Peer Assisted Reflections on Student Learning

Peer-Assisted Reflections on Student Learning or “PAROSL” is a research-based, UCLA program that supports faculty who are interested in (1) incorporating more student-centered, inclusive practices into their teaching and (2) building their professional teaching portfolios.

PAROSL is different from many peer observation processes in that it is non-evaluative. It is designed to foster collaboration, reflection, and innovation, not to judge an instructor’s practice. Participants receive training in how to conduct a non-evaluative observation and how to support a colleague in authentic reflection about student learning.

What are faculty saying about the benefits of participating in PAROSL?

“Hearing what [my partner] observed about my pedagogical practices and how it influenced student learning has made me a more aware educator. While participating in PAROSL I learned a great deal from observing [my partner’s] course, but I also learned how to observe my own teaching practice.” – Fall 2022 Participant

Visit the testimonials tab at the top of this page for more reflections from faculty and sample teaching innovations supported by PAROSL.

What are other benefits of participating?

While PAROSL is non-evaluative by design, the program is aligned with recognized components of UCLA’s appointment and promotion processes: evidence of “development of new and effective techniques of instruction, including techniques that meet the needs of students from groups that are underrepresented in the field of instruction” (see APM 210). Upon completion of the program, participants are also eligible to apply for up to $1,000 in funding to support further teaching-related professional development (see our FAQ for more details).

Ready to get involved?

PAROSL cohorts typically operate in fall and spring quarters each year. To inquire about participating or to ask questions about the program, contact PAROSL Program Director Dr. Beth Goodhue and Program Manager Michelle Chen by emailing parosl@teaching.ucla.edu.

PAROSL was developed by a collaborative working group at UCLA led by Dr. Glory Tobiason (Clinical Faculty in Education at UCLA and a researcher at CRESST). Financial support over the course of the project has been generously provided by former EVCP Scott Waugh, former Dean and Vice Provost of Undergraduate Education Pat Turner (in support of UCLA’s ongoing accreditation by WASC Senior College and University Commission), and by UCLA’s EPIC program (with funding from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation under grant number 41500604).

Education

Innovation: Discussion Guides to Encourage more Engaged Conversation

I wish we could have these kinds of consultations available throughout the school year and as needed. The chance to talk with colleagues about ideas for a planned lesson and what tasks and discussion questions/probes might be helpful for meeting learning objectives was immensely helpful.

Alison BaileyEducation

Engineering

Innovation: Demystifying Disciplinary Jargon and Shortening Direct Instruction to Allow Time for Active Learning

As an innovation, I found that use of every-day life related examples and powerpoint slides helped better serve our students. This is particularly evident from student engagement during in class discussions. Students started asking more questions, including students from underrepresented backgrounds and minorities. I will continue using this innovation in future practices.

Artur DavoyanMechanical & Aerospace Engineering

Innovation: Multiple Engagement Modalities to Disrupt Exclusionary Participation Norms

What’s hard about implementing strategies around active learning and inclusive learning is that it sounds really great, but it becomes an unrealistic idea. It’s actually much better to—each quarter—focus on a couple small things you can do to change, as opposed to saying, “I’ll just become this amazing teacher!” but not really having a clear pathway. I think the biggest benefit of PAROSL was having some accountability in terms of making those changes happen.

Carissa EislerChemical Engineering

Innovation: Demystifying Disciplinary Jargon and Shortening Direct Instruction to Allow Time for Active Learning

Many programs help instructors become aware of effective teaching methods. But these methods are hardly ever implemented and remain as wishful thinking, as there is no follow up and training during implementation. In contrast, PAROSL gives the instructor a structure to implement a new method in class, and modify it based on feedback from students and the instructor colleague. I think that’s the biggest difference compared to other programs.

Sanjay MohantyCivil and Environmental Engineering

Innovation: Supporting Peer-Peer Learning and Collaboration in Asynchronous Classes Through Weekly Project Meetings

Participating in PAROSL—implementing teaching innovations in my course and participating in peer review—made me realize that there are minor changes that we can make as instructors that go a long way in enhancing student learning. Additionally, I think having a peer reviewer and the structure of PAROSL pushed me to think about my teaching practices more than I would have in a regular quarter. This thought process (and the changes that I implemented) did not require excessive effort and can be pursued in every quarter.

Sam SrivastavaChemical Engineering

Innovation: Learning Activity: “What’s the Wrong Answer… And Why?”

