CIRTL Local Learning Communities

This 8-week, online professional development course and learning community prepares future faculty to teach effectively using evidence-based, student-centered practices. Designed for graduate students and open to postdoctoral scholars, staff, faculty, and administrators, it develops skills in student learning, course design, and active and inclusive instruction. Participants strengthen their teaching effectiveness while clarifying their values and professional goals as educators.

The goal of the course is to equip the next generation of faculty to be effective teachers, thus improving the learning experience for the thousands of students they will teach.

• Session 1 - Principles of Learning: accessing prior knowledge, mental models & knowledge organization
• Session 2 - Principles of Learning: feedback and motivation
• Session 3 - Learning Objectives
• Session 4 - Active Learning
• Session 5 - Assessment
• Session 6 - Inclusive Teaching
• Session 7 - Lesson Planning

Develop evidence-based teaching knowledge

CIRTL participants learn instructional strategies supported by educational research to reach all learners through transparent, student-centered practices that foster belonging and enhance student learning and success. Participants explore when and how to apply relevant teaching and mentoring approaches, are equipped to articulate why they matter for learners, and identify ways that intentional reflection can improve their own teaching.    

Connect with community to enhance teaching

CIRTL participants connect with future faculty peers, skilled educators, and established researchers in their own campus communities and through CIRTL’s international network of higher education institutions. Participants deepen their own knowledge of student-centered pedagogical principles as they progress through their academic careers by working together to explore, discuss, practice, reflect, and iterate around teaching and mentoring skills and experiences. This sustained engagement helps participants see how connecting with a community of educators from a variety of disciplines, backgrounds, and academic experiences can foster continued growth as an instructor.

Prepare for an impactful career

CIRTL participants experience the dynamic nature of teaching and learning through the breadth of universities represented in the CIRTL Network. Participants have the opportunity to identify professional interests and career pathways that match those interests; develop materials that articulate their values and strengths as educators, such as teaching philosophy and mentoring statements; and understand potential opportunities for impact as they advance professionally.

To earn a CIRTL Associate Level Certificate, participants must:

• attend and actively participate in a minimum of 5 out of the 7 weekly sessions for more than 75% of the scheduled time for each; 
• submit all assignments (and corresponding peer assessment) by their respective due date;
• contribute a minimum of 1 original post and 1 novel response to the online discussions each week. 

• Registration for this LLC course can be found on the CIRTL calendar and the News from Nagle monthly e-Newsletter.
• Within the CIRTL Calendar, kindly browse through the events in June to find the registration form for the Summer LLC course, and October for the LLC course offered in Fall.

This 9-week, online professional development course and learning community centers on the deliberate evaluation, refinement, and evolution of teaching practice through research-informed inquiry. Aimed at educators with existing foundations in effective instruction, it prioritizes advanced pedagogical strategies, differentiated learning approaches, and sustained reflective practice. Participants critically examine their own teaching, experiment with improvements, and explore emerging developments shaping contemporary higher education.

The goal of the course is to support participants in moving from using evidence-based strategies to investigating, adapting, and improving them in authentic instructional contexts.

• Session 1 - Role of a College-Level Educator
• Session 2 - Research-Based Teaching Strategies
• Session 3 - Fostering Student Motivation
• Session 4 - Cognitive Load Theory
• Session 5 - Technology Integration & Adaptive Learning
• Session 6 - Evaluating and Improving Teaching Effectiveness
• Session 7 - Emerging Trends in Higher Education
• Session 8 - Peer Observation of Teaching
• Session 9 - Teaching as Research (TAR) Presentations

Develop evidence-based teaching knowledge

CIRTL participants learn instructional strategies supported by educational research to reach all learners through transparent, student-centered practices that foster belonging and enhance student learning and success. Participants explore when and how to apply relevant teaching and mentoring approaches, are equipped to articulate why they matter for learners, and identify ways that intentional reflection can improve their own teaching.    

Connect with community to enhance teaching

CIRTL participants connect with future faculty peers, skilled educators, and established researchers in their own campus communities and through CIRTL’s international network of higher education institutions. Participants deepen their own knowledge of student-centered pedagogical principles as they progress through their academic careers by working together to explore, discuss, practice, reflect, and iterate around teaching and mentoring skills and experiences. This sustained engagement helps participants see how connecting with a community of educators from a variety of disciplines, backgrounds, and academic experiences can foster continued growth as an instructor.

Cultivate teaching skills through reflective improvement

CIRTL participants apply their teaching and learning knowledge through guided practice of evidence-based skills and approaches. Participants are encouraged to identify questions they have about teaching and learning, conceive of data-driven ways to examine those questions in real learning environments, and reflect on how lessons learned from that exploration can improve their teaching for the benefit of all learners. Participants integrate different ways of knowing from their disciplines and lived experiences to advance their knowledge of teaching and learning. At the same time, they also develop the practice of reflective, evidence-based, iterative improvement – a practice that they can return to throughout their careers.

Prepare for an impactful career

CIRTL participants experience the dynamic nature of teaching and learning through the breadth of universities represented in the CIRTL Network. Participants have the opportunity to identify professional interests and career pathways that match those interests; develop materials that articulate their values and strengths as educators, such as teaching philosophy and mentoring statements; and understand potential opportunities for impact as they advance professionally.

To earn a CIRTL Practitioner Level Certificate, participants must:

• attend and actively participate in a minimum of 7 out of the 9 weekly sessions for more than 75% of the scheduled time for each; 
• submit all major assignments by their deadline; 
• regularly participate in asynchronous discussion of assigned readings; 
• present their lesson plan during the teaching demonstration (week 8); and 
• complete the feedback form and CIRTL Certificate confirmation.

• Registration for this LLC course can be found on the CIRTL calendar and the News from Nagle monthly e-Newsletter.
• Within the CIRTL Calendar, kindly browse through the events in June to find the registration form for the Summer LLC course, and October for the LLC course offered in Fall.