About the Center for Teaching and Learning
Mission
The CTL is committed to providing flexible and responsive development opportunities for faculty members at all career stages; for staff members who also teach; for part-time as well as full-time instructors; and for select initiatives that support student learning and the university’s educational mission. The CTL’s programming and services are faculty-driven and achieved through significant collaborations with other units on campus.
The CTL serves as a resource for the Otterbein community through a range of services and professional development opportunities that are
- devoted to encouraging and supporting excellent teaching
- committed to the effective and intentional use of teaching and learning tools, including, but not limited to digital technologies
- responsive to the needs of faculty members and academic units
- open to all stakeholders and committed to a cooperative vision of success
- designed to target specific audiences, including faculty at different career stages and in different roles
- supportive of a broad understanding of scholarship and committed to nurturing and supporting faculty work in the scholarship of teaching and learning
- dedicated to promoting inquiry and dialogue
- collaboratively developed with other campus units
Vision
Enhance student learning by supporting faculty and staff members in their efforts to teach effectively.
Audiences and Goals
The CTL addresses this mission of providing teaching-and-learning-related professional and organizational development by seeking to
Provide a range of high quality professional development opportunities
- for individuals
- for departments
- for interdisciplinary and cross-unit groups
- for academic institutional initiatives
Offer programming tailored to career stage and instructional or institutional role
- for new and junior faculty
- for mid-career faculty members
- for those undergoing reviews, including interim tenure and post-tenure review
- for staff members who teach
- for part-time faculty members
- for those exploring alternative approaches to teaching, such as blended and online formats
- for those growing into university leadership
Foster individual, departmental, and campus-wide inquiry, dialogue, and collegiality, particularly related to supporting student learning and encouraging faculty growth. Areas of emphasis include
- understanding and fostering deep and significant student learning
- enhancing teaching and encouraging pedagogical innovation
- encouraging exploration of and effective uses of instructional technologies
- encouraging and supporting faculty work in the scholarship of teaching and learning
- cultivating internal leadership
Provide intellectual and organizational support for
- innovative and effective teaching and learning
- innovative and effective uses of technology to facilitate and deepen learning
- sound pedagogy for hybrid and online course design and delivery
- campus-wide course and curriculum design
Serve as a conduit for new educational research, pedagogical approaches, and emerging technologies by
- helping community members stay abreast of current pedagogy research
- encouraging faculty and staff participation in inquiry about learning
- staying abreast of technological and organizational developments and changes that have implications for teaching and learning practices
Provide a range of development approaches and services, including
- individual consultations
- group instructional technology training sessions
- student focus groups related to teaching and learning for individual instructors or for departments
- workshops
- guest experts
- faculty and staff reading groups
- communities of practice (teaching circles, professional learning communities)
- an extensive faculty development library
Encourage meaningful collaborations dedicated to enhancing Otterbein’s academic mission among such units as the
- Faculty Scholar Development Committee
- Office of Information Technologies and
- Services
- Library
- Center for Community Engagement
- Center for Student Success
- Academic Support Center
- Office of Diversity
- Center for International Education and Global Engagement
- Office of Sponsored Programs
- Student Affairs
Eligibility The CTL is open to individuals and departments interested in enhancing student learning.
Confidentiality
Individual consultations with the CTL are entirely confidential.
Voluntary Nature
Individual consultations as well as participation in activities sponsored by the CTL are to be voluntary.
Standards for Ethical Practice
The CTL at Otterbein University is closely affiliated with the Professional and Organizational Development Network (POD) in Higher Education. It recognizes and abides by the standards for ethical practice collaboratively developed and endorsed by the organization:
http://www.podnetwork.org/faculty_development/ethicalguidelines.htm