Foundations of Teaching and Learning

Intended Audience:

The Foundations of University Teaching and Learning programme is offered every semester to support staff relatively new to the University as well as staff with teaching experience who wish to refine, test out, validate or develop their present conceptions of good teaching and their current teaching practice. The semester long programme is open to academic, general and research staff who may be involved in teaching. Preference is given to staff teaching during the semester. New academic staff members are expected to attend this programme as outlined in their letters of offer of appointment.

Programme Description:

Foundations of University Teaching and Learning is designed to offer an integrated and highly interactive perspective on teaching in a research-intensive university. The programme provides a theoretical framework relating to teaching and learning, along with opportunities to explore a range of teaching and learning strategies. Participants explore these approaches in terms of their own teaching context, while also sharing common issues across the group. In addition to staff from the Centre for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning, guest presenters from across the University contribute to the programme, further enriching the learning experience.

Programme Components:

The programme commences with an intensive three-day workshop prior to the start of semester. This is followed by a series of regular meetings during the semester when participants have opportunities to reflect on their teaching practice as well as investigate topical, relevant and current issues. In addition there is an online component. Participants are also expected to complete some ‘out-of-class’ activities.

Intended Outcomes:

By the end of this programme, participants will be able to:

• Articulate your approach to, or philosophy of, teaching and learning;
• Engage in critically reflective practice to enhance teaching;
• Critically analyse incidents and issues in your teaching practice and student learning and develop action plans (if appropriate) to resolve them;
• Design and deliver a unit of study that aligns student learning outcomes, teaching and learning strategies and assessment strategies;
• Use a variety of teaching strategies to enable effective student learning;
• Identify diverse student needs and develop appropriate teaching approaches to support these;
• Incorporate elements of eLearning into your teaching practice, especially WebCT;
• Evaluate your teaching using a range of techniques, including SPOT and peer reviews;
• Apply the outcomes of contemporary research into teaching and learning to your practice;
• Demonstrate the relationship between teaching, research and scholarship in your own teaching practices.

Satisfactory completion of all activities in the programme gives advanced standing towards a Graduate Certificate in Tertiary Education.

Key Activities:

The Foundations of University Teaching and Learning programme explores a number of key areas, including:

• The student's perspective - approaches to learning. Current international research on student learning and its implications for practice
• Approaches to teaching. Teaching to promote student learning
• Teaching methods and activities such as lecturing, small group teaching, cooperative learning and active learning
• Curriculum design and assessment of learning
• Evaluation of teaching
• Tertiary teaching as critically reflective professional practice.

Activities which are incorporated in the programme include:

• Active learning exercises
• Cooperative learning
• Mini - lectures
• Panel discussions
• Peer support activities, such as peer observation of teaching
• Independent study, including a reflective journal
• Micro-teaching with videotaping and feedback
• Web-based learning activities

Duration:

Initial Workshop: 3 days (20 hours)
Online module: 3 hours (minimum)
Follow - Up Programme: Six (minimum) two hour sessions, during semester (12 hours)
Total: 35 hours

Date and Time:

13, 14, 15 July 2009, 9.00am - 4.30pm. 7 x 2hour followup sessions TBA.

Please note that this programme is now full.  You may still register if you would like to be placed on a waiting list.

Submit your details to register your name. If you do not know your UWA staff number (or have not yet received one), click on the submit button below and enter all your information, including a valid email address.

Participant enrolment in this workshop will be confirmed via email following the closing date for applications.

Facilitator:

Denise Chalmers, Centre for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning (CATL), UWA