What is self-determination theory? What role do autonomy, competence, and relatedness have in driving motivation? How can giving students the right choices increase their motivation? Join Rob and Jared as they chat with Dr. Erika Patall (Professor of Education and Psychology at the University of Southern California).

Please take this opportunity to fill out our 2025 wrap-up survey. This survey should take 5-10 minutes and your responses are anonymous. If you would like to be entered for the Uncommon Sense Teaching drawing, you can share your name and email address at the end of the survey. Even if you enter the drawing, your survey response will remain anonymous.

View a transcript of this week's episode.

Resources

• FOCUS Blog - Cedarville University CTL

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What are the differences between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation? Can extrinsic motivation be enough for students to succeed in a class? How can an educator move students to be intrinsically motivated? Join Rob and Jared as they discuss the benefits of extrinsic and intrinsic motivation.

Please take this opportunity to fill out our 2025 wrap-up survey. This survey should take 5-10 minutes and your responses are anonymous. If you would like to be entered for the Uncommon Sense Teaching drawing, you can share your name and email address at the end of the survey. Even if you enter the drawing, your survey response will remain anonymous.

View a transcript of this week's episode.

Resources

• FOCUS Blog - Cedarville University CTL

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• Connect with us via LinkedIn
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What factors are at play in motivation? Can showing the value of our content increase a student’s motivation? How important is it that students know their instructor is invested in them and their learning? Join Rob and Jared as they chat with Professor Betsy Linnell (a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor and Assistant Professor of Psychology at Cedarville University).

Please take this opportunity to fill out our 2025 wrap-up survey. This survey should take 5-10 minutes and your responses are anonymous. If you would like to be entered for the Uncommon Sense Teaching drawing, you can share your name and email address at the end of the survey. Even if you enter the drawing, your survey response will remain anonymous.

View a transcript of this week's episode.

Resources

• FOCUS Blog - Cedarville University CTL

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• Connect with us via LinkedIn
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Can an educator increase a student's motivation towards academic goals? What motivational theories can serve as tools to understand how to motivate students? Join Rob and Jared as they start our series on student motivation.

Please take this opportunity to fill out our 2025 wrap-up survey. This survey should take 5-10 minutes and your responses are anonymous. If you would like to be entered for the Uncommon Sense Teaching drawing, you can share your name and email address at the end of the survey. Even if you enter the drawing, your survey response will remain anonymous.

View a transcript of this week's episode.

Resources

• Theories of Motivation in Education: An Integrative Framework – Detlef Urhahne & Lisette Wijnia
• FOCUS Blog - Cedarville University CTL

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How are current college students using AI in their academics? Where are they finding it useful? What limitations do they see? Join Rob and Jared as they discuss how students are using AI with current students Kaiya and Jude.

Please take this opportunity to fill out our 2025 wrap-up survey. This survey should take 5-10 minutes and your responses are anonymous. If you would like to be entered for the Uncommon Sense Teaching drawing, you can share your name and email address at the end of the survey. Even if you enter the drawing, your survey response will remain anonymous.

View a transcript of this week's episode.

Resources

• FOCUS Blog - Cedarville University CTL

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What do students think about flexible deadlines, technology integration, and real-world applications in the classroom? Join Rob and Jared as they chat with Lauren and Daniel.

Please take this opportunity to fill out our 2025 wrap-up survey. This survey should take 5-10 minutes and your responses are anonymous. If you would like to be entered for the Uncommon Sense Teaching drawing, you can share your name and email address at the end of the survey. Even if you enter the drawing, your survey response will remain anonymous.

View a transcript of this week's episode.

Resources

• FOCUS Blog - Cedarville University CTL

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In this episode, Rob McDole and Jared Pyles chat with Eric Stroud (Instructor of Communication at Cedarville University). They discuss his professional experiences prior to stepping into higher education and the adjustments he had to make during his first semester of teaching.

Please take this opportunity to fill out our 2025 wrap-up survey. This survey should take 5-10 minutes and your responses are anonymous. If you would like to be entered for the Uncommon Sense Teaching drawing, you can share your name and email address at the end of the survey. Even if you enter the drawing, your survey response will remain anonymous.

View a transcript of this week's episode. 

Resources

• FOCUS Blog - Cedarville University CTL 

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What are we doing in 2026? In this episode, Rob and Jared discuss the topics that they are looking forward to covering this year.

Please take this opportunity to fill out our end-of-the-year survey. This survey should take 5-10 minutes, and your responses are anonymous. If you would like to be entered for the Uncommon Sense Teaching drawing, you can share your name and email address at the end of the survey. Even if you enter the drawing, your survey response will remain anonymous.

View a transcript of this week's episode.

Resources

• FOCUS Blog - Cedarville University CTL

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In this episode, Rob and Jared reflect on this year's podcast. Thank you to our listeners and followers who have joined us this year! On to year 4!

Please take this opportunity to fill out our end-of-the-year survey. This survey should take 5-10 minutes, and your responses are anonymous. If you would like to be entered for the Uncommon Sense Teaching drawing, you can share your name and email address at the end of the survey. Even if you enter the drawing, your survey response will still remain anonymous.

View a transcript of this week's episode.

Resources

• FOCUS Blog - Cedarville University CTL

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How do Christian educators approach Generative AI with caution? How can educators find the balance between using GAI as a tool and having it take over their teaching? In this episode, Rob and Jared chat with Dr. Dave Mulder about his new book Teach Like a Human.

View a transcript of this week's episode.

Resources

• Teach Like a Human: Playful Practice and Serious Faith in the Age of AI – Dave Mulder
• Interpreting Your World: Five Lenses for Engaging Theology and Culture – Justin Bailey
• FOCUS Blog - Cedarville University CTL

Chat with us!

• Connect with us via LinkedIn
• Contact us at [email protected] with any questions