News

Jason Thompson is the new CTE Liaison for the Faculty of Science. Jason comes to us from the University of Guelph where he worked for ten years in their teaching and learning unit, OpenEd, as Instructional Technology Specialist providing support and advice to faculty regarding teaching strategies, learning activities, course design, assessment methods, instructional innovations, and the integration of appropriate and effective learning technologies in their face-to-face courses. He has his BSc from the University of Guelph in Environmental Biology and a B.Ed from Queen’s University. Those that work with Jason discover his pedagogy-first approach and his enthusiasm for the learning process.

The Call for Proposals for the ninth annual Teaching and Learning Conference is now open!

This year's theme is "Cultivating Curiosity in Teaching and Learning".  For more information about the Conference, please visit the Conference website.

We look forward to seeing you on April 27, 2017.

Title: Student experiences of in-class quiz questions: The roles of feedback and question duration

Presenter: Dan Smilek, Psychology

Date: Friday, November 18, 2016 — 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM 

Location: PAS 4032

Donna Ellis, Director of the Centre for Teaching Excellence, is leading the University of Waterloo implementation of a research project to assess instructors’, staff members’, and students’ perceptions of university teaching culture. The research is funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) and is being conducted at eight other universities in Canada.

Dr. Lisa Kabesh has joined the Centre for Teaching Excellence as Communications Associate. Lisa brings a background in instructional development and writing to her work at the Centre: before starting at the CTE, Lisa worked as a writing consultant and has worked at McMaster University’s teaching and learning centre.

CTE's 2016 Focus on Teaching Week runs from Monday, October 3 to Friday, October 7, and will offer eight different workshops on topics such as course design, teaching with cases, high impact practices, and more. An overview of the week is available here.

Since May of this year, the CTE has been participating in the Green Office program, a campus pilot program that focuses on promoting sustainable methods within departments across campus. Based on a point system, each department earns points by following specific sustainable actions outlined in a scorecard format, and, depending on the number of points collected, can receive a Bronze, Silver, or Gold certification. Such actions as collecting compost for the Campus Compost program, using a “good on one side” reusable printing paper bin, and purchasing fair trade coffee for workshops or staff meetings, allow department staff to actively participate in the program. Certificates were presented at the Eco-Summit on July 7, 2016, to Green Office ambassadors for participating departments, including Propel Centre for Population Health Impact, the Library, and the Dean’s Offices of the Arts, Environment, and Engineering faculties.

Staff members at the Centre for Teaching Excellence are pleased to share the news that the SSHRC has awarded funding to a research project for which their Director, Donna Ellis, is co-investigator.