Learning Episode And Reflective Narrative

Updated LEARN

The Learning Episode and Reflection Narrative helps the selection committees learn more about your reflective practices related to your classroom teaching, creative endeavors, scholarship of teaching and learning, or teaching-related administrative activities. Please document evidence of your excellence in teaching and learning through one of the four paths described below:


OPPORTUNITY FOR CHANGE

This option demonstrates an opportunity you have taken to change your teaching practices. It should be based on student feedback, disciplinary evolution, or opportunity to innovate or take risks. It should include evidence supporting a chance to change a single experience in a course, program, or event that resulted in an identifiable impact on teaching and learning.

Example: instructor expectations were not matching student output for visual aid designs in an introductory level communications course. Students provided feedback that expectations were unclear and they lacked knowledge using design tools. Instructor added a day of instruction to specifically address visual aid design, provided examples of excellent visual aid submissions, and created rubrics for each of the three visual aid assessments in the course. Student scores and feedback improved based on interventions.

ENHANCING COMMUNITY IN THE CLASSROOM

This option demonstrates a single experience driven by a goal to enhance community, inclusion, or student engagement in the classroom. It should be based on evidence of identifiable impact on increasing community and inclusion in curriculum, activities, assessments, policies, or class structure.

Example: instructor noticed a trend of women feeling isolated from their lab groups in an intermediate level biology course. Instructor conducted a post-survey and solicited feedback from students, peers, and pedagogical literature to increase inclusion in team design for lab sessions and incorporated methods to enhance classroom culture and community.

IMPACT ON TEACHING EXCELLENCE

This option provides you with an opportunity to demonstrate your experience’s external or community impact via peer mentorship, scholarship, community engagement, or student influence. It should be based on a single experience which produced identifiable impact.

Example: instructor leads an undergraduate media program and mentors students in multiple levels of classroom instruction, television network groups, extracurricular activities on campus, and networking with program alums. Instructor also is actively involved in helping students recruit for full-time jobs in media. Identifiable impact is thirty program alums with jobs in the top twenty media markets in the U.S. and ten of those alums regularly providing outreach and mentorship to current students.

EVIDENCE / ASSURANCE OF LEARNING

This option provides you with an opportunity to demonstrate assurance or evidence of learning in your teaching and learning experience. It should be a single experience which produced evidence and / or assurance of identifiable student learning.

Example: instructor was asked to pilot an assurance of learning initiative using Canvas Outcomes for an intermediate level entrepreneurship course. Instructor linked course and school learning outcomes with course assessments during one semester and successfully produced a deliverable to the assurance of learning team for program accreditation. Instructor deliverable was used as an example for a program-wide assurance of learning plan to be implemented the following year.

 

Further Details

Your narrative should describe and reflect upon a single teaching-related experience rather than a full course redesign or long-term strategic project. The episode does not need to be based exclusively on classroom teaching. The components of your narrative should include:

Brief description of the teaching and learning situation

In what context did the situation occur? Present content, level, timing, and other information that provides a context for understanding your experience. Clearly denote how the “path” you chose is the best fit for your situation.

Narrative of teaching and learning approach

Describe the experience, your rationale for the experience, and how you executed it. Discuss the people or organizations involved. Who was your audience? Was this audience your intended audience? Add connections to teaching philosophy and if appropriate, peer reviews and student feedback. Tell readers a story of your approach!

Reflection on effectiveness or impact of teaching and learning situation

How effective was your experience? To what extent did it “work”? What was the impact of your teaching and learning experience on yourself and others? Reflect on this from the student, peer, and / or institutional (i.e., “learner”) impact perspective and from your own personal growth perspective. (Note: If the experience did not go as planned, it is just as valuable as it “working”! Reflect on that too.) Include evidence from your engagement with student feedback and peer feedback, as well as any other source you think is appropriate. The committee prefers direct evidence, but if you choose to rely on indirect evidence as your primary source, please provide strong reasoning for your decision.

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