Upcoming Winter Semester Trainings

Opportunities not Obligations

Author

Kelsey Smith
February 02, 2026

Trainings: Opportunities not Obligations

It was so great to see those of you who attended last Thursday’s training on dealing with disrespect in the classroom. Amy will be sending out the recording of the training this week. I really appreciated your comments & suggestions on how to maintain authority and civility in the classroom, and I was inspired by the ways you’ve taught respect and managed difficult situations. A big part of our discussion involved how to teach students about what kind of respect is expected in your classroom including devoting syllabus space & class time to the subject (as well as teaching students what kind of student ratings are actually helpful 🙃). Here are some strategies for teaching respect from our attendees:

  • “I noticed a big difference since I started having us write a civil discourse policy as a class the first two days.”

  • “Lessons & readings on civility, listening, and respectful discourse.”

  • “This article led to a good discussion about the rhetoric of respect.”

  • “I have my students use AI in class to suggest counterarguments. This has made a difference in diffusing strong emotions—somehow they take counterarguments so much better coming from a machine.”

  • “Remembering that when students appear disrespectful it’s usually some personal problem they’re having and it probably has nothing to do with me.”

  • “Read student [ratings] comments at the end of a semester, and expect to feel hurt. Give yourself time to feel hurt, mad, etc. After time, the cream—the really helpful criticism—will rise to the top.”

  • “My students sometimes express negative attitudes in Perusall readings, and I find that addressing them right in the text is helpful, which means I read all comments and reply.”

  • “Helping [students] understand how classroom information is useful to their life, so they buy into it and participate—hard to do. I start each semester by reviewing Elder Bednar’s talk about Learning to Love Learning.”

I will spend a big chunk of the rest of this newsletter previewing upcoming trainings & other opportunities. While it is always wonderful and welcome (and hopefully beneficial for you!) when you can attend trainings & events, please remember that attending these events is not required. I know so many of you have very full plates, and I hope these upcoming events feel like opportunities rather than something you have to add to your calendar at the expense of more important priorities. I appreciate all that you are doing in your classrooms. Thank you, & keep on keeping on!

Submit your WRTG 150 textbook format preference!

This Fall semester WRTTG 150 classes will be using the new Everyone’s an Author/BYU hybrid textbook. I’m looking forward to this! There are some excellent new chapters tailored specifically to BYU students, and I think it will be a much more streamlined and useful text for our students.

All adjuncts who are trained to teach WRTG 150 need to decide by February 15 what kind of format they’d prefer for this new textbook. I know this is a weird ask since we don’t have our Fall teaching assignments yet (or even submitted requests!), but University Writing needs an estimate of hard copy demand. Please fill out this form to let us know if you would prefer your students use a 1) print/hard copy 2) an ebook/online text via Learning Suite, or 3) an ebook/online text via Perusall.

Also, please note that if you are assigned WRTG 150 in the Fall you’ll need to stick to the decision you submitted in this form. I know this is a lot to ask and think about before we even request assignments for the Fall, but this will make the 150 textbook transition much more seamless. Let me know if you have any questions! I’ll send out a reminder email before the February 15 deadline.

February WTWs

This month we have two WTWs scheduled. On Thursday, February 12, Meridith Reed will present on “Trauma Informed Pedagogy” at 11:00 am in B106 JFSB. And on Thursday, February 26, Alisa Brough, Kirsten Burningham, & Liz Busby will present some of their best lesson plans at 11:00 am in B106 JFSB. As a reminder, WTW stands for “Writing Teacher Workshops,” and they are semesterly trainings for both adjuncts and graduate instructors.

March Book Club

This semester we’ll be reading Doing Small Things with Great Love by Sharon Eubank. I loved this book; it’s not directly teaching related, but there are so many pertinent suggestions that definitely apply to how to be more effective peacemaking rhetors & community members. It’s also a relatively short & sweet read, which I personally appreciate. We’ll be meeting Thursday, March 26 at 11:00 am in 4116 JFSB.

Symposium with Dr. Christina Saidy: March 31

Christina Saidy from ASU will be holding a symposium focusing on writing and writing transitions with secondary students, teachers in professional development groups, and students entering college. Come learn about how students carry their knowledge, skills, and dispositions from one setting (e.g., high school English, FYW, and AW) into another setting (e.g., FYW, AW courses, courses within the majors, and careers). You can attend the WAC Lunch and/or Dinner & Workshop on Tuesday, March 31. Here’s an RSVP link for the lunch & an RSVP link for the dinner. Please RSVP by March 10!

April Biennial Conference: DATE CHANGE

We’ve rescheduled our biennial conference from April 16 (reading day) to Monday, April 27 (the day before Spring Term starts) to accommodate the University-wide adjunct faculty seminar on April 16. You can now attend both events!

Please consider submitting a proposal! You can present on anything that is working in your classroom: an effective lesson plan, a new assignment, a method of teaching a key skill like reflection, etc. Presenters can choose between giving a 10-minute presentation or a rapid-fire 5-minute “Ignite-style” presentation. The deadline for proposals is March 15, 2026. I’ll be sending out more information on proposals & the conference in the next few weeks.

Mentimeter? GroupMe?

There’s one more Mentimeter license available this semester! (Mentimeter is an interactive PowerPoint software.) Email me if you’re interested! Also, please let me know if you’d like to be added to the Adjunct GroupMe group. It’s a great place to casually ask questions & feel a little more connected to other adjunct instructors.

Stuff for your calendar

FEBRUARY

  • Thursday, February 12: WTW “Trauma Informed Pedagogy” by Meridith Reed: 11:00 am in B106 JFSB.

  • Thursday, February 26: WTW Adjunct Greatest Hits Training with Alisa Brough, Kirsten Burningham, & Liz Busby: 11:00 am in B106 JFSB

MARCH

  • Saturday, March 15: Biennial Conference Proposal Submission Deadline

  • Thursday, March 26: Adjunct Book Club: Doing Small Things with Great Love by Sharon Eubanks @ 11:00 am in 4116 JFSB.

  • Tuesday, March 31: Dr. Christina Saidy Symposium.

APRIL

  • Wednesday, April 15: Last Day of Class

  • Thursday, April 16: University Adjunct Faculty Seminar

  • Monday, April 27: Biennial Conference from 9am-1pm

  • Tuesday, April 28: Grade Submission Deadline & First Day of Spring Term