College Teaching Practicum

The College Teaching Practicum is intended to provide participants with ongoing practice and feedback through peer and faculty mentorship. Participants will model effective teaching practices through a classroom observation and engage with a faculty mentor.  Practicum participants will develop the knowledge and skills to enhance the effectiveness of their current teaching and assessment practices and to encourage the practices of others.

As a result of completing the practicum, participants will be able to:

• demonstrate a reflective and purposeful approach to teaching
• develop assessment and evaluation techniques based on sound pedagogical principles
• identify ways in which technology enhances or detracts from student learning
• (re)design a course using Wiggins and McTighe theory of backward design by writing measureable student learning outcomes

Practicum Requirements

Participation in 6-week practicum meetings:

• Session 1. Practicum Expectations
• Session 2. Using Technology to Enhance Learning
• Session 3. Inclusive Learning & Teaching
• Session 4. Teams and Groups that Work
• Session 5. Out of Class Pedagogies (Experiential Learning, Service Learning)
• Session 6. Course & Syllabus Design

In the Spring 2013 semester, the CFT is offering Practicum meetings at two times:

• Session One: Meets on Wednesdays 2:10-3:00pm (2/6, 2/13, 2/20, 2/27, 3/13, 3/20) at the Center for Teaching (session led by Katie Taylor)
• Session Two:  Meets on Thursdays 9:10-10:00am (2/7, 2/14, 2/21, 2/28, 3/14, 3/21) at the Center for Teaching (session led by Adam Wilsman)

When they apply, participants are asked to select which meeting time they’ll be attending. Participants are asked to select one or the other and plan to attend 7 out 8 meetings within one session.

Completion of ONE classroom observation sequences. Participants will be observed teaching by a teaching consultant.  Participants meet with their consultant before and after teaching to plan for and reflect on their teaching experience.

Refined Philosophy of Teaching. Including receiving feedback from another instructor in one’s department, and submit a final philosophy of teaching to the CFT.

Participation in the Practicum

The CFT will offer the Seminar twice per academic year, but in the 2012-13 academic year it will only be offered in the spring semester. The spring session will begin in February. Those interested in participating should:

• Complete the application to the Practicum before the deadline
• Discuss their intent to participate in the program with their department chair, director of graduate studies or mentor. The Practicum requires participants to meet for six 1-hour sessions, complete 2 teaching observation sequences (including two 1-hour consultations for each sequence). In all, the commitment is for 10 hours.

Frequently Asked Questions

• General Questions
• Questions about the former Teaching Certificate Program
• Questions about the Seminar
• Questions about the Practicum

General Questions

Can I complete the Seminar and Practicum in any order?
We ask that you complete the Seminar first and the Practicum second. It’s our intention that participants will build on knowledge and experiences from the Seminar (which will address many ‘basics’ and common concerns among TAs and future faculty) in the Practicum (which will allow one to receive feedback on their teaching skills and make refinements). If completed out of order, particpants will miss out on that opportunity for growth.

Do I have to complete the Seminar and the Practicum in back-to-back semesters? Or can I take a break in between?
You do not have to complete the Seminar and the Practicum in consecutive semesters. You can complete the Seminar and then take all the time you’d like to before signing up for the Practicum.

How do I apply?
Simply fill out the application:

• Spring 2013: Seminar
• Apply beginning in December
  Application deadline: January 30
• Spring 2013: Practicum
  Apply beginning in December
  Application deadline: January 30

When is the ‘best time’ to complete the Certificate?
The ‘best time’ to complete the Certificate is up to you! Here are some common factors, though, that do help graduate students make up their mind about when to start:

• The time commitment. Both pieces of the Certificate require you to attend regularly scheduled one-hour sessions (held at the CFT). Taking an evaluative look at your schedule and determining if you have that time available is important.
• Available teaching opportunities. The Practicum does require participants to undergo one teaching observation. While we try to be flexible about what is ‘teaching’, typically participants are observed giving a lecture/presentation or leading a discussion/review group. For most, completing the Practicum during a semester that one is teaching or TA’ing (and thus has some access to classroom teaching) is ideal. For those whose TA duties don’t include teaching (or those who are not TA’ing at all), we suggest that you speak with others in your department and work out and arrangement to guest lecture before starting the Practicum.

I’m no longer a student at Vanderbilt. Can I still participate in either the Seminar or Practicum?
Sorry, but typically the answer is no. This program is intended for who are still a part of the teaching community at Vanderbilt.

I’m not a graduate student or a post-doc (instead a staff person, etc). Can I still participate in either the Seminar or Practicum?
Possibly. We tend to make a determination on a case-by-case basis. Some staff have positions that are heavily focused on teaching, and others do not. Please send us a message and let us know about your current position, why you’re interested, and we’ll let you know.

