Centre for Learning and Teaching

Studio Courses in Teaching and Learning

The Studio Courses offer faculty members dedicated time and guidance to explore an aspect of teaching and learning in greater depth than in an introductory workshop. Studio Course participants meet for approximately 8 hours during the semester, and will emerge from these courses having embarked on a project of meaning and substance.

Past Studio Courses

2022

Open Education and Pedagogy

Course Description

In recent years, a growing number of practices in academia have been focussed on openness. A goal of this movement has been to lower barriers to knowledge by making the products and processes of scholarship more accessible and transparent. Open scholarship may include the application of any number of open practices and includes open access, open research, and open data. From a teaching and learning lens, it also includes open education and pedagogy – both of which are explored in more detail in this course. Creating and adapting open educational resources in your courses, engaging in pedagogical practices where learners are the creators of knowledge, and using open copyright licenses on your work that give permission to others to freely reuse and build upon your scholarly work are all examples of open educational practices.

In this six-week course, we will explore the landscape of open educational practices and how you may apply it in your teaching and learning. We will review the basics of creative commons and the 5Rs, learn when, why, and how we may want to create or use open educational resources (OERs), and explore the various ways of engaging students in open practice by integrating open pedagogy into our classrooms. By the end of this course, you should be able to:

Explain what we mean by open educational practices and describe the advantages and challenges of practicing open education and pedagogy in our courses
Develop strategies to address potential risks when planning to engage in open educational practices
Create and design course materials and teaching and learning activities that are rooted in openness

Course Length, Schedule, and Organization

This course will be delivered in a blended format as three modules over six weeks. The three main topics include (1) The spectrum of open and creative commons licenses, (2) open educational resources, and (3) open pedagogy. Learners will submit short weekly assignments and a longer portfolio as their final project.

Most synchronous sessions are expected to occur in-person in Halifax (room TBA). In special cases, online participation may be accommodated. Please contact the instructor if you have additional questions about the format of this course or about specific requirements regarding your participation.

Dates: The course will run from Oct 3 – Nov 11, 2022 with an extended deadline for the final project submission of Nov 18, 2022. Weekly, 1-hr synchronous sessions will be held every Monday at 9 AM (tentative).

Participation and Expectations

Participants are expected to attend weekly synchronous sessions and complete independent asynchronous work for this course. In addition to the synchronous session, participants should anticipate spending an average of 2 hrs per week on course preparation and assignments. Details on synchronous session date/time will be made available at a later date.

This course has a limit of 12 participants. Registration for non-Faculty Certificate Members will open Monday, September 19. If registration is full, please email clt@dal.ca to be added to the waitlist.

Faculty Certificate Members will automatically be enrolled in the Studio Course, until the course is full. Then you would be put on a waiting list. Visit the Faculty Certificate Brightspace site for details on how to register for this Studio Course.

Non-Faculty Certificate Members will be placed on a waiting list. If seats become available, The Centre for Learning and Teaching will contact those on waiting lists beginning 2-weeks prior to the start of the course and until the course begins.

Instructor

Elizabeth Gillis
Educational Developer, Curriculum | Centre for Learning and Teaching | Dalhousie University
elizabeth.gillis@dal.ca

Students as Partners in Online and Blended Teaching (June 6 - July 15)

Course Description

The “Great Disengagement” might be the term future social historians ascribe to the large number of students who flicked off those mics and cameras during our years of pandemic online teaching and learning. The reasons for this are complex and many, most having little to do with how instructors delivered and taught online courses, effectively or otherwise. Seismic social events make unsteady ground and throw up new terrain. They disturb the peace of our fundamental “whys” and “what fors,” making us, teachers and learners alike, unsure of what knowledge and which skills to bring forward into the future. Shouldn’t the classroom, especially the virtual one, be just the place to chart—and create—the map of who we will be called to be, what we will be called to do, in the “post”-pandemic world?

We’ll need an alternative paradigm for the classroom, one in which the lines between teacher and learners, expert and novice, designer and user are blurred. A “Student as Partners” (SaP) paradigm offers this, placing the student in an empowered position to participate in the design and implementation of teaching and learning. In this studio course, we will explore benefits, challenges, and examples of partnering with students in learning, teaching and assessment, and its potential to encourage self-motivation, responsiveness and responsibility within students; and, for instructors, self-reflection, enhanced practice and renewed joy and enthusiasm for teaching.

Learning Outcomes

By the conclusion of this studio course, you will:

Become familiar with opportunities presented in the SaP literature to overcome challenges that seem particularly intractable in the online environment, such as student participation, academic integrity, and lack of relationship and connection.
Experience what “partnership” might look and feel like in the co-production of the virtual classroom environment (either Teams or Collaborate and within Brightspace) which will, in turn, provide participants with a large buffet of ideas to apply in your own online and blended classes. Co-production work takes place within our weekly hour together; no extra meetings necessary.
Form reflective habits for the process of teaching in uncertain and uncharted territory by turning uncomfortable and negative feelings and attitudes—uncertainty, resistance, tension, disagreement, skepticism—into fruitful resources to inform your practice in partnering with students.
Apply some of the major SaP pedagogical, ethical and practical concepts to the design of an aspect of teaching, learning or assessment, such as: content creation, active learning activities, reflective/metacognitive activities or assignments, classroom discussion, text and material selection, assessments and rubrics, etc., with the hopes that it can be of practical use for upcoming teaching engagements.

