The Academy for Teaching and Learning provides a number of important programs and resources for the Baylor community.
Faculty Programs
Summer Faculty Institute - During the Summer Faculty Institute participants will converse about and otherwise explore elements of teaching, research, and collegiality extending from constructing syllabi to managing preparation-time wisely, from enlisting colleagues as critics of our writing to managing writing-time wisely, from serving on departmental committees to taking part in the conversation about what it means to be a Tier-One Christian University. The application and more information can be found here.
University Teaching Grants (internal funding) – University Teaching Grants are awarded to faculty to provide modest support for travel and/or fees for work related to the enhancement of their effectiveness in the classroom. The application and more information can be found here.
Staff, Faculty and Graduate Student Programs
Seminars for Excellence in Teaching – Since 2008, the Academy for Teaching and Learning has hosted a series of one-hour Seminars for Excellence in Teaching (SET) to help colleagues meet the historic expectations of excellence in teaching at Baylor. For new Teachers of Record (TOR), the SET satisfy SACS requirements for professional development in teaching. For more experienced TOR, SET facilitate the sharing of ideas and insights about teaching and learning today and encourages participants to renew their commitments to inspirational teaching.
Extended Seminars – In addition to the workshops, the ATL hosts extended seminars. Here you can find information about these longer seminars or reading groups, sometimes semester-long. The New Media Seminar (NMS) meets each semester, and addresses questions pertaining to new media. Instead of teaching how to use specific instances of new media in our lives, the seminar focuses more on how we adjust and use new mediums throughout our lives.
Teaching Assessment – Upon request, the ATL offers assessment of the teaching by faculty and graduate student instructors. We will observe a class and give feedback after the class. Additionally, we will record the class, giving you an opportunity to see yourself in action and understand the mentioned concerns.
Instructional Technology – The ATL engages with faculty members on ways to effectively use technology for teaching purposes. The focus is not on teaching faculty how to use specific programs, but on finding ways to best educate in the classroom. One example of the ATL’s work in this area is the development of course trailers for different classes. The ATL is always open to new discussions on ways that instruction can be improved through the use of various technology.
Pedagogical Resources – The ATL is working on constructing a set of pedagogical resources. These resources will include helpful websites and lists of pedagogical books and journals organized in a discipline-specific fashion.