Questions about the former Teaching Certificate Program

Why did the CFT make changes to the Teaching Certificate Program?
While we felt that the former Teaching Certificate Program was great (and we’ve tried to keep all of the best parts of it!), we listened to the feedback from participants and saw an opportunity to improve upon some aspects of the program. Particularly:

• The former program was intended to be self-directed, yet many participants expressed a desire for it to be less so. So we’ve clarified some of the requirements, set “start” and “end” dates, and tried to create a program that still allows participants to have some self-direction but also provides structure so that participants complete the program in a timely manner.
• One of the most popular aspects of the former program was the cycle two reading group. In this group, participants got to interact with other participants (often from very different disciplines) and spend an hour each week discussing teaching. So we’ve kept that and expanded on it. In the new program, from day one, participants will be engaged in on-going conversations with their peers around teaching topics during the regularly scheduled meetings.
• One of the most challenging aspects of the former program (for many students) was the teaching observation requirement present in both cycle one and cycle two. Many participants got “stuck” at the beginning of cycle one waiting around for a teaching opportunity to arise and never progressed to some of the richer discussion taking place in cycle two. To address this issue, we rethought the observations and removed the in-class teaching observation from the Seminar. Now participants who might not have teaching opportunities can still join in, participate in the discussion, and complete micro-teaching in front of their peers. Those who do have teaching opportunities can then move on to the Practicum and undergo in-class observations. This separation allows those who don’t have available teaching opportunities the ability to stop after completing the Seminar and still have successfully completed a professional development activity.
• The former program contained three cycles – the third of which was to complete a small-scale research project that would assess student learning. While participants who completed cycle three felt like it was one of the most valuable parts of the program, the time commitment that the cycle required was often too intensive for many to complete. So we took cycle three and spun it off into the SoTL Scholars Program (read more about that here). By doing so, we hope that more students will be able to complete the Certificate and that those interested in learning more about the scholarship of teaching & learning will pursue the Scholars Program separately.

What if I’m a participant in the Teaching Certificate Program and I haven’t finished it yet?
Don’t worry! You have some options. Depending on where you are in the program, you may be able to finish it this academic year (2012-13). In general, we suggest that if:

• You were in cycle 1, we ask that you simply start the new program. Let us know you’re interested in the Seminar and apply to join us this fall or in the spring.
• You were in cycle 2, we ask that you either: (a) begin with the new program, or (b) finish cycle 2 and cycle 3 during the 2012-13 academic year. If you want to finish cycle 2, please be aware that the CFT will not be offering a ‘reading group’ and instead you’ll be asked to complete the readings individually.
• You were in cycle 3, we ask that you finish cycle 3 or the SoTL Scholars Program during the 2012-13 academic year. If you are unable to do so at this time, we’ll be glad to have you participate in the new program or in the SoTL Scholars program in the future.

The CFT sent individual messages to each participant in the Teaching Certificate Program in July 2012. If you did not receive a message from us, please let us know.

If I completed the Teaching Certificate Program, can I also participate in the Certificate in College Teaching?
Sure! We’d be glad to have you. Simply apply and let us know you’d like to join us.

Questions about the Seminar

What if I can’t attend all 8 meetings? What if I miss a meeting?
We ask that participants make every effort to attend all 8 meetings. However, we do know that sometimes scheduling conflicts arise and you may miss a meeting. With that in mind, we’ll follow the general rule that if you miss more than one meeting, you’ll be asked to leave the Seminar for the semester. You’d be welcome to then join us again in a future semester when you have more time.

What if the meeting times that the CFT is offering this semester don’t work for my schedule?
We’ll make every effort to offer the Seminar meetings at times that work with the schedules of most graduate students. That said, we can’t possibly suit everyone! If the times don’t work for you this semester, check back and see if the schedule does the following semester.

What if I don’t complete all of the requirements in one semester? Can I complete the Seminar over 2 or more semesters?
The Seminar is intended to be a one-semester program. You should complete all of the requirements in one semester. If you do not, then you won’t receive recognition for having completed it and you won’t be able to move on to the Practicum.

Questions about the Practicum

What if I can’t identify two teaching opportunities?
As we mentioned above, one of the most important considerations when making the decision about when to begin the Practicum is determining when you’ll have teaching opportunities available to you. We suggest that you time your participation to coincide with a semester in which you’ll be TA’ing, teaching your own course, or will be working with another person in your department who is amiable to allowing you to guest lecture twice in their course. If you’re still unable to identify two teaching opportunities, then we ask that you complete only the Seminar portion of the Certificate which does not require any in-class observations. Please note that the CFT is unable to identify teaching opportunities for you. As with the former program, the responsibility lies with the participant.

What if I can’t attend all 6 meetings? What if I miss a meeting?
We ask that participants make every effort to attend all 6 meetings. However, we do know that sometimes scheduling conflicts arise and you may miss a meeting. With that in mind, we’ll follow the general rule that if you miss more than one meeting, you’ll be asked to leave the Practicum for the semester. You’d be welcome to then join us again in a future semester when you have more time.

What if the meeting times that the CFT is offering this semester don’t work for my schedule?
We’ll make every effort to offer the Practicum meetings at times that work with the schedules of most graduate students. That said, we can’t possibly suit everyone! If the times don’t work for you this semester, check back and see if the schedule does the following semester.

What if I don’t complete all of the requirements in one semester? Can I complete the Seminar over 2 or more semesters?
The Practicum is intended to be a one-semester program. You should complete all of the requirements in one semester. If you do not, then you won’t receive recognition for having completed it and you won’t be awarded a Certificate.