Participation & Expectations for Attendance

We will meet once a week in the virtual classroom (variously Teams and Collaborate)—our SaP “laboratory”—trying out practical ways to plan and run synchronous sessions informed by principles of SaP. The topics of discussion within these sessions will be ideas and concepts from the SaP literature. Synchronous session times will be determined within the course in consultation with the participants.

Participants will also spend time in the asynchronous classroom (Brightspace discussion boards). Like the virtual classroom time, engagement in Brightspace will be facilitated to demonstrate ways to employ SaP ideas and frameworks in the asynchronous environment.

Participants should plan to attend all synchronous sessions in addition to completing reflective and project components. Participants should anticipate devoting 1.5-2 hours per week to the course.

Course length

The course will run for 6-weeks from Monday, June 6, 2022 to Friday, July 15, 2022. More details about the course schedule will be shared on Brightspace and on the course outline.

Registration cap

The capacity of this studio course is a maximum 12.

Instructor

Kate Crane, MA
Educational Developer (eLearning)
kate.crane@dal.ca

Teaching International Students (TIS): Making learning experience relevant and inclusive (May 9 - June 30)

Course Description

24% of Dalhousie students are identified as international students. You may see these students in your classrooms at the intersection of learning domains (cognitive, affective, behavioural) from linguistic, cultural, and individually unique perspectives . As an academic who embeds their pedagogy in the principles of EDIA, you might want to know how learning experience can be made inclusive and relevant for all students, including international students who are looking for opportunities to feel they BELONG!

In today’s classrooms, by way of being global citizens, ALL students are international students, and they deserve an education focused on their needs and aspirations as well - an education that connects them with communities and world outside their classrooms. How can the class environment and learning experience be made relevant and inclusive for all students? Research indicates that one way to do this is to make the intended course and lesson learning outcomes global. In this studio course, we’ll explore how global learning outcomes can be embedded within the core course outcomes and encourage students to experience intercultural spaces and develop intercultural competency. If you are an educator who wishes or intends to explore possibilities of addressing the needs of international students in your classrooms and making your classroom environment inclusive for all students, this studio course will help you discover these possibilities and help you start planning the implementation of practical strategies to internationalize your curriculum.

Instructor

Shazia Nawaz Awan, Ed.D., Educational Developer (Internationalization & Intercultural Competency), Center for Learning & Teaching

Schedule

The course will run for 8-weeks from May 9 – June 30, 2022 , and is mostly asynchronous with synchronous components on Tuesday, May 10 & 24 and June 7 & 21 at 11:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

More details about the course schedule will be shared on Brightspace and on the course outline.

Learning Outcomes

Through a full engagement with the course, participants should be able to:

Recognize the importance of adapting pedagogy for TIS as a timely necessity
Aimed at TIS, design and add inclusive elements to an existing course
Plan and apply strategies explored during the course to an existing/ongoing course
Demonstrate a shift in making a move to adapt your pedagogy more relevant for TIS

Course Organization

The 8-week course is organized into three modules, one task-week of working on the presentation for the panel and one panel-discussion-week. Bi-weekly module tasks include:

Collaborative e-social reading on Perusall (one-article)
Personalized reflections and relevance submissions (3 in total)
Use of Educational technology (EdTech) to develop a Community of Practice (CoP) through engagement on Teams for flexible interaction
Course feedback surveys (two in total/one in week 5 and one post course)

Course Registration

Registration for this course is now closed.

Note: The capacity of this studio course is a maximum 15, and priority will be given to those who are registered in the Faculty Certificate in Teaching and Learning. If you are not a member of the Faculty Certificate Program, you will be placed on a waiting list. If seats become available, the Centre for Learning and Teaching will contact those on waiting lists beginning 2-weeks prior to the start of the course and until the course begins.

Gamification and Game-Based Learning (March 1 - April 14)

Instructor

Kate Thompson, PhD
Educational Developer (eLearning)
Email: thompskm@dal.ca

This studio course will explore the use of gamification and game-based learning in the higher education context. Topics include exploring how play can enhance student learning, what gamification and game-based learning are, and how they are similar and distinct from one another. We will explore different types of games, some key game mechanics and characteristics, and how these can be applied to learning activities. We will also explore how to design meaningful and educational learning experiences by incorporating existing games into your course. Participants will gain practical experience with gamification and game-based learning by experiencing those concepts as they are applied in the design of the course, and will have opportunities to discuss and develop their own implementations of gamification and/or game-based learning in their own courses.

The course design is blended, and participation is very flexible. Many activities will be asynchronous online activities. There will be a weekly synchronous session which will usually be held virtually, and there will be at least one in-person session (regulations permitting). Synchronous session times will be determined within the course in consultation with the participants. Participation in the synchronous/in-person sessions is not mandatory, but it’s highly recommended you make it to as many as you can! Successful completion of this course should not require more than about 2 hours/week.

No prior gaming experience is required to participate in this course, but participation will certainly involve play!

