Classroom Observation

The Center for Teaching and Learning Enhancement (CTLE) staff provide classroom observations for all teaching faculty and staff upon request. These face to face observations are designed to provide objective feedback that allows the participant to improve and enhance their teaching abilities. All discussions concerning such observations are kept confidential. The faculty member will meet with the observer prior to the observation to discuss parameters, needs, and expectations. The faculty member will also receive the observation template in advance of the observation. Once the observation has been performed, the faculty member will meet with the CTLE staff and receive a written report. Follow-up is provided by the CTLE as a matter of course and at the request of the faculty member.

Faculty Learning Communities

A faculty learning community (FLC) is a group of trans-disciplinary faculty and professional staff group of size 6-15 or more (8 to 12 is the recommended size) engaging in an active, collaborative, semester-long program with a curriculum about enhancing teaching and learning and with frequent seminars and activities that provide learning, development, transdisciplinarity, the scholarship of teaching and learning, and community building. A participant in an FLC may select a focus course or project to try out innovations, assess resulting student learning, and prepare a course or project mini-portfolio to show the results; engage in triweekly seminars and some retreats; work with student associates; and present project results to the campus and at national conferences. There are generally two types of faculty learning communities: cohort-based and topic-based.

Private Consultation

Individualized, confidential consultation, supporting teaching effectiveness and enhanced student learning, is available with the CTLE. Faculty should contact the CTLE to set a confidential appointment.

Professional Development Workshops & Webinars

Programming is planned each academic year based on requests gathered at the professional development kickoff preceding the fall and spring semesters. Workshops in the past have covered a variety of topics including: academic advising, active learning, the brain and learning, collaborative learning, course redesign, flipping your class, millennial learners, problem-based learning, teaching large classes, and testing as a learning tool. Please view the Events Calendar to see the upcoming workshops.

Webinars are offered from time-to-time to assist faculty who may have severe time limitations or distance-related conflicts. Webinar opportunities are emailed by the CTLE throughout the academic year. Participants are asked to provide a written review of the webinar to the CTLE, which includes a detailed description of how they plan to implement the material learned from the webinar.

Student Focus Group Consultation

Focus groups are particularly effective for identifying agreement across a group and for eliciting suggestions for improvement. They are also much more flexible than surveys or scales because they allow for question clarification and follow-up questions to probe vague or unexpected responses. The faculty member will meet with the CTLE to develop an interview protocol. The CTLE will conduct the focus group during a class in the absence of the faculty. A written transcript will be provided to the faculty that preserves student anonymity. Contact the CTLE if you would like to have a focus group conducted in your class.