The Center holds regular e-learning, Canvas and instructional workshops as well as teaching circles, roundtables and other special events. We can also arrange a special workshop or consultation for departments, groups or individuals upon request. For details and the current schedule, please reference our calendar.
To request enrollment or individual consultation, or to a arrange a special departmental or group workshop on any of our workshop topics, please call extension 7-8080 or email ctl@uncc.edu.
Workshop participants will learn how to map outcomes to assignments, curricular activities, and courses. Participants will need to bring their program’s student learning outcomes and/or course objectives to the workshop. Presented by the Office of Assessment and Accreditation. Please see their site HERE for more information.
UNC Charlotte is a rapidly growing university with almost 29,000 students from diverse backgrounds. This diversity includes not only culture or knowledge background but also students who live with a disability. At UNC Charlotte we are committed to providing equality of educational opportunity and ensuring accessible education to all students.
This training focuses on Universal Design, and how full accessibility not only benefits students with disabilities, but also adds quality to your course. We will explore different types of disabilities and how students with disabilities access course information in different ways. We will then introduce the basics of how to make instructional materials accessible for all your students.
Khaleel Eksheir, Assistive Technology Specialist, and Katie Montie, ADA Project Coordinator, in the Office of Disability Services will lead the session.
The Active Learning Academy at UNC Charlotte has access to a largenumber of materials that we would like to share with Western Carolina University Workshop Participants. Below you will find these resources with a brief description of how to use them. Rich Preville, Director of Classroom Support Services, and Dr. Kurt Richter, the organizer of the Active Learning Academy with the Center for Teaching and Learning, will gladly respond to your inquiries.
Quality Matters (QM) is a nationally recognized, faculty-centered peer review process designed to certify the quality of online course design and online components. The QM Rubric is used in course reviews that result in continuous improvement and faculty development.
The Designing Your Online Course (DYOC) workshop includes an overview of the QM Rubric and provides a framework for participants to design an online course plan. An integral element of the workshop is exploration of the eight General Standards of the QM Rubric, focusing on learning objectives and overall course alignment.
Participants will complete a Module Planning Worksheet to design one module of an online course. The worksheet includes course and module learning objectives, assessments that align with the learning objectives, instructional materials that support the learning objectives and activities, and tools and media that enhance student interaction with classmates, content, and the instructor.
Dr. Diana Zilberman, a QM DYOC face-to-face and online trainer, will lead the workshop. She currently serves as Director of the Center of Excellence in E-Learning and Teaching Innovation at Baltimore City Community College, MD.
Note: Participants in this workshop must have an online course to work on throughout the session.
Quality Matters (QM) is a nationally recognized, faculty-centered peer review process designed to certify the quality of online course design and online components. The QM Rubric is used in course reviews that result in continuous improvement and faculty development. The Applying the Quality Matters Rubric (APPQMR) workshop provides an overview of the QM Standards, peer review process and Quality Matters. This full day workshop will be led by a QM Certified Facilitator and includes all participant materials.
The APPQMR is the prerequisite for the Peer Reviewer Course, which is the required course to become a QM Peer Reviewer.
Sponsored and supported by Distance Education and the Center for Teaching and Learning, four faculty members at UNC Charlotte completed the Quality Matters course review program in 2015 and received certification on the design of their online courses. Join us for the second Webinar in this 4-part series.
Dr. Susan Lynch, Clinical Assistant Professor and Coordinator of the RN/BSN Program in the School of Nursing, will lead the session. She'll discuss how she redesigned NURN 4201 to be recognized as a quality online course and show a demonstration of her QM certified course.
NOTE: This Webinar will be held online using the University's Web conferencing system, Saba Meeting. You will need access to the Internet, and a microphone if you want to speak. See the Saba Meeting technical requirements on our Saba Meeting Resources page.
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Critical reading and thoughtful synthesis are important research skills, but students often struggle with this part of the research process. This workshop will provide examples of class discussion questions, group work activities, and low-stakes assignments to increase students’ ability to critically read information sources. These strategies will apply if you are assigning a major research project, or if you only want to incorporate research and reading skills on a smaller scale throughout a course. Learn ways to hold students accountable to a closer reading of class materials, or give them the tools to choose and use quality sources for their own learning and discovery.
