Supervision & Management (BAS) degree program. Professor Grippa practiced administrative law in a private practice firm, served as legal counsel for the Florida Secretary of State and taught legal research and writing at Florida State University before moving to Ormond Beach. She was recognized by the 7th Judicial Circuit Guardian Ad Litem Office for the recruitment of child advocates. Kim is also a certified circuit court mediator. She holds a J.D. from Florida State University and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the State University of New York at Albany. She is a member of the Florida Bar Association, the Federal District Court and the Volusia County Bar Association. Grippa is a Master Faculty graduate, co-chairs the Teaching and Learning Committee and serves as the college’s representative to the Law School Admission Council.

Extended Abstract

Daytona State College's Online Bachelor's Degree programs were recently ranked second in the nation by US News & World Report. Even so, our programs continue to tackle barriers related to the provision of online engagement that translates into workplace skills and the maintenance of meaningful engagement in the online environment. Thus, this conversation will present our challenges related to teaching workforce skills in the online environment of our paralegal, education, and business programs. We will discuss challenges such as:

∑ How to provide field experience opportunities for future educators

∑ Teaching K-12 classroom management skills using virtual instruction

∑ Teaching legal library research in an online environment

∑ Teaching legal soft skills online

∑ Facilitating successful teamwork among business students

∑ Incorporating service-learning projects for business students
We will also outline the specific hurdles we face in maintaining meaningful engagement and the approaches we've used to mitigate these challenges to date. We invite the audience to engage in a conversation envisioning new solutions that are cross-disciplinary and experiential while working within the constraints of the virtual classrooms.
Session participants will learn how disciplinary differences contribute to the challenges of teaching online and how professional skill development in the virtual environment presents unique teaching opportunities. Participants will also leave with cross-disciplinary solutions that speak to the flexibility of the online learning environment.