2021

A Perfect Blend (Fall Term)

After a long year of teaching online you might be wondering, “ How will I use everything I’ve learned and designed in my in-person classes?” Regardless of the rapid (and stressful) transition to online, both faculty and students have identified aspects of online instruction that they either benefitted from or even enjoyed. There are several options for designing an on-campus course that incorporates the elements of online teaching that worked for you and the students. This studio course explores the potential for more blended teaching and learning in the post-pandemic world. Participants will have the opportunity to learn more about blended course instruction and apply blended strategies to their own courses.

Learning outcomes

Through full engagement with the course, participants should be able to:

Design a course that is adaptable.
Apply learner-centered principles of curriculum alignment to blended course design.
Recognize a variety of opportunities for blended engagement in an in-person course.
Transition online courses to blended instruction by making evidence-informed choices about course design.

Instructors

Susan Joudrey, Associate Director, Centre for Learning & Teaching
Jill McSweeney-Flaherty, Educational Developer (Scholarship of Teaching and Learning | Classroom Spaces), Centre for Learning & Teaching

Schedule

The course will run for 6-weeks from 18 Oct – 26 November 2021, and is mostly asynchronous with synchronous components on:

Tuesday, Oct 19, 9:00 – 10:30am
Tuesday, Nov 2, 9:00 – 10:30am, and
Tuesday, Nov 23, 9:00 – 10:00am.

More details regarding the course schedule will be available soon.

Capacity

Max enrollment 20 participants with priority those enrolled in the Faculty Certificate Program and who taught online during the 2020-21 year.

*Those not enrolled in the program or have not taught online during the 2020-21 term may still register and will be notified on Wednesday, October 6, on a first-come-first-served basis, if a seat becomes available.

A Perfect Blend (Summer)

After a long year of teaching online you might be wondering, “Will I be able to use everything I’ve learned and designed once we return to in-person classes?” Regardless of the rapid (and stressful) transition to online, both faculty and students have identified aspects of online instruction that they either benefitted from or even enjoyed. There are several options for designing an on-campus course that incorporates the elements of online teaching that worked for you and the students. This studio course explores the potential for more blended teaching and learning in the post-pandemic world. Participants will have the opportunity to learn more about blended course instruction and apply blended strategies to their own courses.

Learning outcomes

Through full engagement with the course, participants should be able to:

Design a course that is adaptable.
Apply learner-centered principles of curriculum alignment to blended course design.
Recognize a variety of opportunities for blended engagement in an in-person course.
Transition online courses to blended instruction by making evidence-informed choices about course design.

Instructors

Susan Joudrey, Senior Educational Developer (Curriculum), Centre for Learning & Teaching
Jill McSweeney-Flaherty, Educational Developer (Scholarship of Teaching and Learning | Classroom Spaces), Centre for Learning & Teaching

Schedule

The course will run for 5-weeks from 5 July - 6 August 2021, and is mostly asynchronous with synchronous components on:

8 July, 2:00-3:30pm
22 July, 2:00-3:30pm, and
participant presentations on 3 August, 2:00-3:30pm and 5 August, 2:00-3:30pm.

More details regarding the course schedule will be available soon.

Capacity

Max enrolment 20 participants, with priority to those enrolled in the Faculty Certificate Program who also taught online during the 2020-21 term.

*Those not enrolled in the program or have not taught online during the 2020-21 term may still register and will be notified on Monday, June 28, on a first-come-first-served basis, if a seat becomes available.

What is Anti-racist/Anti-oppressive Education? An Introductory Course for White Faculty Wanting to Effect Change

Tragically, it took the murder of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man at the hands of a white Minneapolis police officer, to awaken many white people (especially within the United States and Canada), to anti-Black and anti-Indigenous violence and systemic racism.  Although Floyd’s murder was what finally drew the attention of folks who had previously been unaware, there are countless individuals who have died or been brutalized, both before this event and afterward, and in both the United States and Canada. The news has erupted with those individuals’ stories, and once-silenced survivors are stepping forward at a time when it seems that the ‘dominant’ culture might actually be listening, and that there is the possibility of reform. And in all of this, social media is rife with many white people asking, “What can I do?”

Taking this course can be one small, first step, by assuming the responsibility of educating ourselves to address systemic racism and oppression within our own institution. As white teachers and academics, we will take on this work under Kayla Reed’s (Executive Director, Action St. Louis), “A.L.L.Y” framework*:

Always centre the impacted
Listen and learn from those who live in oppression
Leverage your privilege
Yield the floor

Through anti-racist and anti-oppressive theory and voices, we will learn how to position ourselves, our disciplines, and our institution in relation to the systemic racism and oppression in which they are embedded, and that they reinforce and reproduce those systems. We will simultaneously determine how to put into practice what we have learned. Anti-racist and anti-oppressive education are relevant in every discipline, and folks from every Faculty are encouraged to engage in this critical work.

While open to anyone, this course is designed for those who are just beginning their anti-racist and anti-oppressive education learning journey.

Outcomes

By the end of this course, you will be able to:

Uncover and discuss how racism and oppression are replicated and reinforced in all institutional spaces
Identify and plan how you will apply each component of the ALLY framework in your teaching, research, and academic (and personal) lives
Begin to connect anti-racist/anti-oppressive education to Culturally Responsive Pedagogy
Through a scaffolded process, create a final project (as required for the Faculty Certificate Program)
Embrace these first developmental steps as part of lifelong learning

This course is primarily asynchronous (through Brightspace and Microsoft Teams, with opportunities (but no requirement) to meet synchronously one-on-one with the instructor, and/or with your peers (via Teams). Course modules, assignments, and opportunities for engagement will be released every two weeks (five modules for 10 weeks, from May 17 to July 12, 2021.) Opportunities for synchronous discussion or other connections--dates and times-- will be determined by participants.

