University Centers for Teaching - Faculty Input on Staffing/Programming?

[Zeus Bird]

With the start of the fall semester upon us, our uni's teaching center has begun its programming for the year.  Over the past decade our Center's programming has become more theoretical, more abstract, and less removed from the day-to-day issues of classroom teaching and assessment.  This has coincided with greater reliance on outside speakers and senior administrators as speakers for the Center's webinars.  The participation of faculty has become anemic.  COVID hasn't helped, as the specific teaching challenges faculty have faced since 2020 are generally ignored.

How do your schools decide programming for your teaching centers?  Do faculty members oversee these units?  Full-time administrators?  How discipline-specific are the in-person and virtual events?

[Parasaurolophus]

Did you perhaps mean more removed from day-to-day issues?


Ours are run by faculty, who get something like .3 of a single course release (...). I'm not sure how they determine programming, beyond soliciting the winners of teaching awards. There are some regular events that seems useful, such as how to use the LMS, etc. And then there are a lot of events whose existence I don't understand, because they're about stuff we can't control (like different kinds of assessments--the university determines what kinds of assessments you can give in each course, we have almost no control over it).

As with most of these things, there is absolutely nothing discipline-specific, so it's mostly people generalizing from their experience in business communication, English, or whatever.

[Zeus Bird]

Should have been "more removed." Thanks.

[artalot]

At least you have a center for teaching and learning! My supposedly student-focused uni had a faculty resource center that completely fell apart during the pandemic. It was, unfortunately, the place where they sent people who had received poor reviews or were otherwise 'in trouble' and was thus viewed as a punishment.

[Harlow2]

We have a full-time director. Programming varies; much is devoted to helping folks navigate the tenure or lecturer structures, and the center offers individual mentoring on teaching via observations.  The center was helpful to me when i was first hired.

[sinenomine]

My school's first attempt at a center for teaching and learning was not well executed. The physical space never achieved it potential and turned into a conference room, and the pedagogy sessions they offered were repetitive in topic and increasingly less attended. We're now taking a second stab at establishing a center in a much nicer physical space with dedicated staff and the promise of programming originating from both staff and faculty. Time will tell.

[apl68]

At least you have a center for teaching and learning! My supposedly student-focused uni had a faculty resource center that completely fell apart during the pandemic. It was, unfortunately, the place where they sent people who had received poor reviews or were otherwise 'in trouble' and was thus viewed as a punishment.

When I was in grad school, I remember getting the impression that a recommendation that one go to our university's Center for Teaching was a sign of failure that carried an implicit threat of what might happen if one didn't get better fast.  Intentionally or not, it carried a stigma.

[Ruralguy]

Stigma or not, if it actually helped those people, then it was probably worthwhile. Now, if it was all just a waste of time and none of those people had improved teaching, then I could see why it fell apart. We don't really have a center, but we do have those sorts of activities amongst the faculty. Usually,  faculty participation is minimal from anybody, in need of help or just sort of interested.

[the_geneticist]

We have a suddenly well-funded teaching and learning center due to pandemic funds.  It has a nice space, they hired lots of tech support folks, and the only people who attend the events are folks who already care about their teaching.  Sigh.

[marshwiggle]

We have a suddenly well-funded teaching and learning center due to pandemic funds.  It has a nice space, they hired lots of tech support folks, and the only people who attend the events are folks who already care about their teaching.  Sigh.

If they find the events useful, then it's still worthwhile. The contrast between the people who care about their teaching and those who don't will become apparent and, over time, new faculty will potentially try to emulate the good ones.