Resources for New Faculty

The Office of Teaching and Learning partners with faculty and instructors at all levels of experience through teaching practice and pedagogy, course and curricular design, evaluation and assessment, educational research and inquiry, and innovation and awards. As a new faculty member, you have access to all resources and programming we offer. If you would like more information on the programs and resources available through the Office of Teaching and Learning, reach out to us at otl@uoguelph.ca or return to the programs and certificates page to read the descriptions of our programs or certificates. We look forward to collaborating with you to enhance your teaching practices, align learning and assessments, and design meaningful and inclusive courses and programs.

Additional Teaching and Learning Resources

In addition to the programs and certificates, we recommend the additional resources for more information about effective teaching.

OTL Resources

For resources on how to foster a learner-centred environment in your course visit the Teaching and Learning Strategies page.

For resources on establishing and sustaining Instructional Inclusivity in teaching and learning environments visit the Inclusive Teaching page.

If you are interested in incorporating new strategies in your teaching practice visit the SoTL Snapshots page, which provides faculty and instructors with evidence-based teaching strategies that can be used in the classroom.

If you would like to connect with other faculty and instructors who are interested in teaching and learning consider joining the OTL Book Club.

For resources on remote teaching, particularly those focused on pedagogy, visit our teaching in a remote environment page.

Books

How Learning Works: Seven Research-Based Principles for Smart Teaching. (Ambrose, S. A., Bridges, M. W., DiPietro, M., Lovett, M. C., Norman, M. K. & Mayer, R. E., 2010). Jossey-Bass. This book draws upon new research in psychology, education, and cognitive science. The authors have demystified a complex topic into clear explanations of seven powerful learning principles. Download a digital copy of the book.

Make it Stick: The Science of Successful Learning. (Brown, P. C., Roediger, H. L. & McDaniel, M. A., 2014). Belknap Press. Drawing on recent discoveries in cognitive psychology and other disciplines, the authors of Make It Stick offer techniques for becoming more productive learners, and cautions against study habits and practice routines that turn out to be counterproductive.

McKeachie’s Teaching Tips. (McKeachie, W. & Svinicki, M. 2013). Wadsworth Publishing. This teaching handbook provides helpful strategies for dealing with both the everyday challenges of university teaching and those that arise in efforts to maximize learning for every student. The suggested strategies are supported by research and adaptable to specific classroom situations.

Small Teaching: Everyday Lessons from the Science of Learning. (Lang, J. M., 2016). Jossey-Bass. In this book, Lang offers concrete suggestions for improving your teaching practice that are grounded in learning science. The suggestions can all be implemented in courses with minimal changes to the course structure.

The Spark of Learning: Energizing the College Classroom with the Science of Emotion (Cavanagh, S., 2016). West Virginia University Press. Cavanagh argues that if you as an educator want to capture your students' attention, harness their working memory, bolster their long-term retention, and enhance their motivation, you should consider the emotional impact of your teaching style and course design. To make this argument, she brings to bear a wide range of evidence from the study of education, psychology, and neuroscience, and she provides practical examples of successful classroom activities from a variety of disciplines in secondary and higher education.

Podcasts, Websites, and Webinars

Lecture Breakers blog and podcast 
The Lecture Breakers blog and podcast are produced by Dr. Barbi Honeycutt. They offer strategies for breaking up your lecture by incorporating active learning strategies to improve student engagement. The topics include student engagement in large classes, connecting with students online, building rapport, and teaching difficult topics.

The Learning Scientist
They focus on making scientific research on learning more accessible to students, teachers, and other educators. By implementing the science of learning, they aim to motivate students to study; increase the use of effective study and teaching strategies that are backed by research; and decrease negative views of testing.

Keep Teaching
This website was created by the Society of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education (STLHE) in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The site is a collection of resources (including guides and webinars) on moving to remote teaching.

Effective Instructional Strategies
CMU's Eberly Center for Teaching Excellence and Educational Innovation maintains a website with a wealth of useful materials. This website provides research-based suggestions for increasing the effectiveness of various instructional strategies (e.g., lecture, discussion, group projects).

Teaching in Higher Ed podcast and blog
The podcast and blog provide resources being more effective at facilitating learning. They focus on topics such as excellence in teaching, instructional design, open education, diversity and inclusion, productivity, creativity in teaching, educational technology, and blended learning.

Teach Better blog and podcast
The blog contains the author’s thoughts on teaching and the education system in general, including. I like to try new things in the classroom, and much of the content here reports on the success or failure of trying different and new techniques in the classroom. The podcast is a monthly series of conversations with teachers about teaching. The hosts talk mostly with faculty in higher education, but will occasionally talk with other teachers too. The goal of this podcast is to share ideas and build community among folks who care about teaching.

Humanizing Teaching Webinar
Dr. Michelle Pankansky-Brock is an Educational Developer and instructor in California. Her recent work focuses on humanizing online education. A recent webinar called The Anatomy of Learning: Sending Cues of Trust and Belonging from the First Click included helpful suggestions and resources including a Learning Pact. Access the webinar on the Online Network of Education’s website (scroll down and click on View Michelle’s slides).