This studio course can be completed as part of the Faculty Certificate Program, offered through the CLT.

Facilitator

Tereigh Ewert
Senior Educational Developer (Diversity and Inclusivity)
Centre for Learning and Teaching

Designing Learning for Students’ Futures

Post-secondary institutions often focus on the first-year transition into university and retaining students once they arrive. Faculty members and staff are regularly called upon to redesign their teaching and learning practices to help address these concerns. However, little attention is paid to helping students transition out of university. How do our programs prepare students for their futures beyond academia?

This studio course provides an opportunity for faculty to consider supporting student success in their role as educators and disciplinary experts. We will tackle questions such as: What should a course incorporate to foster student success beyond the university? How can program design support students’ post-university aspirations? What is the role of teaching and learning in promoting students’ future successes? Who defines success? Participants will have an opportunity to reflect on their courses and program, and share some of the ways they use their teaching opportunities to support student success.

Instructors

Susan Joudrey, Senior Educational Developer (Curriculum), Centre for Learning & Teaching
Karen McCrank, Director of Advising & Career Services

Schedule

The 6 week asynchronous course will run from 15 March – 23 April 2021. More details regarding the course schedule will be available soon.

Enrolment

To participate in the course, please complete the registration form. There is an enrollment cap of 20 participants, with priority to those enrolled in the Faculty Certificate Program. Those not enrolled in the program may still register and will be notified on a first-come-first-served basis if a seat becomes available.

Contact

clt@dal.ca

The First Fifteen Minutes

Registration is limited to those enrolled in the Faculty Certificate. Spots will open up to the public on December 2.

Course Description

What a joy to start each class on the edge of your seat. Those first few minutes really matter: they set the stage for our collective learning experiences. They send signals about who belongs, what is expected, and most importantly, what is possible in your class or course.

Our time matters. In this studio course, we focus on how you can make the first fifteen minutes of your class meaningful for you and your students. We’ll work on building a toolkit of engagement hooks and focusing activities and we’ll develop your confidence in getting your classes started.

Course Learning Outcomes

By the end of the course, my expectation is that you will be able to:

skillfully use at least two different structures for designing the first fifteen minutes of class;
demonstrate competence in facilitating at least three focusing activities;
harness and convey your enthusiasm for your course subject material and students by designing opening exercises around an engagement hook;
plan braver classes that are more responsive to the students in them; and
effectively give and receive feedback about your teaching and learning experience.

Schedule

The course will be offered online and synchronously. It has been designed to support your (likely online) teaching. Put another way, participation in the course should help you prepare for the classes you are teaching: it should not create (entirely) new work.

The course will be highly interactive. The instructor will offer an overview of some of the scholarship of teaching and learning that supports our activities, but most of the course will be spent designing, delivering, and receiving and providing feedback on teaching and classroom experience.

Class	Date & Time	Activity
1	December 14, 5–7 p.m.	introduction to the course; introduction of participants; discussion of focusing students’ attention and generating enthusiasm, the ‘hook’, and diverse students and learners
2	January 11 5–7 p.m.	full class practices – 3 or 4 volunteers; group discussions
3	January 18 5–7 p.m.	everyone prepares and practices a 15 minute introduction for a class they are teaching (or will teach)
4	January 25 5–7 p.m.	everyone prepares and practices a 15 minute introduction for a class they are teaching (or will teach)
5	February 1 5–7 p.m.	everyone prepares and practices a 15 minute introduction for a class they are teaching (or will teach)
6	February 8 5–7 p.m.	reflective class discussion; social

Enrollment

The course will be capped at 16 students. It is expected that students attend all sessions.

Evaluation

Preparation of at least three, and possibly four or five, “first 15 minute” teaching and learning sessions. Submission of a maximum three page reflection essay, due February 8.

2020

Peer Instruction with Clickers: Increasing Student Engagement, Learning, and Success

This course is open to Dalhousie faculty only

Course Description

Peer instruction is a powerful, evidence-based instructional strategy that provides opportunities for students to engage and interact during synchronous online and in-person classes. In a typical episode of peer instruction,

the instructor poses a conceptually-challenging question
each student thinks about the question submit their answer using a physical or virtual “clicker”
students discuss the question and their answers in small groups
students may vote a second time, depending on the nature of the question
the instructor leads a class-wide discussion where students share their thinking
the instructor models expert-like thinking and confirms why the right answers are right and the wrong answers are wrong

What to Expect

In this series of six, 90-minute, online sessions, we’ll explore the element of peer instruction and you’ll have opportunities to discuss (and experience) it. Before each session, you can expect 30-60 minutes of reading, writing, and responding as you integrate the elements of peer instruction into the context of your course. By the end of this course, you should be able to

distinguish between the transmission, constructivist, and social constructivist models of learning and identify which are better supported by peer instruction
create conceptually challenging “clicker” questions that spark discussion
build time into your lesson for peer instruction by adopting a flipped learning model for the class
facilitate an inclusive “choreography” in online synchronous and in-person classes so every student is able to engage in peer instruction
draft a slide deck for one topic or lesson that includes episodes of peer instruction
revise your course syllabus and grading scheme to integrate peer instruction
select a student response system compatible with your learning technologies agility to poll students, gather and analyze their responses, and record their participation

Schedule

We’ll be running the 90-minute sessions twice each week: Tuesdays at 11:00 am – 12:30 pm Atlantic and Wednesdays at 2:30 pm – 4:00 pm Atlantic. Participants can attend the session that best fits their schedule.

