The Center for the Integration of Research, Teaching, and Learning (CIRTL) is a nation-wide online network of 40+ universities that seek to enhance excellence in undergraduate education through development of a national faculty committed to implementing and advancing evidence-based teaching practices for diverse learners. The goal of CIRTL is to improve the learning of all students at every college and university, and thereby to increase the diversity in fields and the literacy of the nation.
The CIRTL@UCLA program supports the professional and career development of graduate students, postdoctoral scholars, and current faculty who are engaged in teaching now, or who are considering academic careers. The collaboration of CIRTL@UCLA and the national network inspires commitment to use effective teaching practices for diverse college students, and to provide current and future faculty the knowledge and tools to do so. The project was funded by the National Science Foundation to support future faculty in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), but has expanded to include graduate students and postdoctoral scholars from ALL disciplines.
Learn more about CIRTL@UCLA and the National CIRTL Network by watching this video where we discuss some of the highlights of the CIRTL@UCLA certification pathway.
Upcoming CIRTL Events:
December 7 - April 4 | The CIRTL Network presents Postdoc Teaching Practicum
Work with an experienced instructor in your discipline to enhance your understanding and experience of teaching a university course in this 5-month mentorship program that blends monthly synchronous sessions with intensive independent and mentor-driven work. No cap. Register by November 8.
January 4: CIRTL Network presents Postdoc Teaching Practicum
Postdoc Teaching Practicum
January 4, 2024 @ 12:00 pm – 2:00 pm CST
REGISTER BY NOVEMBER 8
Work with an experienced instructor in your discipline to enhance your understanding and experience of teaching a university course in this 5-month mentorship program. During the mentorship program, you will observe a mentor in their teaching, teach guest lectures and receive feedback on your teaching, discuss approaches to teaching with your mentors, and engage in group discussions of teaching with other participants. Throughout the program, you will also attend a series of synchronous sessions on teaching development topics, like lesson planning; teaching portfolios; equity, diversity & inclusion; and teaching-as-research. By the end of this course, participants will be able to:
- Create a framework for how a typical university course operates
- Articulate how teaching and learning theories intersect with the practical requirements of a university course
- Design university lessons which incorporate learner-centered lesson planning basics, demonstrating the alignment of learning objectives, learning activities and assessment techniques
- Develop and refine a teaching portfolio using the evience of teaching effectiveness gathered throughout the internship
This course is part of CIRTL’s fall programming for postdocs.
Instructor
Natalie Westwood, University of British Columbia
Course Schedule
This 5-part mentorship program has synchronous sessions on Thursday, December 7, January 11, February 1, March 7, and April 4 at 2-4PM AT / 1-3PM ET / 12-2PM CT / 11AM-1PM MT / 10AM-12PM PT (note that the course spans the 2023-2024 winter). Participants will be expected to do extensive independent work and work with their teaching mentors outside of these monthly sessions.
Audience
This short course is designed exclusively for postdoctoral researchers in STEM/SBE disciplines.
Registration and Enrollment
Registration is open Thursday, August 24 and closes Wednesday, November 8. Registrants will be directed to a short application to confirm their postdoc status, confirm past experience with teaching and learning professional development, and share their teaching experience. Before registering, participants will need to set up a guest account on University of British Columbia’s website (see directions for this at the bottom of the registration page).
REGISTER BY NOVEMBER 8
Accessibility
If you have a disability, please let us know your learning needs. Contact Kate Diamond (kdiamond3@wisc.edu), who is supporting this course, to let us know how we can help you have a successful experience. In addition to meeting individualized needs, we will also take measures throughout the course to support accessibility for all our students:
- Using alt-text on images in reading materials
- Sending regular reminders with upcoming assignments to all students
- Sharing materials for synchronous sessions with students via a course website (slides, breakout group activity instructions, etc.)
- Enabling live captioning in synchronous sessions
- Incorporating multiple modes of interaction into synchronous sessions
- Sharing recordings from synchronous sessions
- Allowing students to make up absences and submit work late with no penalty
Learning Outcomes
All CIRTL Network programming is designed to help participants achieve familiarity with our Core Ideas. This course is designed around the following learning outcomes.