The best part was having somebody come to my class and give me feedback (other than students). Somebody with 100% good intentions—that’s priceless, it’s really priceless.

Meliha Bulu-TachirogluChemical and Biomolecular Engineering

Humanities

Innovation: Restructuring Course Website to Ensure Equitable Access and Learning Opportunities

Looking at where I started six weeks ago, now, more than ever, I think through my lesson plans. I think of things like inclusivity. I think of student learning objectives. I think about how students’ learning is made visible. So, in that sense, I feel that my teaching and my thinking have shifted. I am more conscious of what I’m doing. It’s not like previously, where I just used to teach and make an assumption that my students have learned what I wanted them to learn. Now, I think of ways to measure that learning and actually think through, has true learning actually taken place?

Sephrine AchesahLinguistics

Innovation: Asynchronous Comprehension Check to Clarify Muddiest Points Before In-Class Activities

It was formative to see how my colleague approaches challenges very similar to mine and to learn from their expertise and creativity–and rewarding to dedicate time to reflect on my existing materials, practices and ways of thinking about teaching. Or actually, LEARNING. [PAROSL’s] entire perspective takes the pressure off me as a person who constantly performs and refocuses it on students as active participants in the learning process.

Daria BahtinaLinguistics

Innovation: Think-Pair-Share

For me, the PAROSL experience changed the way I approach discussion in my courses. I fully admit that before my participation in PAROSL, I included discussion in classes because 1) it’s a “good thing” to do, and 2) it encourages (at least some) students to think creatively. But, while working with my colleague Bryant Kirkland and Glory Tobiason of PAROSL, I became a true discussion convert! I used a think-pair-share technique to get students talking to themselves, their neighbors, and the class about a difficult subject. This simple pedagogical innovation engaged students, whether they spoke up or not, and led to a deeper discussion that challenged me as well. It also helped me realize that “discussion” can happen whether or not I hear everyone’s thoughts.

Sarah BeckmannClassics

Innovation: Structured Active Learning through “Clarity Grids”

Hearing what [my partner] observed about my pedagogical practices and how it influenced student learning has made me a more aware educator. While participating in PAROSL I learned a great deal from observing [my partner’s] course, but I also learned how to observe my own teaching practice. I want to continue observing my own pedagogical methods using what I learned from PAROSL. By observing and being observed, I found that areas of my teaching practice that I had previously seen as weaknesses (a habit of asking ‘does that make sense?’ every few minutes) could also be strengths (continual evaluation of student learning).

Elise BellLinguistics

Innovation: Using Image to Augment Discussions about Literary Texts

Being observed by peer who is not necessarily judging you—not saying, “oh, you teach well” or “oh, you’re wrong.” It’s just somebody being there, along for the ride, with a different view and another pair of eyes about what’s going on in the classroom. For me that’s the benefit.

Patricia Arroyo CalderónSpanish and Portuguese

Innovation“Question Captains” to Foster More Student-Student Cross Talk and Student Ownership of Learning

What was valuable was being able to gather with people who get it—who have been in this type of classroom situation—while I was trying to find ways to engage students. I liked being able to meet with my partner and facilitator and having access to their wealth of knowledge and experience.

Shane CrosbyWriting Programs

Innovation: Extending In-Class Time for Student-Centered Learning by Creating an Online Collaboration Space

Since starting PAROSL, I have found myself explicitly planning learning outcomes for each class and considering much more carefully why I’m doing the activities I am—asking myself how they connect to intended learning and how I will know if students are achieving learning outcomes. Being able to work with a thoughtful, supportive partner in Laurel Westrup has also contributed to my teaching growth throughout this experience. This more supportive form of observation made me less anxious and more trusting. I was eager to get her feedback. Having her observe and then share with me the evidence she saw regarding the class’s impact on student learning and then to extensively discuss ways to further deepen that impact has been transformative for me.

Peggy DavisWriting Programs

Innovation: Protocol and Rubric for Peer Editing and Feedback

What I really enjoyed about PAROSL was all those meetings with my partner and facilitator—the conversation. Being able to be frank and say, “I want to do X, but I have no idea how to go about it.” It’s really rare when you can put yourself in that position, especially for us, because we’re professors. We rarely say, “I don’t know, can you help?” I think that was great.