Stephanie Otis is Associate Professor and Instruction Coordinator at J. Murrey Atkins Library, UNC Charlotte. Stephanie is also liaison librarian to the Honors College, University Writing Programs, and the Department of Global, International, and Area Studies. Her most recent work and research focuses on critical reading in library instruction.
When faced with an ever-increasing number of students in large on-campus classes, faculty with limited resources may feel overwhelmed with the prospect of testing such large groups. This session explains how a group of faculty in the Kinesiology Department solved the problem using the campus wifi network and a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD ) exam model.
Bret Wood, Lecturer, Clinical Coordinator, Athletic Training Education Program, and Trudy Moore-Harrison, Lecturer & Graduate Program Coordinator & Director of Health Risk Assessment Program, will lead the session.
NOTE: This workshop will be held online using the University's Web conferencing system, Saba Meeting. You will need access to the Internet, and a microphone if you want to speak. See the Saba Meeting technical requirements on our Saba Meeting Resources page.
Sponsored and supported by Distance Education and the Center for Teaching and Learning, four faculty members at UNC Charlotte completed the course review program provided by Quality Matters and received a certification on the design of online courses. Join the first webinar of a 4-part series for a demonstration of a QM certified course.
Dr. Meredith Troutman-Jordan, an Associate Professor in School of Nursing, will lead the session discussing how she designed NURS 4420 to be recognized as a quality online course.
NOTE: This Webinar will be held online using the University's Web conferencing system, Saba Meeting. You will need access to the Internet, and a microphone if you want to speak. See the Saba Meeting technical requirements on our Saba Meeting Resources page.
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There is a proliferation of misinformation pertaining to how students learn and how best to teach. Students themselves often do not fully understand their own cognitive processes, typically relying on implicit assumptions and trial-and-error to learn new material. The good news is that research provides clear evidence pertaining to what works best in the classroom with respect to human motivation and learning. This session is designed to provide you with evidence about how students learn, show you methods to get students more involved in the content, and demonstrate relevant applications from pedagogical research that can be used in just about any class. You will even have the opportunity to try out a few classroom strategies designed to increase student engagement.
About the speaker:
Dr. Zakrajsek has published and presented widely on the topic of student learning, including workshops and conference keynote addresses in 43 states and 6 countries.
The Center for Teaching and Learning Common Read this semester is Dr. Zakrajsek's book: The New Science of Learning: How to Learn in Harmony with Your Brain. He has a forthcoming book entitled: 101 Intentionally Designed Educational Activities to Put Students on the Path to Success.
There will be a book-signing after the event. This event is open to all UNC Charlotte faculty, students, and staff. Registration is free.
Watch Dr. Todd Zakrajsek's 2015 TEDxUNC Talk Improve Learning by Thinking about Learning:
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Read his book:
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And preview his forthcoming book:
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To promote faculty engagement in SoTL, UNC Charlotte offers a SoTL grant program through the Center for Teaching and Learning.
This workshop will discuss how SoTL is a bridge between the teaching and research domains of faculty work. It will also cover the SoTL grant program RFP and encourage faculty to turn ideas that interest them into projects eligible for this program.
Are you looking to bring more variety to your instruction? Would you like to plan instructional sessions that differ from the usual interactive lectures that you typically present? In this workshop, we will explore the use of structured discovery as an instructional design method to invigorate your course.
Are you looking to bring more variety to your instruction? Would you like to plan instructional sessions that differ from the usual interactive lectures that you typically present? In this workshop, we will explore the use of structured discovery as an instructional design method to invigorate your course.
Discovery learning is a fascinating way to engage students with exploration, experiments, and problem-based inquiry. It stretches their minds to build on prior learning and foster deep understanding. If you would like to have your students be more active in the learning process, this is a good way for you to get started.
Come discuss the "nuts and bolts" of teaching with your fellow adjuncts! Discussion will be guided by topics in the very practical A Handbook for Adjunct/Part-time Faculty and Teachers of Adults, 7th edition (2011) by Donald Greive and Patricia Lesko. We will use this short, practical guide that offers a wealth of practical advice that you can use immediately to thrive, not just survive, in the classroom.Want to know how to engage students (and why it matters), tips for teaching large courses and teaching adult students, teaching techniques, and more? Come and join us!
