Teaching development
Apart from research, I often participate in workshops/training and take courses to connect with other community members and learn about different evidence-based teaching practices. Some of the events which helped in improving my understanding of different teaching strategies are:
CIRTL is a National Science Foundation Center for Learning and Teaching in higher education. Its main mission is to enhance excellence in undergraduate education through the development of a national faculty that is committed to implementing and advancing effective teaching practices.
An Introduction to Evidence-Based STEM Undergraduate Teaching
The goal of this eight-week course is to equip the next generation of STEM faculty to be effective teachers. As the name suggests, this course provides an introduction to effective teaching strategies and the research that supports them. It covers:
Role of mental models in learning and the importance of practice and feedback
Basic elements of course design (learning objectives and assessments)
Teaching strategies that promote active learning and inclusive teaching
Advanced learning through evidence-based teaching
This 8-week course builds on the introductory course to equip the next generation of STEM faculty to be effective teachers. It covers:
Active learning strategies (peer instruction and problem-based learning)
Importance of learning through diversity and strategies to incorporate it in your classroom
Pedagogical strategies such as flipped classrooms and learning communities
Research Mentor Training
The main goal of this 6-week seminar-style course was to develop and improve research mentoring skills. Participants developed their personal mentoring philosophy and learned strategies for dealing with mentoring challenges. In addition to the general content about research mentoring, seminar topics were:
Aligning Expectations and Assessing Competencies
Effective Communication
Fostering Independence, Self-efficacy, and Professional Development
Fostering Equity and Inclusion in a Research Context
Conflict Resolution, Feedback, Well-being
Articulating a Mentoring Philosophy and Plan
(GET SET Workshops)
The main goal of these workshops was to offer opportunities to develop teaching skills, gain theoretical grounding and practical strategies, and connect with fellow teaching graduate students and postdocs.
Course Design (2017)
Assessing Learning and Teaching (2015)
Enhancing Teaching with Technology (2014)
Innovative Approaches in Pedagogy (2014)
CIRTL Summer Institute on Scientific Teaching
In this five-day institute, participants experienced a thorough introduction to the core ideas that ground CIRTL’s approach to STEM education:
By the end of this institute, participants developed a deeper understanding of scientific teaching. They examined relevant literature, worked online in small peer groups facilitated by topical experts, and performed structured work independently.
Johns Hopkins University Summer Teaching Institute
It is a multi-day teaching institute for doctoral students and post-docs to advance the development of university-level educators by enhancing classroom teaching skills
The Teaching Institute is based on the concept of teaching-as-scholarship, which challenges instructors to bring to teaching the critical thinking, rigor, creativity, and spirit of experimentation that defines research in all disciplines. Teaching-as-scholarship embodies three core themes: active learning, assessment, and diversity.
