The Faculty Center holds monthly events during the semester, typically on Tuesdays. These events offer two or more concurrent sessions in each of three time slots, much like a mini conference. By their very nature, they are held in-person only, with remote options only available when the entire event is held online.
Each Teaching and Learning Day is announced several weeks before the event, and participants sign up to reserve a spot (participation is capped at 75). This event is for full-time faculty only, and we provide lunch in the form of pizza, salad, and subs from Publix. Since participation is limited, we ask that faculty only sign up if they can attend at least two sessions.
We do not record these sessions, since we prioritize the networking and sharing elements of the face-to-face experience. You’re always welcome to contact presenters to see if they’d be willing to share materials with you separately.
The third event of fall and spring terms (November and April) is held virtually, and usually consists of only single online workshop. Summer events are also held virtually.
Typical Event Format:
Session 1, 9:00–10:00 a.m.
Coffee Break, 10:00–10:10 a.m.
Session 2, 10:10–11:10 a.m.
Coffee Break, 11:10–11:20 a.m.
Session 3, 11:20–12:20 a.m.
Lunch, 12:20 a.m.–1:00 p.m.
April 19, 2024:
April 19, 9am-12pm (in person):
Course Redesign Institute. Looking to liven up a course you have taught many, many times? Or maybe considering designing a course from scratch? Join us and work through the process of (re)developing an effective, learner-centered course. We’ll examine the basics of backward design, principles of assessment as well as activities that are aligned with your learning outcomes and assessments. You will leave with a framework for a course that is well organized and centered on solid learning outcomes your students can follow with ease. Participants can come/go as needed to match their schedule.
April 19, 1pm-2pm (in person):
Breaking Through: Student Distraction in the Classroom. Today’s students are bombarded by information from a variety of sources that compete with the information they get in the classroom. You don’t have to become a social media star to get your students’ attention. Join us as we explore why we cannot take their attention for granted but must make getting their attention a goal in itself. By learning about the role attention plays in learning and by applying a few simple techniques to increase and renew learners’ attention, you can increase their focus and improve their retention of your course material.
April 19, 3pm-4pm (virtual on TEAMS)
Options, Empathy, Explanations: How Autonomy Bolsters Student Motivation. If you hear questions like “Will this be on the test?” you may wonder how to encourage your students to be more independent, intrinsically motivated thinkers. In this workshop, you will learn a variety of strategies on how to offer choices to promote students’ autonomy and nudge them toward enhanced learning. Whether in a face-to-face, hybrid or online course, it is important to incorporate student perspectives into your courses and offer them choices if you want them to stay engaged.
Register here: https://ucf.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_23KLTtGMwFII4NU