Faculty Development

Our faculty mean the world to us! That is why we go out of our way to support you as you grow and learn at NLU, along with your students. To this end, faculty teaching online courses are supported in the following ways: 

*Faculty Self-Assessment 

We have created a self-assessment for you to complete during your first term teaching online at NLU (and any other time you like, too!). It was built around the 10 Principles of Online Teaching, discussed in other areas of this document, and serves as a checklist to help you make sure you have given attention to the essential areas of online teaching. 

Take a look at the Undergraduate Self-Assessment and/or the Graduate Self-Assessment, and feel free to use them even if you aren't scheduled for an observation.  They are great tools for reflective teaching practice and for continous improvement.  

*Teaching Observations

Consistent with our belief that continuous growth is essential to excellence in teaching, we support you in developing your teaching practice through formal observations: once in your first term and again at least once yearly. 

• Observations are completed by an academic or online leader in the department or within the college.

• The process is designed to provide individualized feedback and recommendations for next steps in areas of strength, as well as opportunities for growth.  This is a formative process and one that is meant to be collaborative and supportive in nature.  

• Your observer will follow up with you to share their feedback and, when possible, coordinate a time to debrief in real-time. You will also be invited to respond to the feedback and provide additional insight.

You can view the instrument used for Teaching Observations by clicking the links below (please do not fill them out, though).  Also, if you are curious what types of questions an observer is asking themself while they are reviewing, you can view the Observation Checklist they will often use while conducting one (note: you do not need to be doing all of those things, but those are items they are thinking about while they are accessing your course).  

• Undergraduate Observation Form

• Graduate Observation Form 

Embedded Professional Development - Undergraduate College

In addition to the individualized growth opportunity offered through observations, you also have access to professional development opportunities within your weekly Student Success Collaborative, departmental meetings, or quarterly faculty meetings.  Your academic leader will inform you of the best opportunity for embedded professional development and invite you to them well in advance. No matter the format, dedicated meeting time will be reserved for activities and discussions in which you are encouraged to engage, share insights, and learn from colleagues. Since our instructional practices continue to evolve, the topics chosen will be responsive to the current needs and interests of the group.

Remember, too, NLU has a robust Center for Teaching & Learning Excellence with an extensive offering of self-paced, real-time, and individualized professional development opportunities.