TLA

Assessment at its best promotes students' learning; it doesn't just measure it. This seminar explores how to align learning outcomes with learning opportunities to create an effective assessment cycle. Participants will learn how to use formative and summative assessment methods, ensure alignment between learning activities and assessments, promote students self-assessment, and use regular, systematic feedback in the learning cycle.
Note: This is part of the Year-1 TLA Seminar series.
Audience: All faculty.

In this seminar, participants will investigate learning opportunities that acknowledge, draw upon, and are enriched by student diversity and create atmospheres of inclusion and understanding. Participants will reflect on power differentials in the classroom, ways to increase inclusion and minimize exclusion, and some theoretical underpinnings of Inclusion and Diversity.
Note: This is part of the Year-1 TLA Seminar series.
Audience: All faculty.

In this seminar, participants will examine the difference between group work and cooperative/collaborative learning strategies that promote active learning. Through an interactive approach that models-the-model of collaborative learning, participants will experience first-hand the power of the well-structured cooperative strategy. Participants will leave this seminar with strategies they can use in their next class.
Note: This is part of the Year-1 TLA Seminar series.
Audience: All faculty.

This seminar explores the philosophy and practice of LifeMap. The focus is on the value of incorporating LifeMap strategies in one's practice to promote discipline learning while also promoting student life skills development. A key question is "How can my practice enhance students' continued learning and planning in their academic, personal, and professional endeavors beyond my course?"
Note: This is part of the Year-1 TLA Seminar series.
Audience: All faculty.

This seminar examines strategies, particularly action research, that enable educators to continuously examine the effectiveness of their teaching/counseling/librarianship practices and assessment methodologies in terms of student learning.
Note: This is part of the Year-1 TLA Seminar series.
Audience: Year-1 TLA candidates or faculty interested in designing and implementing an action research project.

Tenure candidates select two from the list below:

• LCTS2222 Case-based Teaching
  Case studies can provide a rich basis for developing problem-solving and decision making skills, critical thinking skills which are necessary to meet higher level learning outcomes in all disciplines. This class will explore the most appropriate methods of integrating case-based teaching strategies into your course.
• INDV7311 Creating a Safe Space for Dialog kickoff *
  This course will demonstrate techniques for establishing a respectful and inclusive environment that promotes healthy classroom dialogue. Dialogue can assist students in moving information from a memorized or theoretical understanding to a more integrated, tangible and lasting knowledge. Participants will engage in best practices designed to promote discussion as a pedagogical tool.

  *Note: In registering for this course, you are committing to attend two meetings across two terms (one 3-hour and one 2-hour), complete the required reading, and integrate a conversation activity into your class.

• LCTS2910 Write to Learn
  Write-to-learn activities allow students to think through a course concept to demonstrate understanding. As a learning-centered strategy, it assesses whether learning has occurred and promotes confidence. In this workshop, participants will examine several write-to-learn activities designed to deepen discipline learning and create an activity for their course.
• LCTS2910 Asking the Right Questions
  Well-designed questions function as critical thinking prompts for students. This workshop will explore how to construction questions for class discussion and written work that encourages critical thinking. Participants will be introduced to a theoretical framework for "preparing, posing and pondering" questions, and then use that framework to examine sample questions and create questions for their classes.
• LCTS2214 Problem-based Learning
  Problem-based learning (PBL) is a learning-centered teaching strategy that places students in the active role as problem-solvers confronted with either an ill-structured situation or a problem that needs to be identified and solved using discipline-specific thinking.

Creating an Individualized Learning Plan is designed for tenure-track counselors, librarians, and teaching faculty in the first year of the tenure process at Valencia. This curriculum provides participants with tools and resources enabling them to better understand the tenure process at Valencia. By engaging with the story and its characters, assigned readings and activities, and collegial exchange, participants will expand their skills and knowledge to help them construct faculty learning outcomes for their Individualized Learning Plans. This course will also deepen participants' understanding of the seven Essential Competencies of a Valencia Educator.

This workshop will explore the importance of professional engagement as part of a faculty member's ongoing development. Participants will discover the various professional opportunities available within their discipline, at the institution, and in the community. Activities are designed to assist participants in matching their interests and skills to the professional opportunities that best suit them.
Note: This is part of the Year-1 TLA Seminar series.
Audience: All faculty.

This mixed-mode course provides TLA participants an overview and examination of the elements of a Valencia Faculty Portfolio. Participants also learn how to demonstrate learning through artifacts. The face-to-face orientation reviews Valencia's learning management system (LMS), the faculty portfolio concept, and the portfolio evaluation rubric. The wrap-up provides a face-to-face session where TLA participants review each other's portfolio artifacts.

This seminar focuses on ARP research design and data analysis. Participants should bring their ARP implementation plans, assessment tools, and any data that has been collected. Participants will:

• learn how to align their Faculty Learning Outcome statements, Action Research Questions, and assessment strategies,
• explore different methods of data analysis,
• learn effective methods of data presentation, and
• review technological tools useful in analyzing data.

Workshop participants will learn the benefits of common survey types, review tips on how to write effective survey questions, collaboratively assess sample surveys, and have the opportunity to apply these principles to their own survey work. This workshop is appropriate for faculty in all disciplines investigating methods to improve student learning through formal and informal interventions.

This course is designed to teach the writing of a portfolio; rather than focusing on the content (what you research), we'll examine what makes a strong writing style for the actual writing (what you say). This will include a discussion of academic voice, audience engagement, synthesis of source material, documentation of sources, and some common errors in mechanics and grammar. We'll look at exemplary portfolios, and less than exemplary portfolios, specifically studying how the writing does -- and doesn't -- work. Essentially, we're going to talk about how to package and sell your ideas to everyone else. NOTE: This session is limited to tenure candidates.

This seminar focuses on ARP data analysis and presentation. Participants will explore methods of analysis appropriate for specific types of data. Technological tools useful in analyzing and displaying data will be demonstrated. Participants will learn principles of effective data presentation. Participants are welcome to bring any data they have collected relevant to their ARP. NOTE: This session is limited to tenure candidates.