IU South Bend Trustees Teaching Award Dossier Preparation

IU South Bend Trustees Teaching Award Dossier Preparation Workshop Spring 2017

IU Trustees Teaching Award (TTA) Awards given to applicants who show evidence of sustained and consistent teaching excellence Eligibility: – – – Completed minimum of two full years of teaching at IU South Bend before eligible to apply Can receive the award no more than once in a three-year period Faculty rank • • • Tenured and tenure-track faculty Full-time lecturers Clinical faculty whose primary duty is teaching Website for more information and materials: https: //www. iusb. edu/academic-affairs/awards/tta-2017. php

Dossier Deadline: March 1, 2017 Submit to your College or School • School of the Arts (Marvin Curtis, Dean of the Arts) • School of Business and Economics (Karla Forsythe, Secretary to the Dean) • School of Education (Peggy Geik, Secretary to the Dean) • College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (Linda Heidrich, Secretary to the Dean) • Library (Vicki Bloom, Dean of the Library) • College of Health Sciences (Karen Clark, Dean of Health Sciences)

Sections of Teaching Dossier Limit 10 pages TTA Dossier Cover Sheet 1) Teaching philosophy and self-analysis 2) Teaching accomplishments 3) Peer review of teaching 4) Optional types of documentation 5) Appendix -One page summary of student evaluations -Student evaluations and comments for past three years

TTA Dossier Cover Sheet

From The Rubric: Teaching Statement

• Narrative 1. Teaching Philosophy / Self-reflective statement – Story Approach about how you have changed or developed – Questions: • • How have you developed as a teacher? Why? How have your strategies changed? Why? How does the story connect to what you DO in your classroom? Where are you heading? Why? • Conceptual – Developing a model or conceptualization of your teaching overall – Questions: • What are the important elements of your teaching? • How do these elements connect to student learning? • What do you do that represents these elements?

1. Teaching Philosophy / Self-reflective statement • What do you believe about teaching/student learning? – Provide context: • What are the needs of your students, department, discipline? • How does student identity and background make a difference in how you teach? • What do you still struggle with in terms of teaching and student learning? – Include examples that illustrate key points: Good examples of what you do and why your approach is effective – Commitment to teaching and professional growth as a teacher

Teaching philosophy: Provide specific examples (take the reader into your classroom) Example 1: “One of my main teaching objectives is to engage and motivate my students. In lectures, I do this by …. . When I use this technique, students ask more questions…. . ” Example 2: "It is crucial for students of biology to learn techniques for sampling organisms, organizing large data sets, and analyzing data. Three examples of labs that I have developed illustrate how students master these skills over the course of the semester. . . These labs work, as **% of students pass the lab exam…. . ” Example 3: "As a teacher of writing, I am committed to using peer review in my classes. By reading and commenting on other students' work in small cooperative groups, my students learn to find their voice, to understand the important connection between writer and audience, and to hone their editing skills. Using peer review, I see students are able to improve their writing. For example, in a first draft, one student wrote…. , but in the final version he made the connection by writing…. . " • Describe what happens in your classroom? • Is your description specific enough to bring the scene to life in a teaching philosophy? • Provide evidence this works

Common Pitfalls • • Too abstract and philosophical Stream of consciousness Lack of coherence Lack of specific examples • Lack of reflection or enough detail to understand why this teaching approach is effective. Example: – In keeping with the objective of having an interactive classroom, I encourage student creativity. Students have engaged in such diverse activities as playing games and analyzing the symbolism in an episode of M*A*S*H.

Better example of reflection … a suggestion was made to, “Work a participation grade Narrative into the grading structure. Perhaps add some more formal. Activity classroom assessment techniques. ” I have since Impact on Students added participation points to … and attendance has improved. This is. Conceptual important because the correlation in my courses between attendance and final grade has been as high as 0. 65. Often, Activity participation is tied to “minute papers” in which students … I call these “got it / didn’t get it” papers, and I have been. Impact on Students … They actually state things like, “I probably need to go back and review X, ” or … These assignments not only allow me to see what I need to review more thoroughly in class, but also give students a chance for self-reflection on their studies.

Think about ways to document student learning • Lack of evidence of student learning – Student evaluation data ≠ student learning • 95% of my students report that I am knowledgeable • Better Evidence – Student should be able to …… • Skill or concept assessed on each exam – On exam 1: 25% of students succeeded – On exam 2: 57% of students succeeded – On exam 3: 86% of students succeeded – Performance on pre- and post-tests – Improvement in writing assignments (compare assignments early in the semester to those later in the semester) – Qualitative evidence showing change in student behavior – And Many Others!

