How to support teaching and learning in higher education

The aim of the programme is to support doctoral students at Charles University who are relatively new to university teaching but they are expected to teach within this academic year. This programme will provide basic understanding of the principles of learning and offer practical teaching strategies in various settings. Topics and working methods will contribute to the participants’ teaching self-efficacy and support the achievement of the learning outcomes listed below.

By the end of the programme, the participants will be able to…

• reflect on their own conception of good quality teaching,

• understand basic researched-based principles of learning and consequences of teaching,

• understand the importance of a growth mindset, teacher-student relationship and a safe classroom environment,

• explain several types of motivation and analyze didactic appraoches that support them,

• apply various teaching strategies in order to support active learning,

• understand the process of deep learning and provide examples of good quality questioning.

METHODS:

interactive lecture, individual reflection, pair and group discussions, Q&A session

TIME FRAME AND PROGRAMME DESCRIPTION:

Wednesday 14. 9. 2022 / 9:00 - 16:00 (with breaks)

Official welcome. Introduction, expectations, course objectives.

Welcome speech. Introduction of the lecturers and the participants. Objectives of the programme. Participation and communication agenda.

I. Quality of teaching at university level: What characterizes good quality teaching?

Personal reflection on the quality of teaching. Research on the quality of teaching, categorization of the concept of teaching and the role of the university teacher. A tool for measuring the quality of teaching at universities, indicators and examples of good practice.

II. Effective teaching at university level: How do we learn?

The art of explaining and the art of showing. Principles of learning, attention and memory. Didactic approaches to comprehensible explanation. Learning from practice, reflection on practical experience.

III. Providing a safe environment for learning: How to ensure it and why is it important?

Psychological safety and social relations in higher education. Respectful communication analysis, research findings and examples.

IV. Q&A. Reflection on the aquired knowledge.

What have we learned? What was the most important for my understanding? What needs some more clarification? What would I like to implement in my own practice?

Thursday 15. 9. 2022 /9:00 - 16:00 (with breaks)

V. Motivation: What motivates students to learn and how can we support it?

Types of motives, self-determination theory. Various didactic ways of supporting students’ motivation.

VI. Active learning: Why and how can we support student involvement?

Research findings supporting active learning. Types of interaction in teaching and methods increasing student’s activity and effective discussion. Flipped classroom. Feedback and key role of questions. Formative assessment.

VII. Higher-order thinking skills, deep learning: How can we support connecting information?

Bloom's taxonomy. Research-validated indicators and examples of teacher activities that support deep learning. Socratic questions. Consistency between course objectives, teaching & learning and the assessment of student learning outcomes.

VIII. Q&A. Reflection and course evaluation.

Lecturer:

Ing. Karolina Duschinská, Ph.D. (PedF UK)

Specialises in general didactics, andragogy and professional development of teaching staff. Graduated from the Faculty of Chemical Engineering of the University of Chemistry and Technology and from the Charles University Faculty of Education. She now works as an assistant professor at both these institutions and, besides teaching and researching general didactics, also mentors beginning teachers. She conducts a didactic skills course for doctoral students and university teachers.

PhDr. Radka High, Ph.D. (PedF UK) 

Specialises in pedagogical and school psychology, especially issues relating to learning motivation, teaching talented pupils and also the issue of time perspective. She graduated from the Faculty of Education of Charles University. She is currently working as an assistant professor at the Department of Psychology of the CU Faculty of Education and Department of Education of the University of Chemistry and Technology. She conducts communication skills courses for doctoral students and university teachers as well as for members of the business community.

Form: FULL TIME FORM

Date:

Wed 14. 9. 2022

Thu 15. 9. 2022

Time: always 9:00 - 16:00 (with breaks)

Place: Rectorate CU, Green auditorium, Celetná 20, Prague 1

Registration: HERE

Participation in the program is free of charge.