Teaching With Intention Program

About the Program 

The Teaching with Intention Program invites educators to teach with greater intention through examining the purpose, assumptions, and impact of their practice through five interconnected lenses. The program uses structured reflection as a tool for more intentional, evidence- and equity-informed teaching and to develop educators as critically reflective practitioners. It moves beyond introductory teaching practice foundations, which are offered in other OTL programs (e.g., Instructional Skills Workshop, Red Maple Program for Emerging Educators, University Teaching: Theory and Practice), to support more sustained, evidence-informed professional growth. This program is also grounded in commitments to Indigenization, equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility (IEDIA), which are woven across the program. The Teaching with Intention Program also supports faculty in connecting their disciplinary research to their teaching practice, recognizing that scholarly identity and teaching identity are not separate but mutually reinforcing.  

Who is it for? 

The Teaching with Intention Program is designed for educators at all career stages. Regardless of your career stage, those who participate will find it a meaningful opportunity to reflect on and refresh their teaching practice in a structured space for professional growth.  

Open to University of Guelph, University of Guelph-Humber, and Ridgetown Campus: 

  • Faculty and College Professors (any career stage and appointment type) 

  • Sessional instructors, contract instructors, and college lecturers 

  • Post-doctoral fellows with teaching responsibilities 

  • Staff with instructional roles 

How the Program Works 

This program is grounded in Stephen Brookfield’s framework of critical reflection, a widely cited model in higher education, that holds that the most effective educators are those who regularly examine the assumptions underlying their practice and do so from multiple, distinct perspectives. Brookfield (2017) describes this critical reflection process as viewing one’s teaching through four interconnected lenses:  

  • Self/Autobiography: one’s own experience, values, and identity as a learner and teacher;  

  • Students: the perspectives, experiences and voices of the students you teach;  

  • Peers/Colleagues: the insights of colleagues and peers; and  

  • Scholarly Literature/Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL): evidence and ideas from research on teaching and learning 

We extend that model with a fifth lens — the Learning Environment. This lens addresses the ways in which physical, digital, and pedagogical contexts shape your teaching. 

In this program, examination through the five lenses is oriented toward a practical goal: teaching with greater intention. Intentional teaching means making purposeful choices about what, how, and why we teach. These choices should be informed by evidence, by our students’ experiences, and by an honest consideration of our own assumptions. This examination is practiced through reflection with attention to power, positionality, systemic inequities, and colonial structures. Each lens is examined not only for what it reveals about teaching assumptions, but also for who benefits and who is excluded by those assumptions. This framing asks participants to examine structural inequities, identity-based power dynamics, and the ongoing impacts of colonialism in higher education as part of their reflective practice. 

 

Teaching with Intention Program Requirements 

  • Attend the required Orientation & Information session, which includes guidance on navigating the program, selecting components and understanding pathways 

  • Complete the required core workshop: Critical Reflection as Professional Practice. It is recommended that you complete this workshop early during the program to have a framework for reflection throughout the program. 

  • Complete ONE program option from each of the five lens categories 

  • At least one of the five program options selected must be explicitly IEDIA-focused (marked with * in the program options table which can be found here or in the CourseLink site) 

  • Complete assessment requirements (see CourseLink site or FAQs) 

 

Program options are flexible, varied, and include workshops, communities of practice, book clubs, the Instructional Skills Workshop (ISW), the Course Design Institute, the Inquire Program, and other structured OTL offerings. Options vary each term, and there is no time limit for completion. Depth of reflection matters more than speed of completion. The program is designed for reflection to accumulate over time.  

Curious but not sure? 

  • Self-enroll in the CourseLink site to browse program details. You can request to be unenrolled, if you wish. Self-enrollment is required to receive communications about the program and assessment submission. 

Self-Enrollment Guide: 

  • Step 2: Select "Self-Registration" from the navigation bar located at the top of your CourseLink home page. 

  • Step 3: From the list of self-registration offerings, scroll to the Teaching with Intention Program and click on its name. Complete the registration steps as prompted. After self-registering, you will be able to access the program from your CourseLink homepage. 

