As a leader, scholar and advocate for all forms of education, Dean Joyce Alexander shares her views with us on teaching in a rapidly changing landscape. In this conversation, she reflects on how AI, policy shifts and partnerships are shaping the future of teaching and learning at The University of Alabama.
Q: What are some of the most pressing challenges your faculty face in teaching today, and how are you helping to address them?
A: I think two of the most pressing issues for our college are the role of AI and recent changes to state teaching licensure rules that affect how we prepare preservice teachers.
The second issue may be unique to us, but AI is deeply infiltrating college in ways we do not yet fully understand. We need to think deeply about preparing the next generations of thinkers who use AI as an appropriate tool, not as a crutch.
Q: When you think about teaching excellence at The University of Alabama, what does that mean to you personally and professionally?
A: As the College of Education, we think about teaching excellence broadly across tasks and at many levels. Our fields, collectively, provide rich insight gained from research on effective teaching. We work to put that research into action daily, whether it’s supporting a learning community of freshman students or a graduate student writing a dissertation. Personally, I think our campus community is enriched when faculty and students interact in deep and meaningful ways.
Q: How do you balance the demands of research, service and teaching while maintaining a culture that values instructional excellence?
A: In addition to the outstanding tenure-track faculty in our college, we have a group of highly dedicated clinical faculty, chosen specifically for their skill in teaching. One of my priorities since arriving is to ensure that all faculty who teach are eligible for teaching awards and/or Dean’s Merit in the area of teaching. In other words, we ensure excellent teaching is visible and valued.
As a research-focused college, we also continue to advance the field’s insights into excellent instruction, deep learning and student engagement. For many of our fields, teaching and research about teaching go hand in hand.
Q: What role do partnerships play in supporting your college’s teaching mission?
A: We find our partnership with the UA Teaching Academy particularly healthy and valuable. Many of the leaders at UATA are our own faculty. We have always known their expertise in supporting teaching; now the rest of the university knows as well. We regularly encourage and support faculty to take advantage of UATA programming. Recent work by the group has been invaluable in assisting with our faculty’s understanding of SB129 and the role of AI in college classrooms.
Dean Alexander’s comments remind us that teaching excellence is timeless and simultaneously responds to the moment. As AI and policy landscapes evolve, her emphasis on valuing all faculty and fostering meaningful interaction keeps the human heart of education front and center.