Copies of the book will be available on reserve in the library.
Fall 2015 Meeting Dates: Fri., Oct. 2; Fri., Oct. 30, Fri., Nov. 20.
Paying attention to how students learn, and the environmental conditions and behaviors that support student success in your class can impact the teaching-learning dynamic in very positive ways. This semester's common read will address the science behind the conditions that foster harmony between the brain and learning. Accordingly, we will engage and collaborate across spaces and time to engage our collective expertise in the exploration of "The New Science of Learning."
We'll develop a small learning community based on the focus of how students learn in harmony with their brains. As educators, we'll meet once each month to discuss major topics addressed by the book, "The New Science of Learning." While segments of the book serve as the focus of each meeting, participation in the face-to-face meetings is not dependent upon having read the prescribed sections of the book. These meetings will include brainstorms, topical discussions, and sharing of resources and strategies based on our collective experiences. The physical environment is that of a casual gathering of friends and colleagues.
Between meetings, we'll take advantage of a virtual collaborative space like Moodle to extend the conversation and to house relevant resources. This space will include topical discussions that play off of face-to-face meeting, as well as discussions and questions initiated by Common Read participants. We'll leverage the virtual space to house articles and links to other web-based tools and resources that support our exploration.
Copies of the book are on reserve in the library.
Laurie Parker, Instructional Technologist, and Bobby Hobgood, Director of the Language Resource Center, will facilitate this learning community.
Fall 2015 Meetings (12-1 pm, Kennedy 221): September 11, October 16, October 30, November 13, December 18
Interaction with course content and students is essential in the online environment. We will identify activities and technologies to enrich student to student interaction, student to instructor interaction, and student to content interaction.
Dr. Florence Martin, Associate Professor in the Instructional Systems Technology program, will lead the session. She researches on technology tools that improve learning and performance (synchronous virtual classrooms, mobile technologies, learning analytics).
NOTE: This workshop will be held online using WebEx, the University's Web conferencing system. You will need access to the Internet, and a microphone if you want to speak.
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Learn practices that contribute to an effective, efficient, and satisfying online teaching experience for both faculty and students. We will discuss best practices for planning, preparation, setting expectations, creating presence, creating community, increasing interaction, enhancing communication, providing feedback and creating effective assessments in the online environment.
Dr. Florence Martin, Associate Professor in the Instructional Systems Technology program, will lead the session. She researches on technology tools that improve learning and performance (synchronous virtual classrooms, mobile technologies, learning analytics).
NOTE: This workshop will be held online using WebEx, the University's Web conferencing system. You will need access to the Internet, and a microphone if you want to speak.
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Webinar Resources: 10 Best Practices for Teaching Online slides [PDF - 2.3 MB]
The Center for Teaching & Learning has new professional development programs just for adjuncts.
This workshop will discuss teaching and learning resources and programs available just for adjuncts, including a new online orientation, learning community, reading group, and more. This is also an opportunity to provide input that will guide our future instructional and professional development programming for adjunct faculty.
Plagiarism. If you teach long enough, you will eventually encounter it.
This workshop will explore strategies that instructors can use to prevent and discourage plagiarism. It will also cover the university's protocol for dealing with plagiarism in the event that it does happen.
This workshop will discuss strategies that instructors can use to encourage critical thinking among students. Participants will learn about activities that ask students to go beyond just acknowledging, showing understanding of, or even applying content - rather these activities ask students to use knowledge in a way that can analyze or critique existing situations or knowledge, or even can create new knowledge.
This webinar will present ways to “translate” visual materials from a face-to-face course for online delivery. Learn about design elements can enhance your students’ or audience’s understanding of the media you use in your online course.
Dr. Bobby Hobgood, Director of the Language Resource Center in the Department of Languages and Culture Studies, will lead the session. In his role, he supports the use of technology by both faculty and students in the study of languages and world cultures. He also serves as an adjunct professor in the College of Education where he teaches advanced foreign language methods online.
NOTE: This workshop will be held online using WebEx, the University's Web conferencing system. You will need access to the Internet, and a microphone if you want to speak.
