Instructional and Professional Development
Supporting and developing your university's faculties is no less important than building a research enterprise or sorting out finances. Universities are educational institutions— and having strong faculty members lays the foundation for a successful academic institution.
Supporting the faculty base goes beyond providing an available classroom with functional technology. The administrators must know ways to help faculties grow and develop, ultimately benefiting the institution. This section discusses the importance of supporting the professional and instructional development of the faculty through the lenses of teaching and learning centers.
Role of Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL)
Center for teaching and learning, also known as "Center for faculty development" serve as innovation hubs for pedagogical research influenced by technology. These centers can be created through merging separate units that focus on instructional development and course design, and provide the crucial space required for cross-campus collaboration, innovation of teaching methods, and even funding directed toward instructional development.
Combining Forces and Refining Missions: Being sensitive to institutional objectives and ambitions, collaborating with faculty and academic units while being directed by their learning objectives are fundamental tenets of many CTLs. They attempt to emphasize the institution's dedication towards assisting the faculty in developing their pedagogy and recognize that technology is only one aspect of that jigsaw. The optimal CTL model is one that consistently develop partnerships to promote digital learning, and is in line with institutional aims.
Finding New Ways to Engage Instructors: Each CTL should strive to satisfy the faculty's appetite for innovative instruction initiatives they start on their own, while encouraging generally better classroom conditions. One strategy to achieve this is to promote active learning, simultaneously encouraging staff to use advance technology in the classroom. Nonetheless, these methods must adhere to the institution's code of conduct.
Learning Objectives
Identify the major functions and potential programming approaches of a teaching center.
Identify potential cultural and organizational fit of a teaching center for your institution.
Identify the benefits and challenges of a Faculty Teaching Fellows model.
Identify the benefits and challenges of Faculty Learning Communities.
Identify the benefits and challenges of Course Design Institutes.
Identify approaches to incentivizing and rewarding teaching development that align with your institutional culture and finances.
Apply these concepts to your institutional needs, culture, and structures.
Example of Successful CTLs
Centers for Faculty Development, University of Southern Mississippi
Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning, Indiana University Bloomington
Center for Teaching & Learning, UC Barkley
Teaching and Learning Transformation Center, University of Maryland
Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning, Alabama A&M University