Why Would You Want to be a DCS Consultant?

If you are reading this blog (which you are!), you probably already have a good idea of what DCS is about. You may have even used DCS as a resource when locating a consultant for your own department. But have you considered becoming a consultant for DCS?

First, you should know that DCS does not pay consultants. Not even a dime! But the departments that contract with consultants do pay. So one reason to consider becoming listed as a DCS consultant is that it can provide opportunities to add to your income. Departments are expected to cover your travel expenses plus an honorarium, the honorarium being negotiated between you and the department.

You may also enjoy serving as a consultant because of the intellectual adventure involved in learning about a department and providing recommendations. You may find it satisfying to help a department make progress toward its goals, solve a problem, or validate its excellence.

Another benefit is the opportunity to learn about different departments and meet diverse faculty and staff. You may find that you learn things from other departments that you can apply to your own department.

If this sounds good to you, I hope you will consider applying to be listed as a DCS consultant. The basic requirements are that you must have some experience as an administrator (e.g. department chair, assistant dean), you must have experience as a program evaluator, and you must have expertise in multiple consultation areas (e.g., curriculum, faculty development, advising, assessment). The most common request that we get is for an overall department evaluation or self-assessment. We do have a fairly rigorous review process involving review by current DCS consultants and by the APA's Board of Educational Affairs.

We review applications at the beginning of the fall and spring semesters. The deadline for spring, 2011 applications is January 28. If you are interested in applying, please contact me at kreiner@ucmo.edu.

Identifying Problems You Don’t Know Your Department Has

One of the most common requests that we receive is for a consultant to do a general evaluation of the department or to help the department conduct a self-assessment. In previous posts, I outlined some issues that come up in two common situations: (1) you think your department is in excellent shape; and (2) you know that your department has problems. In the last post of this series, I will address what happens if your department is somewhere in between. In other words, you have a general awareness that your department could be in better shape, but you're not sure what particular problems might exist. This is an excellent time to seek out an experienced external consultant to help you identify those problems.

It might help to consider some of the more likely culprits, those issues that tend to present difficulties to many departments. Of course, the specifics associated with any of these areas may well be unique to your institution.

• Do you have clearly defined goals for each of your degree programs?
  
• Do the goals of your programs fit with the mission of your department and your institution?
  
• Could the design of your programs be improved? Have you compared against APA recommendations and benchmarked against other departments?
  
• Are you doing a good job of advising and mentoring your students? Are they aware of the opportunities in your department? Are they prepared for the workplace and/or graduate school?
  
• Do you have assessment activities that provide useful information about whether you are meeting your goals?
  

Depending on where you are in evaluating your department, you may want to develop a list of questions like these, but tailor them specifically to your department. Your department could then ask one or more external consultants to help you answer your questions. If the answer is that your department could improve, consultants can help you plan a path to make changes. If your department is not at the point of being able to formulate specific questions, then consultants can guide you through that process.

If you are interested in hiring one or more external consultants, DCS can provide you (at no charge!) with a list of recommendations for potential consultants. If you have any questions about our services, please contact me at kreiner@ucmo.edu.

ToPIX Weekly Update for (2/24 to 3/3/10)

ToPIX had over 300 unique visitors in the last week.  If you'd like to add your favorite teaching resources, activities, or videos to ToPIX, send me an email for information on how to get started: topix@teachpsych.org.  Looking forward to hearing from you!

Must-see:

http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/APA-Style-Videos

If you liked Eric Landrum's SPSS videos, check out his APA-style videos!

New content:

http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/Statistics-Video

For those who viewed Eric Landrum's SPSS videos, the dataset he used in those videos is now available for download as both an SPSS file and csv file.  (Thanks to Michael Britt for suggesting that the dataset be available, and thanks to Eric Landrum for providing it!)

http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/Neuroscience-Video

Jill Bolte Taylor's TED Talk: Stroke of Insight. Bolte Taylor, a neuroscientist, talks of what it was like to have a stroke.

http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/APA-Rules

We now have official rules of use for ToPIX.

ToPIX Weekly Update (2/17-2/23)

Must-see.

http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/Statistics-Video

Using SPSS. (Courtesy of Eric Landrum, 1/2010)

• Starting Up and Navigating an SPSS File [8.8 MB]
  
• Data Entry in SPSS [7.7 MB]
  
• Descriptive Statistics in SPSS [14.3 MB]
  
• Correlations in SPSS [9.1 MB]
  
• Independent Samples t Tests in SPSS [8.8 MB]
  
• One-way ANOVA (between groups variable) in SPSS [9.7 MB]
  
• Two-way ANOVA (both between groups variables) in SPSS [10.8 MB]
  
• Chi-square in SPSS [6.3 MB]
  

New ToPIX content for 2/17 to 2/23

http://teachpsych.pbworks.com

TOPSS Speakers Bureau (a speakers bureau category has been added to the main page)

http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/Gestalt-Principles-of-Perception

Reversible figure-ground in the iPhone/iPod game "Shift" (Recommended by Michael Britt via PsychTeacher)

http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/Human-Factors-in-the-Classroom

