Pathways to Effective Teaching Workshop Series

Whether you are an experienced instructor or are new to teaching, Pathways to Effective Teaching supports your teaching journey at the University of Alberta. Grounded in scholarly approaches to teaching and learning, Pathways moves beyond the abstract and theoretical, offering practical, actionable strategies that can be applied to your teaching. 

About

Pathways to Effective Teaching is a workshop series grounded in U of A’s Framework for Effective Teaching and the Multifaceted Evaluation of Teaching and Learning. The framework explores the array of teaching activities and offers a structured approach to thinking about and developing your teaching praxis across five domains:

1. Expertise, content and outcomes
2. Course design
3. Instructional practices
4. Learning environment*
5. Reflection, growth and leadership in teaching.

*Learning Environments (LE): Physical and virtual support systems where the classroom is viewed as a complex, dynamic, physical and digital system of opportunities for sustained teaching and learning interactions and relationships. [This domain is largely the operational responsibility of the University and NOT individual instructors; the learning environment fostered by an instructor in their course is captured in Instructional Practices and particularly the sub-domain on class climate.]

Participants are encouraged to attend all series workshops or select those that best support their needs.

The Foundations of Teaching program (offered in 2022-2023) has been reimagined into the Pathways to Effective Teaching Workshop Series with new topics, diverse CTL Team workshop facilitation, and inclusion into CTL curriculum development in 2024 to 2025. Thank you to those instructors and members of the U of A community who provided valuable feedback on Foundations.

Learning Outcomes

• Explore evidence-based pedagogical approaches and their application in a post-secondary learning environment.
• Gain teaching strategies and skills that can be immediately applied to your courses.
• Plan and implement effective learning experiences for students that promote student engagement and participation in their learning.
• Engage in reflective practice to critically assess and continuously improve your teaching methods and strategies.
• Share your experiences and practices to foster a supportive culture of teaching at the U of A.

Eligibility

Teaching and learning happen in multiple spaces, places, and dimensions of our work at the U of A. Pathways to Effective Teaching welcomes anyone engaged in supporting students’ learning experiences.

Curriculum and Registration

Each of the workshops in Pathways is twice, offering you multiple opportunities to engage. All sessions are offered online and run on Tuesdays (11 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.) and Thursdays (2 - 3:15 p.m.)

Course Alignment: Pathways to Effective Teaching Workshop Series

Sept. 24, 2024 | 11 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
Sept. 26, 2024 | 2 p.m. - 3:15 p.m.

Whether developing a new course or revising an existing one, your goal is to create an effective and engaging learning experience for your students. This Course Alignment workshop will explore how five course elements or ‘spokes’ need to align so, like a wheel, you can provide a smooth and balanced ride for both you as the instructor and for your learners. Subsequent workshops in this series will be announced in the upcoming weeks.

By the end of the session, you’ll be able to:

• Explain the purpose of each of the five ‘spokes’ necessary for a course to run smoothly and efficiently
• Determine how each of these five ‘spokes’ will be implemented and aligned in your own course

Learning Outcomes: Pathways to Effective Teaching Workshop Series

Oct. 1, 2024 | 11 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
Oct. 3, 2024 | 2 p.m. - 3:15 p.m.

Learning outcomes provide clarity of direction and purpose for you and your learners. In this workshop, you will explore strategies for critiquing and refining your existing learning outcomes. You will have opportunities to practice creating the three types of learning outcomes (knowledge, skills and mindset-based) and connect these outcomes to your instructional strategies and assessments.

By the end of this session, you’ll be able to:

• Explain the purpose of learning outcomes
• Connect learning outcomes with instructional strategies and learning assessments
• Write effective learning outcomes

Rapport to Relationality: Pathways to Effective Teaching Workshop Series

Oct. 8, 2024 | 11 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
Oct. 10, 2024 | 2 p.m. - 3:15 p.m.

Building rapport with students is foundational to nurturing authentic relationships in the classroom and supporting inclusive and accessible teaching and learning. Integrating Indigenous approaches to relationality moves beyond rapport, deepening community building in and beyond the classroom. In this workshop, participants will distinguish between rapport and relationality while identifying and exploring some key features of both in the classroom context.

By the end of this session, you’ll be able to:

• Distinguish between rapport and relationality in the classroom context
• Describe key features of rapport and relationality
• Identify common barriers to establishing relationality in the classroom
• Explore approaches to building rapport and relationality in your course and disciplinary contexts

Designing Accessible and Engaging Materials: Pathways to Effective Teaching Workshop Series

Oct. 15, 2024 | 11 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
Oct. 17, 2024 | 2 p.m. - 3:15 p.m.

High quality and accessible learning materials engage students more equitably and meaningfully with your content.

In this workshop, you’ll explore essential strategies to transform your learning materials (such as lecture slides, notes, or class / lab handouts) into accessible, engaging, and clear resources for students.

By the end of this session, you’ll be able to:

• List some basic design principles for (re)creating instructional materials
• Evaluate and improve instructional materials based on basic accessibility and design principles

Assessment as, for, of learning: Pathways to Effective Teaching Workshop Series

Oct. 22, 2024 | 11 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
Oct. 24, 2024 | 2 p.m. - 3:15 p.m.

This workshop will provide an introductory exploration into the concepts of student assessment for learning, assessment of learning, and assessment as learning. Join us and discover which types of assessment best support your students’ learning in your course.

By the end of this session, you’ll be able to:

• Explain assessment for learning, assessment of learning and assessment as learning
• Provide examples for each of the three terms above
• Establish formative and summative assessment opportunities within both your learning experiences (lessons) and your overall course in order to support effective learning
• Identify where each type of assessment could be used in your course and individual teaching inputs

Determining Course Workload: Pathways to Effective Teaching Workshop Series

Oct. 29, 2024 | 11 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
Oct. 31, 2024 | 2 p.m. - 3:15 p.m.

How much work do you assign your students? How do you estimate a manageable workload for your students, balancing rigor and reality?

In this interactive workshop, you will consider and calculate the workload for your course. This workload estimate will help with your planning and communication of your expectations for students which, in turn, will support learners’ autonomy and accountability.

By the end of this session, you’ll be able to:

• Estimate the workload of each element of your course, such as readings, videos, and assessments
• Determine a motivating and achievable workload
• Create a visual map of workload and expectations to share with your students

The Engaging Lecture: Pathways to Effective Teaching Workshop Series

Nov. 5, 2024 | 11 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
Nov. 7, 2024 | 2 p.m. - 3:15 p.m.

Even the most knowledgeable experts can feel a bit apprehensive when stepping in front of a classroom/Zoom™ room full of students. This workshop is designed to help you overcome those nerves and build confidence in your teaching. We’ll share practical tips and techniques to help you connect with your audience, create a more engaging learning environment, and enhance your lecturing skills. Establish your teaching presence and connect more deeply with your audience!

By the end of this session, you’ll be able to:

• List some tips and techniques to establish your teaching presence
• Select some practical tips and techniques which can be implemented to help students engage effectively in lectures

Pathways to Effective Teaching lays the groundwork for CTL’s new curriculum, which will be launched in January 2025. Watch for more information on our new curriculum in the CTL newsletter and through the university’s communication channels.