Erin Sanders O’Leary appointed UCLA’s inaugural Vice Provost for Teaching and Learning
|  | |
The CEILS team congratulates Erin Sanders O’Leary, who has recently been appointed UCLA’s inaugural Vice Provost for Teaching and Learning and will begin this role in August 2023. In this role, Professor O’Leary will lead the newly established UCLA Teaching and Learning Center and serve as a key resource for, and driver of, innovation and collaboration in teaching across UCLA’s broad academic landscape.
Between 2014 – 2020 Professor O'Leary served as the founding director of CEILS. In 2020, she left UCLA to become the inaugural Executive Director for the Center for the Advancement of Teaching Excellence at the University of Illinois, Chicago (UIC) where she established and grew their campus-wide center for teaching.
UCLA's new Teaching and Learning Center will coordinate many of UCLA’s existing teaching and learning programs and expand on their important work. The organizational structure of the new Teaching and Learning Center will include university wide services, pedagogical and research innovation as well as creating and connecting new disciplinary teaching centers. While CEILS will remain under the continued leadership of the Deans of Life and Physical Sciences and the Executive Director Rachel Kennison, we are thrilled to welcome back Professor O'Leary to develop and guide the new campus wide teaching center. We look forward to partnering and collaborating with the new Teaching and Learning Center as well as other disciplinary centers to collaborate on innovative initiatives.
We joyfully welcome back Professor O'Leary to UCLA! Her leadership, vision, and commitment to supporting our instructional community will elevate teaching and learning at UCLA, strengthen support and resources for our community, strengthen cross-campus collaboration, and enhance opportunities for UCLA to lead in innovation and education research in the teaching and learning space.
Welcome back, Erin!
| |
iClicker will be free for students starting Summer 2023! | |
The Bruin Learn Center for Excellence is thrilled to announce that starting Summer 2023 instructors and students will be able to use the web-based and mobile versions of iClicker, an interactive polling tool used widely across UCLA, at no cost.
When is the change happening?
Beginning on Tuesday, June 20, 2023, students will be able to create or merge an account and use iClicker without any cost. This date is one-week prior to the start of the Summer 2023.
What should I tell my students for the Spring Quarter 2023?
If you require iClicker as part of your course materials for the Spring Quarter 2023, have your students visit the Macmillan storefront for a one-quarter discounted subscription. For physical iClicker remotes, please work with the UCLA Store for options.
Why use polling in class?
Take a look at this video to see an example of an instructor using polling in their large lecture class, one strategy for implementing peer instruction and getting feedback on student learning in the moment!
Additional details about trainings, consultations, and support for setting up iClicker for your courses will be coming soon - stay tuned!
| |
|
First Day of Class
The first day of class sets the tone for the quarter and is your introduction to your students on who you are and how you teach. It also provides an opportunity to set the expectations for the course – grades, attendance, schedule. But beyond the logistics of the course, the first day is a chance to begin to create a learning community.
| |
|
The Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence in Teaching and Learning
Students and instructors are embracing ChatGPT (GPT-4 as of March 2023) and similar artificial intelligence (AI) technologies across disciplines for different learning goals. There is no one-size-fits-all best practice for their use. This document is meant as a guideline for instructors on what to consider as these tools evolve.
| |
|
CIRTL@UCLA presents Teaching-As-Research Day
CIRTL@UCLA is excited to announce their first ever Teaching as Research Day held on April 26 from Noon - 5pm PDT. TAR Day will include several events including a watch party luncheon for the CIRTL Network TAR Presentations from Noon - 1:30pm, a social, games, and conversation hour from 1:30 - 3pm, and a series of lightning talks followed by a poster session and happy hour reception from 3 - 5pm. You are welcome to come for some of the time or stay the whole day.
| |
Campus Partner Announcements | |
|
It's UCLA Graduate & Professional Student Appreciation Week!
This is the perfect time to let your graduate students know how much you appreciate them. To view the full list of events, please visit the link here. Use these materials in the GPSAW graphics folder to show your appreciation online.
| |
|
Luskin Iftar
RSVP Here
You are invited to Luskin's second annual Luskin Iftar that will be held on Thursday April 13th at 6:30pm. They welcome all students, administrators, faculty and alumni from all campus departments to join them in breaking fast together. In addition to the iftar, they are inviting folks to join us in fasting for a day. If you are interested please fill out the RSVP form below. Feel free to share the flyer with your peers and colleagues to invite them as well.
| |
|
Graduate Programs in Bioscience is hosting virtual research mentor trainings during the Spring 2023 quarter. The objective of the workshops is to enrich current mentoring practices by providing faculty with evidence-based approaches to research mentoring while offering a forum in which to solve dilemmas. This training come from the Center For the Improvement of Mentored Experiences in Research (CIMER) and the National Research Mentoring Network (NRMN). For more information please visit the website.
| |
|
Full-Length Mentor Training (6 hours offered in two 3 hour sessions): Encouraged for faculty who have not previously participated in mentor training at UCLA.