Teaching Philosophy Brainstorming Goals and Themes • • • • Content mastery Engaged citizens Critical thinking Problem solving Communication skills Inclusiveness Individual fulfillment Discovery and knowledge generation Teamwork Self-directed learning Experiential learning Mentorship Innovation And many more Student Outcomes • • • • Student evaluations Testing Writing assessment Classroom behavior Peer review of student outcomes Student communications Assessment of assignments Class discussions Student feedback and satisfaction surveys Pre- and Post- assessments Student qualification or certifications Student projects Student publications and presentations And many more

Teaching Accomplishments

2. Summary of Teaching Accomplishments (focus on past 3 years) Use headings and follow order listed in guidelines (can leave out categories if nothing to list) – Courses taught with enrollments – Teaching-related publications and/or presentations – Teaching awards – Teaching grants – Course development – Teaching innovations/curriculum design – Teaching-related service You should think about how these accomplishments relate to your teaching statement. You can also include brief statements explaining major accomplishments, but keep in mind the 10 page limit.

Peer Review

3. Peer Review Letter • Letter from peer who has had direct classroom observation or reviewed your course materials – Letter should include date/time frame of peer review – No more than 2 pages – Included as part of the 10 page limit • You need to talk with peer reviewer about – Teaching philosophy – Goals for course – Teaching accomplishments (leadership, workshops, peer mentoring)

4. Optional Types of Documentation Unsolicited student comments 
 Information on student learning outcomes 
 Evidence of teaching rigor Information about course development or curriculum initiatives 
 Attendance at workshops, seminars, or conferences related to teaching 
 Additional letters from peers who have had direct classroom observation or reviewed 
course materials of the candidate 
 • Student work samples 
 • Quality of advising and/or mentoring of students outside of classes taught • Any additional information related to teaching Any additional information related teaching • • • Example: Evidence of student mentoring – Undergraduate Research? – Undergraduate Student Advising? – Clinical Placements? – Relevant community service?

Overall Impression

4. Optional Types of Documentation – Once again, you can briefly comment on this documentation and how it demonstrates excellence and/or fits with your teaching statement rather than just list them if needed. Keep in mind, it is part of the 10 -page limit. – Provide enough description so that someone outside of your field can understand the breadth of what you have done and your contributions

Student Evaluations

5. Appendix: Teaching Evaluations (not included in 10 -page limit) • 2 -page summary of student evaluations (text or table). Helpful to provide context – Explain rating scale; How evaluations administered – In summary table, include number of students completing evaluation and class size – Point out trends – Highlight different levels of instruction • Attach evaluations. Include all evaluations and comments from courses taught at IU South Bend in the past 3 yrs

Table 1. Summary of student evaluations for courses taught between 2013 -2015. Rating scale ranges from 0 -4 with 4 being the highest ranking. In summary table could • Organize chronologically • Organize by course so can see trends over time • Organize by level of course (Introductory level, Upper level, Graduate level? )

Summary of Student Evaluations Over the Past Three Years Below are the averages I received for five questions on the student evaluations. A score of "1" represents strongly disagree (poor performance) whereas a score of "5" represents strongly agree (excellent performance). Modes for each question are in parentheses. Generally, these evaluations demonstrate that …. . (give trends) An important component of my teaching philosophy is to encourage students to be independent learners, which is reflected in the evaluation for providing helpful feedback. Learning how to use feedback to become both better at writing and more independent is also reflected in the written comments. One student noted, “****. ” AND SO ON……… Class Parenting, B 190 Methods of Experimental Psychology, P 211 Psychology of Childhood & Adolescence, P 316 Marriage & Family, B 399 Advanced Lab, P 471 Semester Fall, 2016 Spring, 2016 Fall, 2016 Spring, 2016 Sample/ Enrollment Overall Instructor Explains Well Learning Environment Helpful Feedback Welcomes questions 17/23 4. 2 (4) 4. 7 (5) 4. 2 (4) 13/13 4. 7 (5) 4. 2 (4) 4. 7 (5) 16/21 4. 2 (4) 4. 7 (5) 4. 2 (4) 20/25 4. 7 (5) 4. 2 (4) 4. 7 (5) 28/30 4. 2 (4) 4. 7 (5) 4. 2 (4) 17/20 4. 7 (5) 4. 2 (4) 4. 7 (5) Mean Overall Courses Percent Modes are 5 Any other row which makes your case!! Tell us what you want us to see! Tell us where to look! Tell us what this means!!

Final thoughts • Shape the dossier so that it – Highlights your creativity and interest in teaching – Your philosophy about teaching and student learning – Reflection on your growth as a teacher – Student learning outcomes – What makes you excellent and special – Include specific examples • • Course development Mentoring of students and colleagues Professional growth Scholarship – Directs us to your excellence! • Tell us what we are seeing INDEPENDENT LEARNING? GOT IT IN THE BAG!