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Innovative Teaching Strategies Retreat
- Call for Proposals -
Center for Excellence in Teaching

 

December 11 - 14 , 2006

Deadline for Proposals: November 1, 2006

Background:

Georgia Southern University sponsors a faculty retreat for faculty to enhance their innovative teaching strategies. The CET staff knowledgeable in instructional technologies, pedagogy, and instructional design mentor faculty throughout the four-day retreat. The retreat provides dedicated time for course development and discussion over a variety of pedagogical and technological issues in a supportive environment.

View the web site for the May 2006 Retreat.

View the web site for the Showcase of the May 2006 Retreat group.

Overview of Process for the Upcoming Retreat:

The four-day retreat will be held at the Center for Excellence in Teaching and will focus on the development of course goals, design, materials, and outcomes for any classroom setting whether face-to-face, online, or a hybrid (combination).The dates and time of the retreat are December 11 - 14, 2006 from 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM (Monday through Thursday).

Applicants will be interviewed to discuss their projects, and to assess their resource needs during the retreat.  Needs assessment ensures that each participant's goals can be achieved during the retreat. Individualized pre-retreat consultations will be offered as a foundation for the retreat.

Areas of Focus

Areas of focus may include any in the following list of topics, or others you may wish to introduce as innovations in your teaching strategies. This list is provided simply to give you some ideas about areas that might be of interest in course planning, teaching methods, teaching processes, task-specific processes, course and classroom management, testing for learning outcomes, and customized learning technology (adding, integrating, or using technology in a course).

Course Planning

  1. Mapping your course objectives and teaching strategies (verbal information, concepts, rules, problem-solving, cognitive strategies, and attitudes)
  2. Looking closely at what makes your instruction effective (aligning content, presentation, activities, and learning outcomes)
  3. Examining how your teaching practices express higher education principles of teaching (AAHE)
  4. Engaging higher standards of intellectual integrity and reducing plagiarism by the kinds of assignments you create
  5. Checking the pulse of face-to-face and online courses to improve course design and evaluations by your students

Teaching Methods

  1. Finding ways to encourage a culture of student engagement and communities of learning
  2. Choosing models of teaching that match the pedagogies of technologies and essential learning strategies (WebCT, email, chats, discussions, media choices)
  3. Elaborating your teaching methods and models of teaching from research about innovations in teaching and learning
  4. Leveraging presentation, delivery, and classroom climate to increase learning effort

Task-Specific Processes

  1. Engaging students in reading required materials
  2. Motivating students to care about the subject you are teaching
  3. Asking questions to stimulate research, reflection, critical thinking, and discussions

Course and Classroom Management

  1. Encouraging on-task classroom and online behaviors (encouraging civility, discouraging annoying vs. unacceptable behaviors; encouraging "netiquette")
  2. Scheduling and structuring reviews and interactions for efficient course management online and in classroom environments
  3. Planning communication and collaboration in face-to-face and online environments

Testing for Learning Outcomes

  1. Testing strategies for different types of learning outcomes and delivery formats (face-to-face, proctored, online)
  2. Making effective use of online testing strategies

Learning Technologies

  1. Choosing technology tools appropriately to fit course needs
  2. Designing WebCT courses for students to use in your face-to-face, completely online or hybrid (combination of the two) courses
  3. Planning and using technology for delivery of course materials, efficiency of course management, and learning needs (audio lectures, video)
  4. Developing course evaluation tools for online and face-to-face classes

Proposal Applications:

Please send applications to the Center for Excellence in Teaching by:

November 1 , 2006 by 12:00 Noon

We encourage you to submit your proposals at your earliest convenience.

Applying for the Retreat

To apply for this retreat, please write approximately a 250 to 500-word proposal that addresses some or all of the following guideline questions.

  1. If you are participating in the retreat to enhance a particular aspect of a course or courses, please indicate the name(s) of the course(s).
  2. What exactly will you begin, produce or develop during the retreat? During the retreat, you must produce a "deliverable." A deliverable must be related to or demonstrate one or more of those items listed above under "Areas of Focus," or something similar.
  3. How will this enhance your teaching or your students' learning?
  4. How will you assess the efficacy of what you develop?
  5. What challenges do you expect in the development process? In other words, what do you need to learn to achieve your goal during the retreat?

Expectation and Deliverables of Retreat Participants:

  1. Participants must commit to attend the December 2006 retreat for the entire time posted in this announcement.
  2. Participants are expected to use the retreat to enhance course design and development, assessment of student learning, and produce a deliverable. (See "Areas of Focus" above.)
  3. December 2006 retreat participants must be present at the May 2007 CET Showcase to present or discuss what they develop during their retreat. All faculty and staff are invited to this event, and includes your departmental Dean, Chair and the incoming group of retreat participants for the May 2007 retreat.
  4. Participants are required to submit an essay about their retreat experience to the CET for publication in the CET's newsletter or web site.

Summary of Dates:

  • August 28: Retreat call for proposals announced
  • November 1: Deadline for call for proposals by 12:00 noon
  • November 1 - 3: Review of proposals
  • November 3: Applicants notified
  • November 6: Showcase presentations by May 2006 retreat participants
  • November 7 - 10: Interviews with applicants
  • November 13 - December 1: Pre-retreat consultations for retreat participants if needed
  • December 11 - 14: Retreat event - Monday through Thursday, 8:30 to 5:00 PM

Submitting your application:

Applications due: November 1 , 2006 before 12:00 noon

Faculty Member:
Your email address:

 
Department:
  
Chair:
 

Please type your 250 to 500-word proposal in the space below. Alternately, you may type your proposal in a word processor, then copy and paste the text into the space below. Please answer the questions outlined under Proposal Applications above.

I would like to participate in this year's "Innovative Strategies for Teaching and Learning" to... (250-500 words) See the Submit button below.

Thank You!

 

 

 

 

  
 

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Center for Excellence in Teaching at Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, Georgia, USA