Session 1: October 20 and 21
Session 2: October 27 and 28
Session 3: November 3 and 4
(skip a week for Fall Study Week, November 9 – 13)
Session 4: November 17 and 18
Session 5: November 24 and 25
Session 6: December 1 and 2

Enrolment

To participate in the course, please complete this registration and pre-course survey. There is an enrollment cap of 24 participants, with priority to those enrolled in the Faculty Certificate Program. Those not enrolled in the program may still register and will be notified on a first-come-first-served basis if a seat becomes available.

Assessment

As part of the Faculty Certificate in Teaching and Learning program, your work will be assessed and at the end of the course, you will receive a pass/fail grade. During the course, your worked will be assessed using a “mastery grading” scheme where you receive

S – successful: Great work!
G – growing: Your work shows growth towards success, however it’s incomplete. You can revise and resubmit if you want.
N – not yet: No response or your work is not yet assessable. You should seriously consider revising and resubmitting.

Contact

If you have questions about the course, please contact the instructor:

Peter Newbury, PhD
Educational Developer, CLT | Faculty of Engineering
Email: peter.newbury@dal.ca
Twitter: @polarisdotca

Accessibility in Online Teaching

Course Description

We have a commitment as faculty to provide students with learning opportunities that are inclusive, safe, and innovative. As part of this commitment, online courses need to be accessible—both in terms of their design, as well as in pedagogical strategies employed by the instructor. This means, as examples, supplying content accessible with assistive technologies such as screen readers or choosing video media with captions. It also includes writing learning outcomes that are flexible and achievable for all learners. Further, we can provide multiple ways for learners to express what they have learned.

In this course, you will begin exploring accessibility in its various forms, relevant campus policies and legislation around accessibility, how-tos in creating accessible content, the principles of Universal Design for Learning (UDL), components of student accessibility plans, commonly used assistive technologies, (dis)ability etiquette, and the characteristics and nature of specific reasons (including disabilities) students may require accommodations.

Course Learning Outcomes

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

Describe the characteristics and nature of specific categories of (dis)ability, including any related etiquette (e.g., language, confidentiality, behaviour, etc.)
Create accessible course materials (webpages, PDFs, videos, images, etc.)
Implement the principles of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) into their course design
Read, interpret, and implement a student’s accessibility plan as provided by the Student Accessibility Centre
Assess their online or blended course for its overall accessibility
Evaluate, use, and recommend a range of assistive technologies (specifically those made available to students through the Student Accessibility Centre)

Schedule

This course is held 100% online and is accessible through Brightspace. The course occurs asynchronously, although there are opportunities to meet synchronously online or in person throughout the term.

Modules start on the following Mondays and run for 2-3 weeks each:

January 20
February 3
February 24
March 9
March 23

Enrolment

There is an enrollment cap of 15 participants, with priority to those enrolled in the Faculty Certificate Program. Those not enrolled in the program may still register and will be notified on a first-come-first-served basis if a seat becomes available.

Contact

Les T. Johnson, PhD | Educational Developer (eLearning)
Pronouns: he/him/his
Centre for Learning and Teaching
DALHOUSIE UNIVERSITY
(902) 494-6828
lestjohnson@dal.ca

Beyond Content

Anne Marie Ryan, University Teaching Fellow

Details: Online offering
Dates: June 15-July 3, 2020

Synchronous meetings tentatively: June 15, 18, 22, 25, and 29 (1 hour: suggested 9:30-10:30, or as works for the group – contact Anne Marie Ryan if this time is a problem (amryan@dal.ca))

Course Description: June 15- July 3 2020

This course is offered as a mix of synchronous and asynchronous online learning. Participants must have access to a computer and be able to actively participate in a minimum of 4 of the 5 synchronous sessions of approximately 1 hour. Participants can expect to spend 3-4 hours a week in addition, and then complete a project of relevance to their own context.

Much of our teaching traditionally focusses on content, the knowledge and skills we deem important within our discipline. This content is embedded in a context that we often leave untapped, so the richness of our disciplines can fail to be meaningfully exposed. What is this context beyond the content? In terms of our teaching, this might include such aspects as the relevance of the discipline to society, globally and locally, and the impact of society on our discipline; helping students unpack their own learning so they learn more deeply (metacognition); exploring the issues that have ethical implications and helping them develop decision-making tools; information literacy in all its guises; and what are often referred to as the “4Cs” of 21^st Century learning, critical thinking, communication, creativity, and collaboration. While we may be engaging students in many of these perspectives, we can also fail to be explicit around this broader context of our disciplines, so students fail to make the connections or see the relevance.