Games To Explain Human Factors: Come, Participate, Learn & Have Fun!!! (Ron Shapiro)

Human Factors/Ergonomics: How Can It Influence Your Students?  (Ron Shapiro)

National Ergonomics Month (Ron Shapiro)

http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/Human-Factors-in-the-News

Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Bulletin (Ron Shapiro)

http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/Taste-Demos

Taste buds from PsychKits

http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/Neuroscience-in-the-News

Story of Book-Writing Coma Patient Debunked (NPR, 2/17/2010)

http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/Memory-in-the-Classroom

Peter's Friends (coutesy of Bill Altman, via PsychTeacher, 2/14/2010)

Web-based Gary Wells eyewitness test (courtesy of Joe Melcher, via PsychTeacher, 2/14/2010)

Web-based street scene eyewitness test (courtesy of Nick Schmitt via PsychTeacher, 2/14/2010)
Standard vs. cognitive interview (courtesy of Keiron Walsh via PsychTeacher, 2/15/2010 

The case of the missing briefcase (courtesy of Chuck Behensky via PsychTeacher, 2/15/2010)

Details (courtesy of Ron Shapiro, 2/18/2010)

http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/Psychological-Disorders-Video

Bring Change 2 Mind (Dan Segrist, via PsychTeacher listserv, 2/17/2010)

****

The Teaching of Psychology Idea Exchange (ToPIX) is a product of  the Office of Teaching Resources in Psychology, an offering of APA Division 2: Society for the Teaching of Psychology (STP).   If you find ToPIX to be a useful resource, consider supporting it by joining STP, if you're not already a member.  You do not need to be a member of APA to join; dues are only $25/year.  If you're already a member of STP, thanks for your support!

 

 

ToPIX: Most Recent Additions (2/9/2010 – 2/16/2010)

New ToPIX features:

"In the News" category for psychology-related news.

Top-of-the-page navigation has been added to main page navigation and to the 'navigator' window on the left.

New ToPIX content in the last 7 days:

Must-see:

Create your own customized view of 3-D Brain (and Body) Parts: http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/Neuroscience-in-the-Classroom (Jeff Stowell)

Video:

Medical study: Autism-vaccine study flawed: http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/Development-Video (Bethany Fleck)

Albert Bandura Bobo doll video: http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/Learning-Video (Sue Frantz)

In the News:

How to train the aging brain: http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/Development-In-the-News (Sheryl Hartman)

H.M.'s brain and the history of memory: http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/Memory-in-the-News (Sue Frantz)

Color vision: How our eyes reflect primate evolution: http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/Sensation-in-the-News (Sue Frantz)

Dementia risk seen in players in NFL study: http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/Neuroscience-in-the-News (Sue Frantz)

Monkeys, candy, and cognitive dissonance: http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/Social-in-the-News (Sue Frantz)

Our politics may be all in our heads: http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/Personality-in-the-News (Sue Frantz)

Soda: A sin we sip instead of smoke? : http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/Learning-in-the-News (Sue Frantz)

New poll shows support for repeal of 'don't ask don't tell': http://teachpsych.pbworks.com/Research-Methods-in-the-News (Sue Frantz)

Introducing ToPIX

The STP Teaching Resources Wiki is now the Teaching of Psychology Idea Exchange (TOPIX) -- http://teachpsych.pbworks.com, renamed to better reflect the purpose of the site. Launched in late fall, the site continues to grow, now averaging 150 visitors per week. Although the site is still in its infancy, there is much content to browse. We have posted, for example, rubrics for grading APA-style papers; presentation slides that use animation to illustrate the size-distance illusion and the Stroop test, suitable for class use; videos from all over psychology, including TED videos of Oliver Sacks, Daniel Goleman, and Dan Gilbert; and resources created by other APA divisions, such as the "Curriculum Guide for Education on Child Maltreatment" courtesy of Div. 37: Society for Child and Family Policy and Practice. The core of the site revolves around classroom activities, videos, and our newest addition, 'In the News,' where summaries of articles from the popular press are linked to the original source and classroom-appropriate discussion questions are provided.  If the news article refers to a journal article, look for the article citation and DOI in the summary. Anyone can visit ToPIX, but only members of the site can add content or offer comments.  Click 'edit' on any page to join. If you find something useful to your teaching, please leave something for those who follow. We're looking forward to your contributions!  

 
 

When Your Department Has Problems

In previous posts I described the general process of reviewing a department and issues to consider when you believe your department is in good shape. But in many cases, you are requesting consulting services because you know that your department has problems.

Consultants are frequently asked to help with personnel problems. One example of this is that the department may have difficulty conducting its business due to a lack of civility among the faculty. In some cases, there may be conflict between different factions of the faculty (such as between junior and senior faculty or among individuals in different program areas). Consultants have been asked to help referee situations in which one or more faculty members has been identified as poor performing, misbehaving, or simply not contributing to the department.

Another area of concern revolves around resources. A department may request consulting services to confirm a perceived need for program funding, faculty lines, or space for labs, classrooms, and offices.