Program Learning Outcomes 

Upon completing the Teaching with Intention Program, participants will be able to:  

  1. Identify and interrogate assumptions embedded in their teaching decisions, including assumptions about learning, students, authority, power, and equity, by examining their practice through all five reflection lenses  

  1. Critically examine how power, positionality, and systemic inequities shape their teaching and their students' experiences, and take informed action to address these in their own context  

  1. Produce a reflective account of their teaching development that demonstrates growth in one or more areas of practice and integrates evidence from multiple perspectives 

  1. Articulate their teaching values and how they align with their teaching practice  

  1. Engage productively with feedback from students and peers as evidence for refining practice  

  1. Use scholarly and disciplinary literature to contextualize and inform their teaching decisions  

  1. Articulate how the learning environment (physical, digital, or pedagogical context) shapes their teaching assumptions and choices  

Recognition 

  • Certificate of Completion issued by the Office of Teaching and Learning 

  • Letter to the participants’ Dean and ADA (where applicable) acknowledging completion of the program 

  • Participation in and reflections on your learning during the program can be included in documentation for teaching dossiers, promotion files, and award applications 

Ready to Join? 

FAQs 

How long does it take to complete the program? 

There is no time limit to complete this program. Depth of reflection matters more than speed of completion. The program is designed for reflection to accumulate over time. Minimum time to completion is one year. 

Can the program be completed fully online? 

Current offerings are delivered in a mix of in-person, online, and hybrid formats. A future goal of the program design is to ensure that at least one option in each lens is available online (synchronous or asynchronous), enabling certificate of completion for participants who cannot attend in person. 

How is this program different from the Instructional Skills Workshop? 

The Teaching with Intention Program is distinct from the Instructional Skills Workshop (ISW). The ISW is a focused, intensive peer-teaching experience designed to strengthen fundamental instructional skills. The Teaching with Intention Program by contrast, is a sustained, multi-lens certificate program that supports deeper critical reflection across the full range of teaching practice. Faculty who have completed the ISW may count it toward the Peers/Colleagues lens of the Teaching with Intention Program, and the ISW can serve as an excellent entry point. 

What kinds of program options are available? 

Program options include OTL workshops, Communities of Practice, Book Clubs, the Instructional Skills Workshop, the Course Design Institute, the Inquire Program, and other structured learning experiences. Options vary each term. The current list of program options and offering dates is available on the CourseLink site once you self-enroll. 

What are the required assessments for the program? 

  • Critical, equity-informed written/audio/video reflections that document and evidence engagement with each of the five program lenses and how they have shaped intentional practice. Reflections are not graded.  

  • A gathering with others in progress or completing the program in a reflection circle.  

What is the program grounded in?  

The program is grounded in evidence on faculty professional development, multi-perspective reflection, and equity-informed teaching practice. Full references and design principles are available on the CourseLink site once you self-enroll. 

Can I count the prior completion of Program Options towards my Teaching with Intention program requirements? 

  • You can count one previously completed, time-intensive program option (e.g., Course Design Institute, Inquire Program, Instructional Skills Workshop, Community of Practice) towards the certificate of completion. You must complete the required reflection to have the program option count, and it must fit into one of the five program lenses. If you wish to have previously completed, time-intensive program option count, please contact Christie Stewart (cstew@uoguelph.ca) with the name of what you have completed, when you completed it, and which lens you would like it counted towards. Workshops and webinars do not count as time intensive. 

  • Special consideration will be given in Fall 2026 for workshops or training delivered in August or early Sept. 2026 that occur before the required Teaching with Intention Orientation and Information session. These program options can be counted toward program completion. 

Can I count a Program Option in two lens categories? 

  • No, you are required to complete and reflect on at least one program option from each of the five separate program lens categories to be eligible for a certificate of completion. 

Frequency of Offerings 

  • Frequency of program options will vary across the year. New program options will be added prior to each term and updated here and on the CourseLink site. 

Faculty/Instructor Programming