Dates: April 14 & 21, 2023: 1 pm-4 pm (virtual). Participants must be able to attend both sessions.
Application Period: Applications close on April 10th.
Apply Here for Full-Length Mentor Training.
| |  |
|
Refresher Mentor Training (3 hours total in one session): Only for faculty who have previously participated in the full-length mentor training at UCLA. The refresher is recommended every 3 years.
Date: May 12, 2023: 1 pm-4 pm (virtual). Participants must be able to attend the entire session.
Application Period: Applications close on April 10th. Notifications will be sent by April 17th.
Apply Here for the Refresher Training:
| |
|
Nominations for the 2023 Life Sciences Excellence Awards
The Life Sciences Excellence Awards seek to recognize and celebrate our outstanding achievements in world-class research, education, mentorship, curriculum development, and service. Our tireless efforts have helped to build and sustain a vibrant community that fosters collaboration, inclusivity, and diversity.
We encourage you to nominate yourself or a colleague for any of the following awards:
• Excellence in Educational Innovation
• Excellence in Promotion of Diversity & Inclusion
• Excellence in Administration
• Excellence in Research
Awards are open to various categories:
• Administrative Staff
• PhD Candidate
• Postdoctoral
• Lecturer, Academic Administrator or Academic Coordinator
• Assistant Professor
• Associate/Full Professor
Submissions may be self-nominations or nominations of a colleague for achievements between 2020-2023. The deadline for nominations is April 18, 2023. For more information and to submit your nominations, click here. Finally, Life Sciences Dean Johnson invites you to save the date to celebrate the Life Sciences achievements as a community on May 17th, from 3:30-5pm in person at 158 Hershey Hall.
| |
Professional Development Opportunities | |
|
UC Wide Academic Integrity Virtual Symposium
RSVP Today
The integrity of the teaching and learning mission of universities is facing a challenge unlike those experienced in the past with the growth in companies and people who will complete academic work on behalf of students and the launch of generative artificial intelligence that provides answers and assignments in a matter of seconds. We cannot keep teaching, learning, and assessing as we did in the 20th century, and we can't ignore our societal obligation to ensure that our degrees are accurate representations of a graduate’s knowledge and skills.
The symposium, sponsored and organized by the Academic Integrity Office at UC San Diego, is open for all University of California system members and is free of charge. Attend one or more of the live sessions. Any questions should be directed to the symposium organizers at [email protected].
| |
|
SABER and The SimBio Foundation (SBF) are happy to announce the inaugural year of a new source of funding for Biology Education Research. The Foundation provides small grants each year to investigators with ideas for making biology education more effective. The Foundation is particularly interested in new ideas that may need preliminary results before looking for larger funding sources. Applications will be accepted from April 1 – April 15, 2023. Please see their website for more information.
| |
|
Professional Development for Emerging Education Researchers (PEER) Institute
Applications are currently being accepted for a PEER Introductory Field School for the Southern California Region in San Diego, July 24-27. This 4-day intensive in-person PEER field schools give opportunities for emerging education researchers in developing their research interests into concrete questions, developing short- and long-term research plans, building community with other education researchers, and making progress on advancing projects to publication. Applications are due on April 15, 2023 and applicants will be notified by May 1, 2023.
Whether you’re just getting started, looking to stretch into new projects or methodologies, or seeking community and support around education research, we’re happy to have you. For more information and to apply, click here.
| |
|
The 2023 Grading Conference
Moving the conversation about grading in Higher Education forward
June 9 & 10 | Online | Register Here
| |
Featured Resources & Articles | |
|
Live Trainings:
Topics include:
- Quickstart: Preparing to Teach in Bruin Learn
- Set Up Your Bruin Learn Site with Migrated CCLE Content
- End-of-Term Grading in Bruin Learn & MyUCLA
- Build Your Bruin Learn Site from Scratch Using a Template
Office Hours are also available for individuals to drop-in to discuss advanced topics or design considerations.
Check out these resources to review at your own pace:
Reminders:
-
24/7 Help is available through live chat and via phone.
- Once logged in click on "Help" from the global navigation to view all of the instructional support resources and to connect to a live person.
- Bruin Learn Support Site
| |
|
For more information about CEILS events and resources, including a list of STEM education events from previous mailers, please visit the CEILS website at www.ceils.ucla.edu or stop by our CEILS office in 222 Hershey Hall. If you wish to be added to the CEILS mailing list for future newsletters and special announcements, please send your request to [email protected].
Please note, this monthly newsletter is circulated through many departmental listservs. Most other CEILS correspondence, including special event announcements and reminders, are sent to CEILS mailing list recipients only. If you have questions or have difficulty reading this newsletter, please email us at [email protected].
| | | | |
