Faculty from across all colleges and departments will gather to learn from some of the country’s leading educators at University of Delaware’s 2017 Summer Faculty Institute, scheduled from May 30 through June 1 in Gore and Mitchell Halls.

This year’s organizing principle is “making meaning and creating deep learning through technology,” and each day’s program supports a special theme. Multiple concurrent sessions each afternoon will ensure that all instructors can create an institute program that meets their teaching needs. Registration may be completed online.

On May 30, James Lang, author of the book Small Teaching: Everyday Lessons from the Science of Learning and a popular Chronicle of Higher Education column of the same name, will start the institute with a highly engaging keynote full of practical tips to stimulate student learning. Lang’s approach encourages faculty to make small changes in their courses that will help students feel invested in their classroom experiences.

The afternoon sessions on day one complement Lang’s work by offering ideas on how to use technology tools to solicit feedback from students, how to create courses that get students involved in their communities and small ways to help international students engage in your classrooms. Many sessions feature faculty presenters or co-facilitators who will highlight the strategies and approaches that have been successful in their classrooms here at UD.

To introduce faculty to Lang’s work, CTAL will host a special meeting of the Faculty Commons Book Club on April 26 to read Small Teaching. Limited free copies are available.

On the second day, May 31, Valerie Barr, professor of computer science at Union College, will highlight the importance of computational thinking across disciplines. Barr has worked in interdisciplinary partnerships and has created a digital art program at Union College. She is committed to increasing the number of women who succeed in computer science. Her keynote will set the stage for afternoon sessions on diverse topics such as concrete ways to infuse computational thinking into a course, clicker technology (both for beginners and tricks for advanced users), creating good exam questions and applying the General Education rubrics to courses.

Two special initiatives also take place on May 31. The first is a 90-minute workshop on creating (or redesigning) a multicultural course. Second, a daylong field trip will run concurrently with the institute. Called “Discover Delaware” and sponsored by the Community Engagement Initiative, this trip will orient faculty to the opportunities in Delaware for civic engagement courses and will spark ideas for community engagement scholarship projects. (Special registration is required via SFI registration.)

June 1, the final day of the institute, is dedicated to the Digital Humanities, and it kicks off with a presentation by Mills Kelly, professor of history and art history at George Mason University. Kelly’s current project engages undergraduates in original research and the creation of a digital humanities project about the Appalachian Trail. His keynote session is followed by a day full of sessions dedicated to technologies and strategies that can increase student buy-in, such as StoryMaps, audio projects and hybrid courses.

This year’s SFI also features special reflection sessions for CIRTL program participants that will occur each day and culminate on the last day with a “Teaching As Research” project-design workshop. To help all participants navigate the SFI schedule, institute sessions will be tagged according to special interest categories. Tags include: Making Meaning Through Technology, Digital Humanities and UD’s Strategic Priorities. Using these tags, participants will be able to customize their schedules and create a tailored institute experience. Lunch and refreshments are provided each day.

Registration is now open, and more information is available online.