Focus on Engagement

Our 2024 Focus on Engagement Day was held completely online via MS Teams, with technical support available for both presenters and participants, on June 11, 2024, from 9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Here’s an overview of what participants gained:

• Insights from a keynote speaker who was an expert in student engagement and motivation.
• Participation in interactive sessions led by colleagues from various disciplines and programs.
• Opportunities to hear from peers during GED (Georgian Engagement Day) talks.
• Connections with other faculty and staff who are passionate about enhancing student learning and success.

There were two ways for participants to engage in the event:

Registration for Focus on Engagement Day was open to all interested attendees. Georgian faculty and staff could easily register through SumTotal, Georgian’s employee learning management system

Participants engaged with dynamic sessions that highlighted best practices, shared success stories, and offered practical tools that can be implemented in their own classrooms. The event emphasized the importance of adapting engagement strategies to meet the unique needs of students in different settings, ensuring that all learners could benefit from rich, interactive educational experiences.

By bringing together educators from various disciplines, the day provided a collaborative platform to exchange ideas and inspire one another, ultimately aiming to create a more inclusive and effective learning environment for all students.

We firmly believe that engagement is the cornerstone of effective education. By actively involving students in their learning journey, educators could inspire remarkable growth and development. Therefore, we were excited to explore a range of engagement-oriented topics and strategies tailored specifically for the college environment.

In our sessions, we aimed to facilitate meaningful interactions and exchanges among participants. We offered two formats to accommodate various preferences and objectives:

• GED Talks (11:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon) – Georgian Engagement Talks were modeled after TED Talks and invited folks to share information, knowledge, or an inspiring story about engagement in their classes or educational experiences. (5-10 minutes per presenter)

• Micro Workshop (2:15 p.m. to 3:15 p.m.) – The Micro Workshops aimed to create space for brief, personal interactions and information sharing and/or discussion, as well as the opportunity for application of concepts and ideas shared with a hands-on learning component. (10-15 minutes per presenter)

Many faculty members shared their knowledge, insights, and inspiring stories about their teaching and learning journeys related to their approaches to engagement in the classroom.

About Dr. Nidhi Sachdeva

Nidhi Sachdeva is an evidence-informed learning designer, post-secondary educator, researcher, and an educational technology specialist. She is interested in designing and integrating evidence-informed instructional practices using a wide range of educational technology tools including GenAI. Recently, she has been researching this through the notion of microlearning and cognitive science.

Nidhi is the co-author of a newsletter called the Science of Learning, which aims to reduce existing gaps between educational research and instructional practice. She is also the chair for the upcoming ResearchEd Toronto conference titled ‘Discovering the Science of Learning’. 

With almost 20 years of experience developing and facilitating learning content for both face-to-face and online courses within formal higher education, Nidhi is extremely passionate about integrating the Science of Learning in her pedagogical practice. She is currently teaching in the Teacher Education program at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE). 

Adventure challenge

This virtual game was specifically designed to add another layer of engagement and depth to the Focus on Engagement Day events. As attendees explored the conference sessions, they encountered puzzles, clues, and questions—all while racing against the clock.

The goal? To complete the adventure challenge and be reminded of the joy of friendly competition, the value of collaboration, and the excitement of gamified experiences. Not to mention, there was a chance at a prize for those who completed the challenge.