Speaking
Every year Jim delivers dozens of keynotes, workshops, or fireside chats with faculty in higher education, occasionally secondary school educators, or organizations that have an interest on learning, education, and writing. He has earned a reputation as a dynamic speaker who engages easily with audiences. Speaking engagements provide plenty of opportunities for participants to connect the content to their own teaching contexts, and to interact with Jim and one another.
“Jim was masterful in highlighting the research basis for the science of learning, sharing practical examples that are easy to implement, and providing opportunities for faculty to reflect and discuss implications for their teaching. As our survey results noted, 100% agreed that that they feel able to implement at least one strategy based on the session. I highly recommend Jim to other colleges and universities.”
2026-2027 Keynote, Workshop, and Fireside Chat Options
The formal presentation topics can be offered as a single interactive keynote, or as a keynote followed by a more interactive workshop. both in-person and virtual engagements are available. Jim is always happy to sign books or help give away books in raffles. Discounted bulk orders for any of the books are available.
Reclaiming Reading: The Secret Gift of Learning
The complaints about student reading are heard at every level of education today, including and especially higher education. Faculty lament that students don’t read the assigned materials, and/or read it poorly. Causes for this drop off in student reading are numerous, and this interactive presentation will introduce some of those causes and describe the impact they have had on our students. But the primary purpose of this session is to describe the cognitive and emotional benefits that accrue from reading, energize faculty to recommit to assigned reading, and empower them to help students read well through classroom activities and course assessments. This session draws ideas from Jim’s next book, Reclaiming Reading, forthcoming from W.W. Norton in late 2027 or early 2028.
Write Like You Teach: Taking Your Classroom Skills to a Bigger Audience
Are the faculty at your institution engaged in research that deserves to find a wider audience? Are you an academic or teacher that would like to cross over the border between writing for your disciplinary peers and writing for more public audiences? This interactive workshop argues that the way to establish these goals is to draw upon our hard-won wisdom as teachers to create better learning experiences for readers. This approach draws lessons from Jim’s work as a book series acquisition editor, his multiple books aimed at general academic audiences, and his dozens of published magazine and newspaper essays. This workshop is based on Jim’s latest book, which was published in May of 2025 by the University of Chicago Press. This material can be presented in a single interactive lecture, but can also be used to create a half-day, full day, or multi-day writing retreat for faculty.
“Jim is an incredible speaker and author. We thoroughly enjoyed learning from him when he came to visit campus. He provided an incredible amount of wisdom to our faculty and fellows while maintaining a positive outlook on higher education.”
Supporting Student Attention in a Technological Age
As new technologies become increasingly intertwined with our daily work as educators, we are learning disturbing lessons about the costs of attention loss in our lives and the lives of our students. Digital technologies like smart phones can hijack our attention, while artificial intelligence technologies promise to make it redundant. The most important education that students might need for the future will be focused on why and how they should take control of their attention and use it to achieve meaningful learning goals. Drawing ideas from philosophy, psychology, and educational practice, this talk will present creative strategies that teachers can use to enhance their courses, assessments, and classroom experiences with the power of attention.
Fireside Chat: Ask Jim Anything
If you are looking to mix up your faculty development or teaching day format, choose this option! (Fireplace not needed or included.) Jim did one of these for the first time at Wake Forest University in the spring of 2025 (see top picture above), and it proved to be a unique and unexpected adventure. Consider it like a podcast conversation without the podcast recording equipment. Set up a couple of chairs at the front of the room, ditch the slide projector, and let the conversation happen. A moderator and the audience bring their questions, and Jim draws from his three decades of experience in higher education, his previously published books and essays, and his ongoing research to create discussion amongst the participations.
“Jim Lang is a masterful storyteller who provided our faculty audience with a compelling mix of context, research findings, and practical suggestions for the classroom. Attendees left the presentation energized and ready to apply new strategies in their classrooms.”
If you are interested in Jim visiting your campus, either in person or virtually, feel to email him directly here.
“Jim’s virtual talk on distraction and attention for Immaculata faculty was well-organized, informative and engaging. Our faculty continued to discuss the material long after the presentation ended! I highly recommend him as an excellent speaker for faculty development events.””
Consulting
If you are interested in working with Jim on a short or long-term basis, he is available to consult with your institution, program, or department to built a culture of effective teaching and learning. In this work he will draw upon the many hats he has worn in higher education: full professor of English literature, director of an honors program, founding director of a Center for Teaching Excellence, chair of an evaluation committee (i.e., promotion and tenure), academic consultant to OneHE, and the author of two hundred published essays and six books on teaching, learning, and thriving in higher education. Learn more about consulting opportunities.
“Jim’s workshops for our faculty were highly successful—engaging, informative, and full of practical advice. His suggestions were tangible, relatively simple to implement, and amazingly universal to faculty across all disciplines. Since we hosted him, I’ve heard nothing but highly positive feedback from participants.”