Integrating active learning where reasonable throughout these online sessions, this studio course explores a number of these and other aspects of context beyond content, and how, through being more deliberate in our teaching, we can enrich the learning opportunities for our students without compromising the content. Participants can expect to have some reading to do before and between sessions, contribute to the online discussion board and group interaction, and to complete a project in which they integrate the ideas from the course into a framework for one of their own courses.

2019

Beyond Content

Facilitator: Dr. Anne Marie Ryan, University Teaching Fellow

Date/Time

Tuesday August 6 and 13, 9 am – 12 pm
Thursday August 8 and 15, 9 am – 11 am

Location

Wallace McCain Learning Commons, Room 271
Studley Campus only (not available for remote locations)

Course Description

Much of our teaching traditionally focusses on content, the knowledge and skills we deem important within our discipline. This content is embedded in a context that we often leave untapped, so the richness of our disciplines can fail to be meaningfully exposed. What is this context beyond the content? In terms of our teaching, this might include such aspects as the relevance of the discipline to society, globally and locally, and the impact of society on our discipline; helping students unpack their own learning so they learn more deeply (metacognition); exploring the issues that have ethical implications and helping them develop decision-making tools; information literacy in all its guises; and what are often referred to as the “4Cs” of 21^stCentury learning, critical thinking, communication, creativity, and collaboration. While we may be engaging students in many of these perspectives, we can also fail to be explicit around this broader context of our disciplines, so students fail to make the connections or see the relevance.

Using active learning throughout the sessions, this studio course explores a number of these and other aspects of context beyond content, and how, through being more deliberate in our teaching, we can enrich the learning opportunities for our students without compromising the content. Participants can expect to do some reading before and between sessions and to complete a project, in which they integrate the ideas from the course into a framework for one of their own courses.

If you have questions about the course, please contact the instructor, Anne.Marie.Ryan@Dal.ca

Engaging in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

COURSE DESCRIPTION: This studio course is designed to introduce faculty members and instructors to the field of the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL). In this course, we will reflect on the value of SOTL and explore researching teaching and learning across the disciplines through a facilitated research development process to design a SoTL research project. Drawing from our own disciplinary backgrounds, and often working collaboratively, we will define a research question and place that question in the context of the relevant literatures, determine appropriate research methodologies, and explore the ethical implications of your research design. Throughout the course, we will draw on some foundational writings in the field of SoTL, and engage in practical exercises that will result in a SoTL project that can be undertaken upon completion of the course.

Course Details: Wednesdays from 11am to 1pm
February 6, 13, 27, and March 5, 2019: inclusive
Killam Library, room B-400.

Participants will attend all four sessions and should plan time between sessions for working on projects.

Inclusive Teaching Approaches and Practices

COURSE DESCRIPTION: Embracing student-centred pedagogy, as well as engaging in critical self-reflection, studio course participants will examine ways in which their classes may inadvertently create barriers for marginalized students. We will uncover, consider, and apply inclusive approaches and practices that will help mitigate these barriers and support all students’ learning. The four-week course culminates in a final project. Participants should complete the course with practical skills and knowledge that can be immediately applied in their next classes and courses. Topics include: barriers to student learning and an introduction to inclusive teaching; practical and applied strategies including active and group learning; inclusive teaching online; and inclusive assessment.

Course Details: Tuesdays, 9-11 AM on February 5, 12, 26, and March 5, 2019: inclusive
Participants will attend all four sessions.

Participants will attend all four sessions and should plan time between sessions for working on projects.

Integrating Technology in Your Teaching Practice

Facilitator: Chad O'Brien, B.A., B.Sc., B.Ed., MEd
Educational Developer

Technology impacts teaching practice, and this course will help faculty members with strategies to increase the benefits of that impact. This studio course will begin by addressing foundational decisions regarding when to use technology in one’s teaching practice and for what reasons.

By the end of the studio course, participants will be able to:

Evaluate any educational technology through hands-on experience;
Apply any technology in the design of a course activity, module, or other related part of teaching practice;
Explain choice of educational technology based on considerations of purpose of activity, learning outcomes, and learner characteristics in selection process;
Identify the rationale and benefits attributed to integrating technology with learning activities;
Identify challenges and risks associated with implementing technologies in learning activities.

Participants will choose a project that applies to their practice. The idea is to appropriately select a technology that will benefit an element of one’s practice. Participants will submit their rationale for the project in an online repository and then present the results of their work. There will be options to present either face to face in the last week, or to submit a video presentation via Brightspace for review. This will be a blended delivery (at least 3 classes are face-to-face/video-conference). The course will take 4 weeks to complete.

The capacity of this studio course will be 16 participants. Participants are expected to bring a browser enabled device. Those participating in the Faculty Certificate Program will be expected to attend all sessions and complete all mandatory online activities. All weeks will have online components. Participants may spend more time beyond what is in the expected time column depending on their project topic and digital competency.

If you have questions about the course, please contact the instructor, Chad O'Brien.

