Register Now for January Workshops!
Workshops have been added to our January calendar. Visit the OEE website to view the schedule and register!
Extended WebCT Maintenance Window
Just received the following from Information Resources:
On Sunday, January 4th, the regular WebCT maintenance window will be extended to accommodate necessary maintenance on the back-end storage systems used by WebCT. The extended maintenance window will run from 6:00 am until 2:00 pm. WebCT may be unavailable at any time during the maintenance window. As always, we appreciate your patience and understanding during these efforts.
Let us know if you have any questions.
Holiday Greetings!
The entire OEE team.
We all hope everyone has a great break and look forward to seeing you in the coming semester!
Reflecting on our teaching
Everyone here at the Office of Educational Enhancement would like to wish you a very Happy Thanksgiving!
With the arrival of the Thanksgiving Holiday, we are prompted to think about the semester coming to a close. There are several things that an instructor can do to facilitate the transition into 2009, and this week I will address the topic of being a reflective practitioner, a subject of conversation in a recent OEE workshop, “Writing a Statement of Teaching Philosophy.”
As you end your course, take stock of how things have been going. Were there sections of the course that went well? Ask yourself how the class came to those points of success. It is important to spend a good amount of your time and thoughts on the positive elements of the course. It is much easier, and more enjoyable, to improve our teaching when we can build from our strengths first. Once you have taken stock of your successes, ask yourself where sections of the course were a bit more challenging, both for you and for the students? What do you think led to those difficulties? How might you and/or your students have been better prepared for these challenges?
Reviewing your syllabus now is a great start to insure the retention of successful teaching strategies for future courses. At this point, it is best to jot a note or two along the margins of your syllabus and/or lecture notes rather than setting out to rework the entire course. Having these notes with you when course evaluations arrive will allow you to crosscheck your perceptions of the course with students’ perceptions. At the same time, writing notes to yourself about your teaching successes and challenges will make documenting your teaching effectiveness that much easier over time. Communicating our successes in the classroom is an essential component of presenting who we are, whether we are going up for tenure review or are on the job market. Likewise, if we want to keep improving our classroom experience, then actively reflecting upon and writing about our teaching on a regular basis is a necessary practice.
If you are interested in learning more about our services, upcoming workshops and/or the benefits of actively reflecting on your teaching, feel free to contact any of us at the OEE. We would be happy to talk with you about this and any other subject regarding teaching at UT Dallas. In the meantime, have fun in class!
WebCT Handouts slowly becoming available
Greetings folks! We’ve been working hard recently getting our WebCT handout up and published onto our website. You can see what we’ve published so far on the OEE site — http://www.utdallas.edu/oee/distance/resources/handouts/index.html. Check back regularly as we add new handouts daily.
TFDN Meeting Today!
TEXAS FACULTY DEVELOPMENT NETWORK
Metroplex and Upper East Texas Regional Groups
Fall 2008 Meeting Agenda
10:00 – 10:30
Welcome and Introductions
10:30 – 11:30
UT Dallas’ Teaching Academy Certification
- How it was developed, What was included?
- Lessons learned.
11:30 – 12:00
What have you built for TA development?
12:00 – 1:00
Lunch sponsored by UT Dallas’ Office of Educational Enhancement – Share your innovative programs!
1:00 – 2:00
Case Studies in the classroom – How to conduct a Case Studies session.
2:00 – 2:30
Share your ideas and case study experiences!
2:30 – 3:00
Wrap up
Reminder: OSSA & OEE Open House tomorrow – Nov.12
Just a reminder — the OSSA (Office of Student Success & Assessment) and OEE (Office of Educational Enhancement) is tomorrow (Nov.12) from 10am to 2pm in the UTD Conference Center Lobby. (Please see our previous post for more details.) We hope to see you there!
Workshop listings added for Nov/Dec
We’ve just added new workshops to our site. Please see list below. Please visit our website for dates and times or to register: http://www.utdallas.edu/oee/events/schedule/index.php5
WebCT
- Designing a Course
- Assessments
- Communications Tools
- Getting Started
- Gradebook
Teaching & Learning
- Student Engagement
- Group Activities
- Best Practices in Course Design
- Creating Rubrics
- Clickers
- Assess Students and Courses
OSSA and OEE Open House – Nov.12
The Office of Student Success & Assessment (OSSA) and the Office of Educational Enhancement (OEE) cordially invite you to attend an Open House on Wednesday, November 12, 2008 at 10am – 2pm in the UTD Conference Center Lobby, GEMS Center and OSSA.
Please drop by for a few minutes for refreshments, to meet our team members and get updated on:
- Assessment—sustaining improvement, momentum and value
- Teaching & Learning—workshops, consultation and conversation
- GEMS—facilities, learning enhancements, and initial impact of the QEP
- Distance Learning—innovations in e-learning and instructional design
- Student Success—how the GEMS/LRC ‘merger’ will create a one-stop shop for students
- Engagement—opportunities for students, faculty and staff university-wide to partner with and shape the future of OEE and OSSA
Please save the date. We hope to see you there!
New GS3 Workshops for November Announced
To sign up for any of the workshops listed below, visit our Event Signup page — http://www.utdallas.edu/oee/events/schedule/index.php5.
Being a “Pro”-Active Teacher
November 11 — 10am-12pm — HH 2.502
Being an effective and efficient teacher is a critical skill for successful junior faculty and graduate students. In this workshop, participants will develop strategies for being proactive in their teaching. The emphasis of this workshop will be to highlight critical points before, during, and even after a semester that instructors should pay attention to as they strive to improve their teaching.
Strategies for Successful Publishing
November 13 — 2:00-4:00 PM — HH2.502
One of the most important elements of a successful academic career is successful publishing. Participants in this workshop will hear about strategies for developing, and sticking to, a writing program. We will also review typical publication processes and suggest tips for handling rejected submissions.
Writing a Statement of Teaching Philosophy
November 19 — 10:00 AM-12:00 PM — HH2.706
Writing a statement of teaching philosophy is an increasingly helpful activity for graduate students. It is also increasingly required in academic job applications. A statement of teaching philosophy helps to make something often thought of as theoretical much more concrete. Not only does it help us explain our teaching to other people (on hiring committees, for example), but it also helps us to see what we do in the classroom that works, and this will make us better teachers.
Effective Office Hours
November 21 — 2:00-4:00 PM — HH2.502
One of the most common activities for teaching assistants is holding office hours. Effective use of office hours can save a lot of time and reduce points of conflict for the students and the instructor(s). In this workshop, participants will work together to address common office hour scenarios. We will review strategies for providing assistance to a variety of students needs, maintaining professionalism and we will review best practices of communication
Preparing a Presentation
November 25 — 10:00 AM-12:00 PM — HH2.502
Graduate students face increased pressure to make themselves known to the larger academic community. A common avenue for making our work known to other scholars is through a successful presentation at a regional or national conference. In this workshop, participants will review best practices for presenting their work. Topics include, identifying venues, delivery methods, and effective use of PowerPoint.