Practitioner: Learning Community
- Contribute to local professionally-focused learning communities associated with teaching and learning
- Implement one or more learning community strategies for students in a learning experience
- Integrate one or more learning community strategies into a teaching plan so as to accomplish learning goals and learning-through-diversity
January 31: CIRTL Network presents Preparing Your Teaching Demo for a Job Interview
Preparing Your Teaching Demo for a Job Interview
January 31, 2024 @ 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm CST
REGISTRATION OPENS 1/8/24
As part of the interview process for a faculty position, you may be asked to lead a teaching demonstration. In this interactive workshop, we’ll discuss ways to go into your teaching demo with preparedness, confidence, and adaptability. Participants will explore considerations related to their audience, factors affecting content, logistics (including technology), and teaching/learning interactions. Participants will also strategize ways to cope with unexpected challenges that could emerge during a teaching demo. By the end of this workshop, participants will be prepared to:
- generate questions related to planning their teaching demo and strategize ways to find answers before their interviews
- propose ideas to address challenging scenarios that might emerge during a teaching demo
Instructors
Chas Brua, Pennsylvania State University
Beate Brunow, Pennsylvania State University
Workshop Schedule
This one-session online workshop meets on Wednesday, January 31 at 2-3:30PM Atlantic / 1-2:30PM Eastern / 12-1:30PM Central / 11AM-12:30PM Mountain / 10-11:30AM Pacific.
Audience
This workshop is designed first and foremost for graduate students and postdoctoral researchers in STEM/SBE disciplines, but generally relevant to anyone interested in an introduction to teaching demonstrations.
Registration and Enrollment
No cap. Registration opens Monday, January 8 and closes Wednesday, January 31.
REGISTRATION OPENS 1/8/24
Accessibility
If you have access needs, please let us know what they are. Contact Kate Diamond (kdiamond3@wisc.edu), who is supporting this workshop, to let us know how we can help you have a successful experience. In addition to meeting individualized needs, we will also take measures throughout the workshop to support accessibility for all our students:
- Using alt-text on images in reading materials
- Sending pre-session reminders with upcoming assignments to all students
- Sharing materials for synchronous sessions with students (slides, activity instructions, etc.)
- Enabling live captioning in synchronous sessions
- Incorporating multiple modes of interaction into synchronous sessions
Learning Outcomes
All CIRTL Network programming is designed to help participants achieve familiarity with our Core Ideas. This workshop is designed around the following learning outcomes.
Professional Development
- Create materials that are commonplace in the academic job market (resumes, CVs, teaching portfolios, teaching statements, etc.)
February 7: CIRTL Network presents Research Mentor Training
Registration Opens January 8 2024: https://cirtl.net/event/research-mentor-training-2/2024-02-07/
February 8: CIRTL Network presents Caring for Yourself as an Instructor: Applying Rest in the Classroom
Registration opens January 8th: https://cirtl.net/event/caring-for-yourself-as-an-instructor-applying-rest-in-the-classroom/
February 15: CIRTL Network presents Building Neuroinclusive Learning Environments: Best Practices to Support and Empower Neurodiverse Learners in STEM
Registration opens January 8th: https://cirtl.net/event/building-neuroinclusive-learning-environments-best-practices-to-support-and-empower-neurodiverse-learners-in-stem/2024-02-15/
March 5th: CIRTL Network presents Mindset to Mastery: The Inclusive Teaching Course
Registration opens January 29th: https://cirtl.net/event/mindset-to-mastery-the-inclusive-teaching-course/2024-03-05/
March 11th: CIRTL Network presents Re-imagining data: Using arts-based methods for new perspectives in research, teaching and learning
Registration opens February 5th: https://cirtl.net/event/re-imagining-data-using-arts-based-methods-for-new-perspectives-in-research-teaching-and-learning/2024-03-11/
April 11th: CIRTL Network Teaching-as-Research Presentations
Participant Registration opens January 8th: https://cirtl.net/event/cirtl-network-teaching-as-research-presentations-2/