Tel: (902) 494-6792
Email: chad.obrien@dal.ca

Week	Date	Format and Location	Topic	Expected Time Commitment	Time
1	July 3	Online	Introduction to Educational Technology	2hrs	Flexible
2	July 10	Face to Face Killam Library (B400) or Video-Conference in MacRae Library Boardroom (208)	Making Informed Choices	2hrs	11:00am – 1:00pm
3	July 17	Face to Face Killam Library (B400) or Video-Conference in MacRae Library Boardroom (208)	Lab Session	2hrs	11:00am – 1:00pm
3	July 19	Online	Repository Submission	2hrs	Flexible
4	July 24	Face to Face Killam Library (B400) or Video-Conference in MacRae Library Boardroom (208)	Presentations	2hrs	11:00am – 1:00pm
4	July 25	Face to Face Killam Library (B400) or Video-Conference in MacRae Library Boardroom (208)	Presentations *(Only if needed)*	2hrs	11:00am-1:00pm

“Scholarly” Teaching & the “Scholarship of” Teaching

We are often asked to engage in both scholarly teaching and the scholarship of teaching, but can forget to acknowledge that while closely related, their intentions and outcomes are different. Scholarly teaching involves the use of evidence-based practices in our teaching, which includes actively reading and critically reflecting on new pedagogical approaches to understand how, why, and when our students are learning. While intertwined with scholarly teaching, the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) involves a systematic approach into studying student learning, through asking questions, gathering evidence, and applying frameworks of inquiry.

Many of us move between scholarly teaching and the scholarship of teaching, but without reflecting on how both overlap, compliment, and are a part of a larger practice of our teaching development. This studio course will explore both concepts and focus on how you can be both a scholarly teacher and produce scholarship about your teaching at the same time.

Please note: This is a face-to-face course on the Halifax campus only.

Course Times
10:00 am - 12:00 pm, Thursdays, B400 of the Killam

Class 1: Oct 24, 2019
Class 2: Oct 31, 2019
Class 3: Nov 7, 2019
Class 4: Nov 14, 2019 (Not mandatory, work time and opportunity for feedback)
Class 5: Nov 21, 2019
Class 6: Nov 28, 2019

Learning outcomes

Engage in collaborative conversations with colleagues across disciplines to explore foundational principles of scholarly teaching and the scholarship of teaching and learning.
Identify and explore an area of curiosity related to student learning, through critically reflecting on your teaching practice.
Develop a research question grounded in the principles of good SoTL practice and supported by appropriate literature on teaching and learning.
Provide peer feedback and support to enhance the scholarly practices of others in the studio course.

Facilitator

Jill Marie McSweeney-Flaherty, PhD
Educational Developer (Graduate Students)
Tel: (902) 494-4300 | Email: jill.mcsweeney@dal.ca

This course has a max capacity of 18 students.

2018

Inclusivity: Awakening and Enacting Change

COURSE DESCRIPTION: “Diversity and inclusivity” has become a commonly used phrase, but how deeply do we understand these words? In this course, through active, peer, and reflective learning activities, we will awaken our own interpretations of “diversity” and “inclusivity” and begin to apply our understandings to our life and work at Dal. Setting goals and keeping an “inclusivity journal” are significant course components. This course is an excellent pre-cursor to a second studio course being offered in another term, wherein we will dig deeply into applying inclusivity to our teaching practices.

Course Details: The course will take place on five consecutive Wednesdays (September 19, 26, October 3, 10, and 17) from 1:00-3:00pm in the Killam Library, room B-400.

Click Here to Register

Introducing Students to Research Paper Writing

Studio Course Description:
In this studio course you will have time to rethink the use of research papers for university students (especially first-year or inexperienced students). The course includes four class sessions in which we will discuss student preparedness for writing, learning outcomes, activities that sequence learning, appropriate feedback, and rubrics for papers. The course will culminate in the presentation of research a paper assignment project for one of your classes. The intent is to develop a deeper understanding of and new approaches to research paper assignments.

Integrating Technology into Your Teaching Practice

Technology impacts teaching practice and this course will help faculty with strategies to increase the benefits of that impact. This studio course will begin by addressing foundational decisions regarding when to use technology and for what reasons in one’s teaching practice.

By the end of the studio course, participants will be able to:

Evaluate any educational technology through hands-on experience;
Apply any technology in the design of a course activity, module, or other related part of teaching practice;
Explain choice of educational technology based on considerations of purpose of activity, learning outcomes, and learner characteristics in selection process;
Identify the rationale and benefits attributed to integrating technology with learning activities;
Identify challenges and risks associated with implementing technologies in learning activities.

Participants will choose a project that applies to their practice. The idea is to appropriately select a technology that will benefit an element of one’s practice. Participants will submit their rationale for the project in an online repository and then present the results of their work to the other course attendees during the last session. This will be a blended delivery and take approximately 6 weeks to complete. Participants are welcome to attend from all campus locations remotely.

Faculty who are not a part of the certificate program at this time are welcome to attend any of the sessions in any way they see beneficial. Only faculty who need this course to count towards their certificate are required to complete all elements outlined in the schedule.

