Session Presentation PowerPoint (15 slides)

Conference website

The Garcia College Student Openness Scale (GCSOS) is a psychometric self-report assessment designed to measure a college student’s openness to new experiences. The objective of this research was to establish reliability and validity evidence for the GCSOS. In Study 1 (N = 120), 30 survey items were created for the GCSOS, and an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was completed on the items. Results of the exploratory factor analysis and reliability indicated major modifications needed to be made to the GCSOS. In Study 2 (N = 206) a revised 20-item GCSOS was delivered. Preliminary data analyses suggest a 15-item, three-factor scale: Stress, Curiosity, and Peer Influence. Results of a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and scale reliability will be reported at the conference.

Mindfulness promotes increased presence and well–being. The presentation will inform (and demonstrate via audience participation) how mindfulness practices may improve overall well–being and reduce stress—for teachers and their students. A six–week participatory action research program was employed in a teacher education course with the intention of reducing perceived stress and increasing awareness of contemplative education (N = 44; Treatment Group, n = 17; Control Group, n = 27). Quantitative data reporting on subjects' perceived stress, along with qualitative data describing participants’ notions and projections of how they envision incorporating mindfulness practices into their pedagogy and personal approaches to teacher stress reduction, will be summarized.

"No Syllabus, No Grades, No Worries: Radical Methods of Instructional Design"

A Conference for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning