University of Wisconsin–Madison

Episode 35: Connecting the Humanities to Student Experiences

See the transcript for this episode.

Guest: Łukasz Wodzyński

In this episode, we speak with Łukasz Wodzyński, Assistant Professor in the Department of German, Nordic, and Slavic+ and winner of the 2026 Chancellor’s Teaching Innovation Award. Łukasz talks about making learning portable, connecting course themes to student experiences, and the value of the humanities in a changing world.

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Unpack This Episode

Grab a drink, gather your colleagues, and discuss.

  1. Łukasz speaks about the portability of learning beyond the classroom in a way that is not career-driven. How might you embrace this spirit of the liberal arts in your classroom?
  2. Łukasz shares that he has students create podcasts, analyze video games, and visit museums to help personalize learning. What innovative assignments might you incorporate in your classroom to personalize learning?
  3. How do you prompt students to connect course themes to their own experiences?
  4. Łukasz discusses the value of large courses. If you teach a large course, how might you design an activity that uses size to an advantage?
  5. What keeps you engaged and motivated to teach your content?

Further Reading

In this episode we mentioned, were inspired by, or wondered about the following resources and topics.

  • Madison Teaching & Learning Excellence (MTLE) is a two-semester program for early-career faculty offered through the Center for Teaching, Learning, and Mentoring (CTLM).
  • The Course Design Institute (CDI) is a multi-day, in-person workshop for instructors interested in designing, redesigning, or refining a course at UW-Madison.

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Acknowledgements

The L&S Exchange Podcast is brought to you by L&S Teaching, Learning, & Academic Planning and produced by the Instructional Design Collaborative. This podcast is recorded on ancestral Ho-Chunk land, a place their nation has called Teejop (day-JOPE) since time immemorial.

Production Credits

  • Producer: David Macasaet
  • Associate Producer: Molly Harris
  • Audio Engineer: David Macasaet
  • Audio Editor: David Macasaet
  • Website Support: Laura Schmidli & Molly Harris
  • Development Producer: Jonathan Klein
  • Planning Group: Jonathan Klein, David Macasaet, Molly Harris, Laura Schmidli, Antonella Caloro, Maria Widmer
  • Communications: Maria Widmer
  • Executive Sponsorship: Shirin Malekpour