The capacity of this studio course will be 20 participants. Participants are expected to bring a browser enabled device. Those participating in the faculty certificate program will be expected to attend all sessions and complete all mandatory online activates. All weeks will have online components. Participants may spend more time beyond what is in the expected time column depending on their project topic and digital competency. Week 6 will only occur if registration is higher than 10, otherwise everyone is expected to present on April 16. Here is a summary of the course calendar:

Week	Date	Format and Location	Topic	Expected Time Commitment	Time
1	March 19	Online	Introduction to Educational Technology	2hrs	Flexible
2	March 26	Face to Face (B400)	Making Informed Choices	2hrs	11:00am – 1:00pm
3	April 2	Face to Face (B400)	Lab Session	2hrs	11:00am – 1:00pm
4	April 9	Online	Repository Submission	2hrs	Flexible
5	April 16	Face to Face (B400)	Presentations	2hrs	11:00am – 1:00pm
6	April 23	Face to Face (B400)	Presentations (Pending Enrollment)	2hrs	11:00am – 1:00pm

Facilitator

Chad O'Brien, MEd
Instructional Designer
Tel: (902) 494-6792
Email: chad.obrien@dal.ca

Topics in Science Teaching: Through the Visualization Lens (Halifax)

In this studio course, we explore a number of key questions in science teaching and learning through the lens of visual representations (such as graphs, maps, symbols, diagrams, and photographs) used in science.

Studio Course Brochure

The sessions will run on June 8, 11, 12, 13, and 14 from 10:00 am to 12:30 pm, in the Academic Resource Centre, Wallace McCain Learning Commons.

The Studio Course is project based. Completing the project will require certificate participants to submit two pieces of writing:

A course module or detailed lesson plan incorporating the use of visual representations particular to that scientific discipline, designed through consideration of some of the key questions and issues discussed in the course.
A reflection that comments on the participant’s thinking about science teaching in general and key questions/issues arising in the course, in particular how the module or lesson plan is designed to improve students’ learning and understanding of the course material, and how the module or lesson plan will fit into the course as a whole.

Attendance at the first four days of the course is required, and the final day will be project working time and an opportunity for questions and further discussion.
Those participating for credit towards the Faculty Certificate Program are expected to attend all sessions and complete all Studio Course activities.

Learning Outcomes… Successful Studio Course participants will:

Start asking questions about the nature of science and what it means to be a chemist, biologist, earth scientist, etc., in the 21^st century
Investigate the use of visuals as a means to think about, do, and communicate science
Identify and describe key principles of learning and development and their implications for teaching and learning in the university sciences
Examine such considerations as uncertainty and randomness, scale and patterns, rates of change and quantitative reasoning, bias and multiple perspectives, etc., and explore how we might address these to support students’ scientific understanding
Evaluate possibilities for teaching problem-solving, as well as critical and creative thinking to enhance students’ learning in the sciences

For more information on this Studio Course, please contact the instructors:

Anne Marie Ryan, PhD
Department of Earth Sciences
University Teaching Fellow
(902) 494-3184
amryan@dal.ca

Gillian Gass, PhD
Department of Biology
Senior Instructor
(902) 494-8445
gillian.gass@dal.ca

Topics in Science Teaching: Through the Visualization Lens (Truro)

Studio Course Brochure

This Studio Course will take place on the Truro campus and will run on June 29 and July 6, from 10:30 – 3:30, in Haley 254, on the Agricultural Campus.

The course is open to Dalhousie faculty members including part-time academics. Post-doctoral fellows or staff members who teach may also attend.

The Studio Course is project based. Completing the project will require certificate participants to submit two pieces of writing:

A course module or detailed lesson plan incorporating the use of visual representations particular to that scientific discipline, designed through consideration of some of the key questions and issues discussed in the course.
A reflection that comments on the participant’s thinking about science teaching in general and key questions/issues arising in the course, in particular how the module or lesson plan is designed to improve students’ learning and understanding of the course material, and how the module or lesson plan will fit into the course as a whole.

Attendance both days of the course is required, and the second day will be project working time and an opportunity for questions and further discussion.
Those participating for credit towards the Faculty Certificate Program are expected to attend all sessions and complete all Studio Course activities.

Learning Outcomes… Successful Studio Course participants will:

Start asking questions about the nature of science and what it means to be a chemist, biologist, earth scientist, etc., in the 21^st century
Investigate the use of visuals as a means to think about, do, and communicate science
Identify and describe key principles of learning and development and their implications for teaching and learning in the university sciences
Examine such considerations as uncertainty and randomness, scale and patterns, rates of change and quantitative reasoning, bias and multiple perspectives, etc., and explore how we might address these to support students’ scientific understanding
Evaluate possibilities for teaching problem-solving, as well as critical and creative thinking to enhance students’ learning in the sciences

For more information on this Studio Course, please contact the instructors:

Anne Marie Ryan, PhD
Department of Earth Sciences
University Teaching Fellow
(902) 494-3184
amryan@dal.ca

Gillian Gass, PhD
Department of Biology
Senior Instructor
(902) 494-8445
gillian.gass@dal.ca

2017

Researching Teaching and Learning Across the Disciplines

This short course is designed to introduce faculty members to the field of the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL). In this course, our aim is to explore researching teaching and learning across the disciplines through a facilitated research development process to design a SoTL research project – from defining a research question and placing that question in the context of the relevant literatures, to determining appropriate research methodologies and exploring the ethical implications of your research design. Throughout the course, you will be introduced to some foundational writings in the field of SoTL, while engaging in practical exercises that will result in a SoTL project that can be undertaken upon completion of the course.

We will meet on Fridays from 2:00 to 4:00 pm, in the Killam Library, Room B400, on the following dates:

October 6
October 20
November 3
November 17

Facilitator

Brad Wuetherick
Executive Director
Centre for Learning and Teaching
Tel: 902-494-6646
Email: Brad.Wuetherick@dal.ca