Departments may want advice about academic programs. The department may need help in identifying program goals, aligning curricula with standards, or developing assessment programs.

DCS consultants are prepared to help with any of these concerns (or combinations of them!). As usual, I would like to offer a few suggestions that I think will help your department through the process.

• Try to do an honest appraisal of the problem areas your department is experiencing. Be very clear about what you perceive as problems, both when requesting recommendations for consultants and when arranging consulting services with a particular person. If we know what your concerns are, we can do a better job of finding consultants who have experience and expertise in those areas. Your consultant can better help you when you have identified the problems in advance and provided supporting documentation.
  
• It is not realistic to expect a consultant to solve your problems. Often the best thing a consultant can do is to help your department prioritize problem areas and chart a strategy toward improvement. If the problem is serious enough to warrant consulting services, it is probably not going to be resolved overnight.
  
• Think about whether it's a good idea to hire a consultant to do your dirty work. If you have evidence that a faculty member has engaged in misconduct, there are surely formal procedures at your institution for addressing that. Consultants know when they are being asked to do something that a department should be handling through institutional procedures. This may signify an even deeper problem with your department.
  
• Be prepared for a different point of view. For example, you may think that your department is not doing enough on assessment, but the consultant might point out that you are actually doing more than most departments. You may believe that a particular faculty member or faction is the problem, but the consultant may not see it that way. You might be hoping for the consultant to support your department's request for additional faculty lines, only to find that the consultant believes you should trim back your program offerings instead. Of course, your consultant may or may not be right. But there is little point in your going to the time and expense of requesting an outside point of view if you are not willing to consider it.
  

In a future post, I will comment on requesting a consultant to help you identify problems that you don't know you have.

New OTRP Resource: Using the Drawing and Animation Tools in PowerPoint® to Build Your Own Visual Perception Demonstrations (2010)

Kenith V. Sobel of the University of Central Arkansas has provided detailed instructions for using the drawing and animation tools in Microsoft PowerPoint® to create three perception demonstrations: simultaneous contrast, the Kanizsa triangle, and structure from motion. He explains the rationale for this resource in his abstract:


 

Although innumerable computer-based visual demonstrations are available to enhance the teaching of perceptual concepts, quite often a demonstration that worked flawlessly on an office computer will break down when ported to the classroom. In contrast, Microsoft's presentation graphics program PowerPoint® is a familiar and reliable tool for creating and presenting one's own color images and animated text and graphics. Here I describe the drawing and animation tools in PowerPoint that may be unfamiliar even to the experienced user and how to use them to make three well-known perceptual demonstrations. All three can profitably be used with introductory as well as advanced students and even to illustrate general principles of how we see the world. Creating the demonstrations described here can form the basis for making your own collection.


 

In addition to the step-by-step instructions, Sobel included screen shots and drawn figures that illustrate intermediate products of the process. You can access the resource under the "sensation and perception" tab at http://teachpsych.org/otrp/resources/resources.php?category=Sensation

New OTRP Resource: A Template Paper with Comments for Illustrating the 6th Edition of APA Style

If you've followed the PsychTeacher list, you know that many instructors tried to use the first printing of the 6^th edition of the APA Publication Manual (American Psychological Association, 2009) and encountered mismatches between what the guide prescribed and what the sample papers illustrated. Although APA has posted corrections on their website and made available a new printing that corrects the mistakes, I think you will find a new OTRP resource will be quite helpful both in teaching students about APA style and in using it in your own writing. That new resource is A Template Paper with Comments for Illustrating the 6th Edition of APA Style (2010) by Jordan Buess and Rick Froman of John Brown University. You can find it under the "research and teaching" tab, at


http://teachpsych.org/otrp/resources/resources.php?category=Research and Teaching


 

Jordan Buess wrote a research paper using the 5^th edition guidelines for a class with Rick Froman and gave permission for him both to modify the paper to be consistent with the 6^th edition and to attach comments in the margin. Buess's paper is nearly the same length as the Publication Manual's sample one-experiment paper, but Froman has included many more comments, both in the main body of the paper and especially in the reference section. By not overlapping the pages as the Publication Manual does, Buess and Froman enable students to make sense of the paper's content, not just its style. I think this will be especially helpful for students learning to write about research because the paper is written at their level of sophistication. Even when instructors assign published journal articles that are relatively simple for students to understand, such articles do not show what a manuscript looks like prepublication. An added bonus is that the topic should appeal to many student readers: "Factors Correlated With a Tendency Toward Eating Disorders in a Nonclinical Setting."


 

As Froman wrote in the introductory material, this sample paper is an example "worthy of emulation." He (and I) suggest that you share it with your students. As a reminder, OTRP's copyright policy is as follows: "You may reproduce multiple copies of this material for your own personal use, including use in your classes and/or sharing with individual colleagues as long as the author’s name and institution and the Office of Teaching Resources in Psychology heading or other identifying information appear on the copied document. No other permission is implied or granted to print, copy, reproduce, or distribute additional copies of this material. Anyone who wishes to produce copies for purposes other than those specified above must obtain the permission of the author."