FALL 2016
Strategies for teaching large classes: lessons from Australia, New Zealand and the West Coast of North America
Michelle French, Associate Professor, Teaching Stream, Department of Physiology, University of Toronto
Seminar, September 30, 2016 @ 2:00 p.m.
Michelle will present approaches to enhance the effectiveness of your large class teaching. These will include: active learning strategies to enhance student learning and skill development, approaches to prepare students for class, methods for assessment and teaching technologies. Many of the approaches come from the interviews that Michelle conducted with over 100 instructors and the 20 classroom visits that she made during recent visits to 18 universities in Australia, New Zealand and North America. Seminar attendees will leave with a list of resources and new strategies to transform their large class teaching.
Michelle French is an Associate Professor, Teaching Stream in the Department of Physiology at the University of Toronto (U of T). Over the past 16 years, she has taught university courses in physiology, genetics, cell and molecular biology, regenerative medicine and scientific communication. She holds a BSc and an MSc from U of T and a PhD in physiology from Western University. Her post-doctoral studies were conducted at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute for Medical Research in Melbourne and at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto. Michelle is the recipient of several teaching awards including an Excellence in Life Sciences Award: Undergraduate Teaching from the Faculty of Medicine at U of T.
To register please click here.
Giving Formative Feedback on Sentence Level Issues
Michael Kaler, Lecturer and Writing Specialist, Robert Gillespie Academic Skills Centre, UTM
Workshop, October 12, 2016 @ 1:00 - 4:00 p.m.
Assessing student writing is difficult; turning that assessment into productive formative feedback is even more so. While this is true whether we are dealing with macro-level issues such as overall argumentation and structure, or smaller scale issues such as grammar and sentence level, many instructors and graders find the latter sorts of issues especially difficult to respond to. As experienced, professional authors in our respective fields, we surely know how to write correct and readable prose, but there is a distinction between knowing what “good” writing is and being comfortable with giving useful feedback to students. We know, but how do we put that knowing into words that our students will understand and respond to?
Beginning with a review of research-based best assessment practices (and taking into consideration the concerns of both native English speakers and English Language Learners), this workshop will provide an opportunity to collaborate and share ideas and approaches to address such concerns. Having been introduced to—or reminded of, as the case may be—some of the research literature on the topic, participants will then build collaboratively on this foundation through group assessment of writing samples and discussion of issues related to grammar and sentence-level clarity (with a special focus on English Language Learner issues). The workshop is open to TAs as well as instructors.
Michael Kaler is a Lecturer and Writing Specialist at the Robert Gillespie Academic Skills Centre. He holds doctorates from Universite Laval (Quebec, QC) in sciences religieuse and York University (Toronto, ON) in ethnomusicology, and an MA in Sciences Religiouses from U. Laval; he is also is TESL-Canada and TESL-Ontario certified. He has published widely on such topics as ancient gnosticism, early Christian heterodoxy, the Grateful Dead, science fiction, and the musical expression of religious experience. He reintroduced the teaching of Coptic to the Department of Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations, teaching there from 2005-2008, and has taught at McMaster and York as well. Since 2012 he has focused on teaching writing skills first through the Office of English Language and Writing Services at U of T), and for the past three years at the RGASC.
To register please click here.
Problem Based Learning in the Social Sciences
Sherry Fukuzawa, Lecturer, Department of Anthropology, UTM
Nathan Innocente, Lecturer, Department of Sociology, UTM
Seminar, October 26, 2016 @ 10:00 a.m.
Description TBD
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Developing and Aligning Student Learning Outcomes
Dianne Ashbourne, Educational Developer, Robert Gillespie Academic Skills Centre, UTM
Workshop, November 24, 2016 @ 2:00 – 4:00 p.m.
This interactive workshop will introduce participants to best practices for developing course-level student learning outcomes (SLOs). Participants will have an opportunity to practice writing clear, measurable, and meaningful SLOs for their courses with support from other participants and the workshop facilitator. Alignment of SLOs to learning activities and assessments will also be discussed. Participants are encouraged to bring a copy of a syllabus for a course for which they would like to develop SLOs or revise existing SLOs.
Dianne is the Educational Developer for the Robert Gillespie Academic Skills Centre. Her role on campus is to support the pedagogical development of UTM faculty members. She holds an M.A. in Educational Studies from the University of British Columbia where she focused on higher education and research. methodology. Prior to coming to work at UTM, Dianne worked at Capilano University where she collaborated with faculty members to develop tools and processes to facilitate the assessment of student learning outcomes.
To register please click here.
WINTER 2017
UTM's Facilitated Study Groups
Lee Bailey, Associate Professor, Teaching Stream, Department of Economics, UTM
Tom Klubi, Learning Strategist and Program Manager, Robert Gillespie Academic Skills Centre, UTM
Seminar, January/February 2017 (Specific date TBD)
Description TBD
Experiential Learning and Indigenous Ways of Knowing
Cat Criger, Aboriginal Elder, Traditional Teacher and Mentor, Indigenous Centre, UTM
Nicole Laliberte, Assistant Professor, Teaching Stream, Department of Geography, UTM
Seminar, January/February 2017 (Specific date TBD)
Description TBD
Innovative Assessments of Writing
Jayne Baker, Assistant Professor, Teaching Stream, Department of Sociology, UTM
Shannon Board, Undergraduate Student, Sociology and Criminology, Law and Society, University of Toronto
Tyler Evans-Tokaryk, Associate Professor, Teaching Stream and Director, Robert Gillespie Academic Skills Centre, UTM
Michael Kaler, Lecturer and Writing Specialist, Robert Gillespie Academic Skills Centre, UTM
Agata Piękosz, PhD, Department of Sociology, University of Toronto
Seminar, March 2017 (specific date TBD)
Description TBD