Center for Excellence in TeachingLearning theories
An overview of fundamental aspects of the leading learning theories. University instructors use these theories to inform the decisions they make about their teaching/instruction with the goal of making it more effective.
Resources: STEM
Learning objectives FAQ
A list of common questions from instructors regarding learning objectives and best-practice answers.
Introducing your course with video
Recommendations and tips for making an introductory video for one of your courses, which can be shared with students via email or through an LMS, such as Blackboard. Also included is a sample script template to help structure the video content.
In-class work as participation
This guide serves as an explanation of using in-class work to evaluate student participation, and why in-class work is preferred over less-structured forms of participation. Suggestions for facilitating in-class work, and samples, are provided.
Group presentation rubric
This is a grading rubric an instructor uses to assess students’ work on this type of assignment. It is a sample rubric that needs to be edited to reflect the specifics of a particular assignment. Students can self-assess using the rubric as a checklist before submitting their assignment.
Formative peer evaluation processes
Overview of a generalized process for accomplishing faculty peer review.
Flipped course design
An introduction to the flipped course, a course design style that is more consistent with theories of human learning than traditional lecture-style courses and supported by educational research.
Faculty decision guide
This document is a job aid to assist faculty, including online faculty, with supporting students who may be in the following situations. For each situation, required or recommended actions are specified.
Facilitating a rubric norming session for TAs
A description of a norming session, and a recommended facilitation process for holding a norming session that trains multiple TAs of the same course to grade consistently using a rubric.
Effective instructor feedback
An introduction to instructor feedback, including examples.