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Checking for understanding and getting non-verbal participant feedback can be almost second nature in face-to-face classes. How do you do those same things naturally in a web conference environment? This workshop will provide tips and tools for online instructors or presenters to check their audience’s understanding and to respond.
Dr. Bobby Hobgood, Director of the Language Resource Center in the Department of Languages and Culture Studies, will lead the session. In his role, he supports the use of technology by both faculty and students in the study of languages and world cultures. He also serves as an adjunct professor in the College of Education where he teaches advanced foreign language methods online.
NOTE: This workshop will be held online using WebEx, the University's Web conferencing system. You will need access to the Internet, and a microphone if you want to speak.
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Participants in this workshop will learn techniques for facilitating engaging and interactive synchronous web conferences. Leading a discussion in a web format is different from a face-to-face format. Learn techniques for structuring your presentation and chunking content, building in ways for students to participate throughout, and for ensuring that students stay with you and each other every step of the way.
Dr. Bobby Hobgood, Director of the Language Resource Center in the Department of Languages and Culture Studies, will lead the session. In his role, he supports the use of technology by both faculty and students in the study of languages and world cultures. He also serves as an adjunct professor in the College of Education where he teaches advanced foreign language methods online.
NOTE: This workshop will be held online using WebEx, the University's Web conferencing system. You will need access to the Internet, and a microphone if you want to speak.
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The nature of American students, in confluence with certain socio-cultural and psychological factors, precipitate peculiar environments and challenges for international instructors. Dr. Charles Hutchison, an international professor and author of the forthcoming book, Experiences of Immigrant Professors, will lead a hearty discussion on the research on the nature of American classroom, and how the above-mentioned factors influence teaching and learning in the American classroom. Ideas for becoming a more proficient instructor in the American classroom will also be discussed.
In this workshop, participants will engage in Active Learning technology in the Kennedy classroom environment. Some of the technology is very similar to that which is available campus wide, but some is unique to the Kennedy classroom. We will work with instructor and student microphones and sound systems, a computer-enhanced instructional environment, group-based seating, and writable walls!
Just curious about what is available in a 21st Century classroom? Join us to discover the difference.
The College of Computing and Informatics' Center for Education Innvovation hosts this regular reading group.
The Learning Sciences Reading Group will introduce "The Connected Learner Project", a project that is being recommended for funding by NSF. At the meeting we will establish a Google Community for discussions, meetings, and document sharing. We will discuss the major objectives of the project and plan for future meetings. During the last half hour, we will initiate a discussion on the role of learning taxonomies in CS education.
Do you want to move beyond the Traditional Lecture/Test instructional model? What is the first step down that road? What does Active Learning look like? Are you already taking steps toward the Active Learning instructional model? Finally, why does it seem…fun!?!
This workshop will use the Active Learning instructional style so come prepared for an engaging and participatory event. Because you will be asked to explore some resources, be sure to bring your SmartPhone, if you have one. You can save some time if you download a QR Barcode Scanner App or a QR Reader App (Androids use Play Store or iOS devices use App Store). You will experience the Kennedy Active Learning classroom as an engaged learner in one of the newest classrooms on our campus.
Active Learning asks the learner to work with the content in advance of the class, so before class begins please read:
or, if you would like to go deeper still...
Note: Attendance at one of these workshops is expected of any instructors who sign up to teach in the Kennedy Active Learning space during the Fall 2015 or Spring 2016 semester. All instructors are welcome!
If you've been thinking about putting your tests online in Canvas but have been a bit overwhelmed by all the copying and pasting you would have to do, this session is for you.
You'll learn how to use Respondus, a free, campus-licensed tool, to convert your exams - including embedded images - and upload them directly into your Canvas course. With the click of a few buttons, you'll save hours creating a test.
NOTE: Respondus works only on Windows PCs. Please bring a Word file of one of your exams to use during the workshop.
At times faculty are confronted with a problematic student whose behavior cannot be ignored. The behavior in question can range from mildly annoying to seriously disruptive.
This session will review the five steps that faculty should engage in when dealing with problematic student behavior. We will then discuss actual examples of disruptive behavior and explore the best course of action.
