153 - Making Course Design Visible: A Journey to Design a Math for Humans Course

In this behind-the-scenes episode, Sharona and Boz take listeners inside the early stages of designing a brand-new (to Sharona) course: a general education quantitative reasoning class she affectionately describes as “Math for Humans.” Using the conversation itself as a form of reflective practice, Sharona and Boz unpack the challenges of building a grading architecture, selecting meaningful assessments, and creating authentic learning experiences for students who may never take another mathematics course. Along the way, they wrestle with broad learning outcomes, project-based assessment, collaborative grading, student agency, and the growing influence of AI on both learning and assessment. The discussion explores difficult questions about what students actually need to know, how educators can balance structure with autonomy, and whether traditional academic skills still make sense in a world where AI tools are readily available. More than a conversation about one course, this episode offers a candid look at the uncertainty, experimentation, and reflection that accompany thoughtful course design and demonstrates why redesigning a course is often less about finding answers than about asking better questions.LinksPlease note - any books linked here are likely Amazon Associates links. Clicking on them and purchasing through them helps support the show. Thanks for your support!The Impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on Students’ Academic DevelopmentThe Course Design CycleResourcesThe Center for Grading Reform - seeking to advance education in the United States by supporting effective grading reform at all levels through conferences, educational workshops, professional development, research and scholarship, influencing public policy, and community building.The Grading Conference - an annual, online conference exploring Alternative Grading in Higher Education & K-12.Some great resources to educate yourself about Alternative Grading:The Grading for Growth BlogThe Grading ConferenceThe Intentional Academia BlogRecommended Books on Alternative Grading:Grading for Growth, by Robert Talbert and David ClarkSpecifications Grading, by Linda NilsenUndoing the Grade, by Jesse StommelFollow us on Bluesky, Facebook and Instagram - @thegradingpod. To leave us a comment, please go to our website: www.thegradingpod.com and leave a comment on this episode's page.If you would like to be considered to be a guest on this show, please reach out using the Contact Us form on our website, www.thegradingpod.com.All content of this podcast and website are solely the opinions of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily represent the views of California State University Los Angeles or the Los Angeles Unified School District.MusicCountry Rock performed by Lite Saturation, licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.