STEP-UP Introduction to Pedagogy Course (4 meetings)

Course Description:

The STEP-UP course is an introduction to science education for UCSF postdoctoral scholars and graduate students who are planning on teaching at our partner institutions, serving as teaching assistants at UCSF, or applying to faculty positions in the future. It is a cornerstone of OCPD's Science Teaching Effectiveness Program for Upcoming Professors (STEP-UP) Series, which includes teaching residencies at local institutions. Participants in the course will be given priority for guest lecturing positions at City College of San Francisco (CCSF) through OCPD, and will be invited to join the STEP-UP community for occasional discussions and practice sessions throughout the year.

Dates and Times:

Day 1: Thursday, April 19: 12:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Day 2: Friday April 20: 12:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Day 3: Wednesday, April 25: 9:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.

Day 4: Friday, April 27: 9:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.

*All meetings will take place at Mission Bay

Course Learning Outcomes:

By the end of the course, participants should be able to:

• Apply teaching strategies grounded in education research to serve different types of learners at the undergraduate or graduate level,
• Apply the scientific method to teaching within their own discipline,
• Develop exam questions and lesson plans to meet their learning goals,
• Develop the vocabulary they need to discuss their teaching philosophy with faculty with expertise in scientific teaching,
• Integrate a community of trainees interested in becoming better instructors.

Topics Covered:

• Teaching strategies: lectures, clickers, rubrics with peer-review, think-pair-share, concept maps, jigsaw, group work, "flipping" the classroom, educational technology and media.
• Classroom management for diverse types of learners: Using a constructivist and student-centered approach to teaching. Stereotype threat, creating an inclusive classroom culture, the role of the instructor in a student-centered classroom and student metacognition.
• Curriculum and assessment design: Backward design, Kern-6 step frameworks, Bloom's taxonomy, designing measurable learning outcomes, developing assessments aligned with your learning outcomes.

What STEP-UP participants had to say about the course:

“Before this course, I had no idea how to teach and was petrified just at the idea that I may have to teach. Now, I have the tools I need and a good starting point if I need to teach. I even think I would like to do it.”

”Before this course, the teaching experience was unclear, mysterious. Now, I think it is doable as long as you have the resource and fundamentals on design and teaching strategies.”

“Before this course, I didn’t have a framework to set-up my lessons and curriculum. I now have a framework to design a wonderful curriculum”

Contact: Laurence Clement, Program Director of Academic Career Development, UCSF Office of Career and Professional Development, Laurence.Clement@ucsf.edu