Faculty are increasingly using active learning in higher education. When faculty make the shift from a teaching centered approach with relies on lectures to a learning centered classroom that focuses on active learning they quickly realize the importance of student buy-in. If students do not come to class prepared and ready to engage, learning suffers. This workshop will discuss some strategies that can be used to increase student buy-in for active learning and to incentivize student preparation and engagement.
The Showcase will feature poster presentations from many disciplines describing the use of service learning and engaged scholarship projects across campus. Projects are diverse and feature case studies, best practices, lessons learned, and innovations in service learning and engaged scholarship. The Showcase is part of the Engaged Scholarship and Community Partnership Symposium, held April 23 and 24, 2015. The event is co-sponsored by the Center for Teaching & Learning and Campus Compact. The Showcase is a teaching and learning event open to all faculty and teaching staff and GAs.
If you are interested in presenting a poster, please contact Kim Buch, Faculty Fellow in the CTL, at kkbuch@uncc.edu.
Atkins Library understands the financial burden purchasing several textbooks for each semester can be for students. To help ease this burden, the Library has created the eTextbook program. This program allows professors to search the Library's extensive list of unlimited user, DRM-free ebooks that are part of our collection, or could be purchased, for use as course adoption titles.
In this Webinar, you'll find out about the program, see how to request these titles, and gain insight in how you can incorporate these titles in your classes. Andrew Harver, Department of Public Health Sciences, will also talk about his experience using the eTextbook program and using the library materials as part of his course readings.
Liz Siler, Atkins Library, will lead the session. She is the Non-Serial Electronic Resources Librarian and manages the eTextbook program.
NOTE: This Webinar will be held online using the University's Web conferencing system, Saba Meeting. You will need access to the Internet, and a microphone if you want to speak. See the Saba Meeting technical requirements on our Saba Meeting Resources page.
Learn how to create groups, facilitate peer review, add banner images, and many other specific features of the Mahara e-portfolio system.
This workshop will focus on how to engage students in class discussions. We will explore techniques to assist with planning, implementing and assessing effective class discussions. Effective practices for managing both whole and small group discussions in and out of class will be demonstrated and discussed. Many of these ideas can be used immediately within your class this semester.
Classroom instruction based on dialogue takes advantage of the natural instructor-student conversation that occurs during the semester. This conversation doesn’t need to be limited to the in-person instruction, and can be extended outside the classroom using data gathering techniques.
In this workshop, we will explore the range of ways that surveys and data gathering can help to inform classroom instruction. Bring survey samples you have used in the past, so we can "start the conversation" in this workshop.
Intended Audience: This workshop is intended for faculty and staff who are involved in the collection of assessment data and the use of assessment data for program improvement.
Workshop Outcomes: Workshop participants will learn how to create a curriculum map for their programs. These maps can be used to identify gaps in the introduction and reinforcement of learning outcomes.
To register, sign up here.
Intended Audience: This workshop is primarily for faculty and staff who are responsible for developing a student learning outcomes assessment plan for a new educational program or revising an existing student learning outcomes assessment plan for an established educational program.
Workshop Outcomes: Workshop participants will learn: 1) how to develop a student learning outcomes assessment plan and analytic rubrics, 2) how to properly report student learning outcomes assessment data, and 4) how assessment data can be used to improve student learning.
To register, sign up here.
Intended Audience: The primary audiences for this workshop are faculty and staff who want to learn how to deconstruct outcomes. Participants will be guided through an interactive process of breaking program learning outcomes into its component parts. Then, they will engage in discussions that foster intentional connections between general education outcomes and program learning outcomes in order to deepen student learning.
Workshop Outcomes: Participants will: 1) unpack student learning outcomes; 2) identify disciplinary thinking that align with general education outcomes that will promote deeper learning; 3) identify authentic assessments (tasks) and rubrics that provide evidence of students skills and abilities.
To register, sign up here.
Awarding stamps in Moodle can be a fun motivator for students. The Stamp collection module allows instructors create stamp collections that students can collect. It allows not only teachers to give stamps to students, but students can be allowed to give stamps to other students and stamps may be given to teachers, too. This workshop will provide examples of how to use stamps and an introduction to how to get started using stamps in your own course.
