The Scholarship ofTeaching and Learning

Making it Happen

Ryerson University16 November 2006

The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of

Teaching

• A center for educational research and policy studies … an operating not a granting foundation

• Our goal is sustainable, long-term educational change … our programs “are designed to foster deep, significant, lasting learning for all students … and to develop students’ understanding, skills and integrity”– SPECC, PPP, MCE, ILP, CID, and CASTL

The Carnegie Academy for the Scholarship of Teaching

and Learning

• Enhance the practice and profession of teaching• Bring to faculty inquiry into teaching and learning the

recognition and reward afforded other forms of research • Make teaching public, subject to critical review, and usable

to those in the scholarly and general community• Advance a scholarship of teaching and learning

– Scholars, programs, institutions … nationally and internationally

Making the Most of the Morning

• Scholarship of teaching and learning revisited– Starting on the same page

• Challenges and opportunities for lasting change– Answers in the back of the book

• Institutional cultures, identities, and values– Moving beyond the footnote

Principles …Scholarship of Teaching and

Learning• One persistent question

– How do you know?

• Three framing problems– What is, what works, what if?

• Five-part cycles of inquiry– Observation … investigation …

examination … application … another observation

• Collaborative and collective– Collegial, disciplinary, institutional,

regional, cosmopolitan

Examples …Scholarship of Teaching and

Learning• Integrating learning across courses,

disciplines, and life experiences in a freshman chemistry seminar – Carleton College

• Understanding application scenarios through video case-studies in a statistical methods course – Indiana University

• Exercising and demonstrating free speech activities in a pre-law history course – CSU Monterey Bay

Features …Scholarship of Teaching and

Learning• Building beyond

– Disciplinary knowledge and inquiry– Pedagogical experience and expertise– Curricular insight and innovation– Structured reflections and insight– Evidence-based, critical refractions

• Strength in numbers– Students as co-investigators– Staff and administrative collaborators– Institutional researchers and the

assessment community as colleagues

Next Steps …Scholarship of Teaching and

Learning• Questions in your context

– Why does (or should) this form of scholarship matter to your institution?

– Who on campus is already interested (or active) in this kind of work?

– Where will you find the most, and the least, difficulty and resistance?

– How will you identify any allies and associates, barriers and roadblocks?

– What are your most intimidating challenges, as well as your most promising opportunities?

Practical Considerations…Challenges and Opportunities

• Challenges– Learning is hard to see and understand,

teaching is hard to study and improve– Scholarship is narrowly defined,

teaching and learning scholarship requires special mechanisms for review and recognition

– Scholarship is often driven by prestige, teaching and learning scholarship often highlights the need for improvement

• Opportunities– Better learning via teaching excellence– Comprehension, critique, and meaning– Defining culture, identity, value,

success

Familiar Concerns…Challenges and Opportunities

• Awareness and legitimacy– Knowledge and experience

– Campus conversations

• Respect and recognition– Impact and influence

– Existence proofs

• Reward and reinforcement– Profit and mutual benefit

– Learning awards

• Promotion and leadership– Visibility and authority

– High profile collaboration

Conceptual shifts …Challenges and Opportunities

• The goal of the goal– Culture of improvement– Respect for teaching inquiry– Improved student learning

• The vision of vision– Seeing the processes– Recognizing the possibilities– Moving toward the possible

• The place of place– Working within campus structures– Valuing institutional distinctions– Initiating collective commitments

Next Steps …Challenges and Opportunities

• Questions in your context– How does your institution currently

study and improve student learning … define and value good teaching … identify strengths and weaknesses?

– Why is any form of scholarship recognized and rewarded, and how is it different from the scholarship of teaching and learning?

– Where is the most exciting and original work occurring, and how does it impact teaching and learning across campus?

– What qualities make your institution distinctive or unique, what’s your draw?

Working through …Cultures, Identities and

Values• Perception and potential

– Creating anew or contributing to an institutional distinction

– Supporting or helping to redirect any ongoing initiatives

– Identifying and capitalizing on the internal strengths

– Acknowledging and embracing the external influences

– Influencing and helping to realize the five year plan

– Articulating and addressing needs of the community and the greater good

Working with …Cultures, Identities and

Values• Colleagues and constituencies

– Campus leaders, official and unofficial, and others who have to be at the table

– Individuals, factions, and groups known for initiating or obstructing change

– The old guard, the young Turks, and anyone who speaks for either

– Part-time faculty, graduate students, others who fall between the cracks

– Those who share perceived needs and visions, and those to be convinced

– Whoever will benefit the most, as well as those who will be left behind

Working on …Cultures, Identities and

Values• Making it happen

– Shifting the perception of learning, teaching, and scholarship

– Building on the potential for concern, curiosity, and change

– Cultivating the trust and good will in those who matter and care

– Addressing the needs of students and faculty, teaching and learning, mission and mandate, vision and value

– Weaving a commitment to scholarship of teaching and learning into the fabric of your institution

Sidebar … What Educational Developers Know*

• Prominent individuals in the community who are committed to improvement and open to new ideas

• Campus and programmatic “push points” and “tipping points” ready for influence and not resistant to change

• Institutional adjustments and transformations already in the works but in need of direction and clear impact

• Regional, national, and international opportunities for visibility, promotion, and subtle persuasion

* not to scale

Sidebar … What Educational Developers Do*

• Individual instruction - in the know, with the know-how• Disciplinary orchestration - working with departments• Collaborative matchmaking - connected and connecting• Institutional guidance - seeing the big picture• Institutional representation - speaking for your campus• Regional cooperation - connecting good initiatives• National coordination - aligning process and priorities• International affiliation - being part of the bigger picture

* not to scale

Next Steps … Cultures, Identities and

Values• Questions in your context

– What makes your institution distinctive?

– What initiatives are currently underway?

– What are your strengths and influences?

– What is your plan for a better future?

– Who will be your most important colleagues and constituencies?

– What will you turn to for assistance, support, and collaboration?

– How will you “make it happen” and make it work?

Paddling Faster than the Current

• Understanding and improving how students learn and faculty teach• Recognizing faculty roles and updating the system of rewards• Creating scholarly communities dedicated to teaching and learning• Influencing institutional culture, identity, and value from the inside• Changing the way we think about assessment and accountability

Acknowledgements and Connections

Ryerson University&

The Learning and Teaching Office

The Carnegie Foundation&

The Carnegie Academy for the Scholarship of

Teaching and Learning (CASTL)