Enabling Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Activities Across a Curriculum Design Framework

This chapter outlines the multiple ways in which Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) activities might be activated and/or realized through the processes of curriculum and learning design of a degree program. Key dual enablers for these activities are an underpinning curriculum framework, bringing a series of defined developmental steps each underpinned by SoTL, and the Curriculum Design Studio construct as a vehicle for collaborative ways of working between staff, including academics and curriculum designers and students. Drawing on evidence from the practices of four curriculum designers, examples are presented across a wide range of disciplinary areas. In many instances, SoTL not only brings an evidence base to the work, but also the potential for research outputs, thus becoming a useful lever for academic staff to engage in ongoing curriculum design discussions and evidence-informed practice. Such activities serve to mitigate against acknowledged challenges faced by academics such as lack of adequate time for such activities and the pressure to produce research outputs.

Scholarly Rigor

The Scholarship of Teaching and Learning nurtures an academic discussion of best instructional practices. This case study examines the role domain knowledge plays in determining extent to which students can effectively analyze an opinion piece from a major news organization, locate a relevant source to support their view of the issue, and reflect on the quality of their work. The goal of analyzing an opinion piece is twofold: it fosters critical thinking in analyzing the strength of an argument and it promotes information management skills in locating and incorporating relevant sources in a real-world scenario. Students, however, exhibited difficulties in accurately completing the assignment and usually overestimated their expertise. This chapter traces how each step in the process of making this study public clarifies the issues encountered. The focus here, however, centers on the context within which the study was formulated, those issues that contributed to framing the research question, and how the context of inquiry served to deepen insights in interpreting the results.

Using Mid-Semester Assessment Programs (MAPs) as a Catalyst for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL)

Mid-Semester Assessment Programs (MAPs) have been successfully utilized as a professional development tool for faculty interested in improving their teaching in the context of higher education by assessing voluntary formative student feedback that guides changes instructors make in the classroom. Faculty centers and educational developers have the unique opportunity to recruit instructors via MAPs who have participated in these programs to promote and support the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) among faculty who already display an innate interest in best teaching practices and are open to advancing their own teaching in order to improve student learning and to propel student success. This chapter provides a guide for educational developers who seek to become active partners for faculty to become interested and engaged in the scholarship of teaching and learning through a unique recruitment mechanism that serves as a natural steppingstone for faculty not having engaged with SoTL yet.

Writing Into the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

The Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) has been suggested as an ideal vehicle for engaging faculty with professional development for teaching in higher education. However, previous authors have identified that faculty find writing about SoTL difficult. The aim of this chapter is to support educational developers (EDs) to collaborate with faculty to support writing. Two theoretical frameworks to support collaboration are proposed: the first, the Knowledge Transforming Model of Writing, to assist with the process of writing; the second, an adaptation of Brigugilio's working in the third space framework to support collaboration. The authors utilise both frameworks to reflect on their own SoTL collaboration and subsequently pose questions to support faculty and EDs to do the same. Ultimately, it is proposed that collaboration not only enhances the practices of faculty and EDs but improves what should be an important priority for the wider academy: the learning outcomes of students.

Using SoTL to Foster a Research Approach to Teaching and Learning in Higher Education

This chapter discusses how Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) can be used to foster a research approach to teaching and learning and how faculty development that supports colleagues to engage in SoTL can support the development of scholarly faculty. Both the process and the product of SoTL are discussed, conceptualised as different levels of SoTL engagement. The role of the faculty developer in such scholarship is discussed, drawing on Pedagogical Content Knowledge as a framework for engagement in SoTL projects. Last, implications for the work of a faculty developer are drawn and future avenues of research in faculty development proposed.

Building Faculty SoTL Skills Through a Multi- and Interdisciplinary Writing Community of Practice

Cultivating a community of faculty to support Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) work at universities can be challenging. There are many obstacles to overcome—obstacles such as how to sustain such efforts over time. The Center for Educational Excellence set out to design a strategic plan designed to address certain barriers to SoTL work and to create a long-standing community of practice for a SoTL group of faculty members—a group that has lasted over nine years to date. This chapter outlines strategies employed over the years and the evolution of the interdisciplinary group from a learning community to community of practice. The stories of past and present members are included along with advice on how others may have successful programs at their universities.

Structures and Considerations for SoTL Educational Development

Colleges and universities around the world share a broad focus on education. However, unique characteristics and priorities across institutions may lead to vastly different educational development opportunities for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) and levels of impact for the SoTL efforts (e.g., micro, meso, macro, mega). This chapter is organized in two distinct parts. Part 1 examines five different structures typical for SoTL educational development with a focus on their organizational structure within the institution and the SoTL expertise of individuals who that lead these efforts. Strengths and limitations of each structure are presented. Part 2 provides a discussion of critical considerations that impact all SoTL educational development efforts regardless of the type of structure that exists within an institution.

Exploring the Impact of SoTL on Day-to-Day Learning and Teaching

The Curriculum Evaluation Research (CER) Framework was developed as a response to increasing scrutiny and expectations of the higher education sector, including legislated standards for curriculum and professional teachers that explicitly require a systematic and comprehensive approach to evaluating curriculum. The CER Framework is designed to facilitate a scholarly environment to drive and assure the quality of a curriculum and the capabilities of its teaching team. It stems from a synthesis of teacher as action researcher (TAAR), quality improvement (QI), quality assurance (QA), and the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) applied to the curriculum as it is designed, taught, and revised. In this chapter, the implementation of the CER Framework to the University College is reviewed and evaluated. The University College is an organisational unit comprises approximately 600 students and 80 staff. This chapter includes a reflection on the barriers and enablers of implementing the CER Framework.

Overcoming Challenges to Impactful SoTL

In order for teaching and learning to improve throughout an institution, the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) must be valued within institutional culture and contribute to the scholarly identity of researchers. This chapter emphasizes some of the challenges for SoTL researchers, whether educational developers or faculty members, to consider as they begin their foray into educational research. SoTL challenges are divided into four inter-related themes: (1) scholarly identity, (2) institutional challenges, (3) accessing and searching the SoTL literature, and (4) conducting SoTL research (SoTL research design, methodology, funding and time commitments, and ethical considerations). The chapter includes a series of opportunities and resources to help SoTL researchers reframe these challenges into opportunities for their institutions.

A Case Study in the Application of Transformative Learning Theory

Transformative learning can be used as a strategy for measuring teacher effectiveness in online courses. By measuring the transformations that occur within their courses, instructors can understand more about the activities and experiences that are the most impactful for students. In addition, instructors can create opportunities for transformation by designing learning experiences that encourage students to critically self-reflect. This chapter presents an exploratory study that examined instructor and student perceptions of transformation in an online school library graduate program. The data was used to redesign one unit in a course on reference and information services to create opportunities for students to experience transformation with the content.