The CTL Reading Club is an opportunity to join in a discussion of a common reading related to the topic of learning. The goal is to promote professional development, discussion, and reflection and to be a welcoming place for the university community to engage in dialogue together about learning. Discussions will be facilitated by Laurie Parker, Instructional Technology Consultant, and Dr. Mike Thomas, Assistant Professor of Instructional Systems Technology at UNC Charlotte.
This month's reading is How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School (2000) by John D. Bransford, Ann L. Brown, and Rodney R. Cocking.
There are no quizzes so join us even if you haven’t finished the reading. The book can be read for free online, or as a free PDF download.
How do we achieve quality in online courses? What makes an online course a quality course? With all the talk about assuring high quality online learning, instructors seek ways to achieve quality in the design of online courses. This workshop will introduce various quality standards and showcase how Dr. Florence Martin of the Instructional Systems Technology program applied standards of Quality Matters (QM) in her design of a 100% online course, EIST 6150 - Design, Development, and Evaluation of Online Learning Systems.
Dr. Appelman, Director of the Immersive Learning Research group and Clinical Professor Emeritus at Indiana University
Learn how game designers build engagement into popular games such as World of Warcraft and how those techniques can be applied in the development of learning activities.
"Learning can be an immersive environment that develops critical thinking through collaboration and competition."
There is a common ground in both teaching a class and designing a game that centers on the content to be embedded in each context. However, the goals of a class vary considerably from the goals of a game when it comes to how the content is perceived, retained, and used. Simplistically, the goals of a class can be summarized as focusing on retention and application of content, while the goals of a game are focused on having fun while applying the content. The focus on application of content requires that this content be rearranged and parsed differently for game mechanics.
Join us to learn about Dr. Appelman's "4 Step Experiential ID process (4xEID)" for gamifying learning.
Peer Observations can be a powerful professional development opportunity for faculty. This workshop will examine effective practices for providing meaningful and constructive peer observations for faculty colleagues. Participants will be provided with a variety of formats useful for gathering and sharing data collected during the observation. In addition, recommendations for how observers can deliver constructive feedback that will assist their peers in the improvement of practice will be presented and discussed.
Many instructors are interested in using active learning strategies but feel constrained by the spaces they teach in. At first glance, traditional classrooms, with their fixed row seating and lack of technology seem to limit instructors to lectures, especially in large classes. This workshop offers some suggestions about working around the limitations of traditional classes as instructors adopt more active learning strategies. Attendees are encourage to come with one specific lesson in mind that they would like to make more active.
Are you ready to grade final projects or essays next month? Save time and reduce stress by using a project-specific rubric! This workshop will guide you through the process of creating this rubric to help you be more efficient, consistent, clear, and fair as you grade the stack of work headed your way.
**Please bring the assignment directions for the rubric you will create.**
In this workshop, we will engage in some hands-on learning about the power and potential for Twitter in different classroom environments. We will explore how Twitter can be used as a tool for critical thinking by understanding how students can read a document and then ‘live Tweet’ as they read. We will explore how Twitter can offer new collaborative experiences for students as they share, discuss and ‘retweet’ using hashtags and we will see the power of Twitter as a reflective tool while students create projects during class.
What are e-Portfolios and how do I effectively use them in my class? This instructional workshop answers that question through discussion of types of portfolios, which style is right for your learning goals, platforms available, how to balance required content with creativity, and how artifacts and reflection show critical thinking skills.
Learning technologies like Moodle capture a range of data that can inform teaching decisions. The field of Learning Analytics has emerged encouraging educators to utilize student data in teaching, which may be referred to as the practice of data-based teaching. This workshop will introduce the concept of learning analytics and some pioneering projects on the research and development of learning analytics. We will also present some data Moodle produces and engage the participants in the discussion of how the data might be used in everyday teaching.
This workshop explores some of things faculty should consider when they form and manage groups in a collaborative learning environment. Specifically, participants will learn some of the best practices for forming groups and different strategies for doing so. We will also cover some strategies that faculty can use to manage groups, which can help group work go more smoothly. Finally, we will talk about potential interventions for groups who are struggling.
This workshop will cover the collaborative uses of groups in the Mahara ePortfolio platform. Groups enable peer reviewing of the ePortfolio content, discussion topics in forums, and shared creation of pages and collections, among other uses. Learn the benefits of these features and how to use them.