Laurence Denié-HigneyEuropean Languages and Transcultural Studies

Innovation: Collaborative Screenwriting Project, Including Staging and Performance

PAROSL really, really got me thinking, and it also got me acting. I had been thinking about a few innovations that I wanted to do in that class, but I had not taken the time to implement them. PAROSL actually made me do, not only one innovation, but a few more just because I was in the mode of thinking about it. I think that’s a huge benefit.

Elsa DuvalEuropean Languages and Transcultural Studies

Innovation: Student-Generated Assessment Questions

The PAROSL program was a great opportunity to continue developing my teaching skills at a unique stage in my career. I learned a lot through implementing my teaching innovation and during the planning and debriefing meetings with my partner and facilitator. Before PAROSL, I had not had the chance to reflect in-depth on the different ways to make student learning visible. I am confident that the skills I learned in PAROSL will help me to improve my teaching praxis in future courses.

Bárbara GalindoSpanish and Portuguese

Innovation: Scaffolding Small-Group Active Learning with Pre-Lesson Assignments

Overall, this process of homing in on one aspect of a lesson and discussing it with a peer has really helped me see a realistic way forward in this world of Zoom teaching that makes me feel like a complete beginner as an educator. Last spring and over the summer, centers at UCLA provided ample professional development from which I gained many great ideas that I forgot before I could implement them. There was so much information about how to teach remotely that I started to feel like I was drinking from a firehose. Meeting with my peer regularly helped me identify and execute small, manageable changes that focused on student learning. Observing her class and seeing her strengths also inspired me and gave me more examples of inclusive, active learning.

Liz GalvinWriting Programs

Innovation: Productively Interrupting Lecture

What PAROSL helped to inspire was the idea that traditional lectures can be productively interrupted and made more interactive. In participating in the program I valued the non-judgmental observation, learning from my PAROSL partner about her teaching (and about my own as seen through her eyes), and the opportunity to enact pedagogic changes through extended conversation with a trusted colleague.

Bryant KirklandClassics

InnovationUsing Students’ Discussion Board Posts to Design Subsequent In-Class Activities

It’s shocking to me to realize that the way I was taught to teach (and the way lot of people I see teach), there’s no goal: you just give people information, or you make it interesting. I think, all in all, I’m learning that goals—in anything one does—clarify what you’re doing. If students see transparently what the goals are, they really do feel better. If you tell them why you’re doing something and what the goal is, they seem to really grab onto it and want to do it.

Tamara LevitzComparative Literature

InnovationExit Tickets to Assess Student Comprehension

I appreciate the importance PAROSL places on reflection, reiteration, and reframing for learning outcomes. The PAROSL experience affirmed the work I was already doing that was student-centered, but gave me more specific language, context, and exercises to further refine this pedagogy into my teaching work.

Andrew MartinezWriting Programs

Innovation: Collaborative Poster Project, Including Design and Presentation

What was new for me in PAROSL was paying more attention to the intended learning. This was a game changer. In general, I think more in terms of content: “the students have to acquire this content and acquire these skills.” But intended learning is different: “pay more attention to what’s happening for the STUDENTS, not what YOU are doing.”

Jorge MarturanoSpanish and Portuguese

Innovation: Increasing Equitable Access with Model Assignments

I have learned a lot about my own teaching practice. It is very difficult to see your own work and practice through fresh eyes. Having taught many of the major assignments in the past, being able to hear how they are interpreted by someone else (especially in a different teaching context) has been super helpful. Being able to observe my colleague’s course gave me insight into the ways in which teaching (and learning) can look from the other side. There were several strategies that I was able to see that my colleague was utilizing in her course that I would really like to implement in my own moving forward. Overall, I think that PAROSL was a very useful and informative process, particularly given the uniqueness of this quarter and the circumstances surrounding it.

Ashley NewbyWriting Programs

Innovation: Making Student Learning Visible through Exit Tickets

A small pedagogical innovation can make a big difference in student learning. This is the principle I would invoke to sum up what I learned through my participation in PAROSL. I had the students fill out an exit ticket that asked them to state their topic, working thesis statement, and rhetorical purpose for the upcoming argumentative essay assignment. These exit tickets allowed me to see who needed extra support at this stage of the writing process in developing a debatable position on their issue with significant stakes.

Gabriel PageWriting Programs

InnovationFormative Assessment and Active Learning Through Real-Time Quizzes and Polls

The PAROSL program was extremely helpful for me, because it provided me with the opportunities to work with my peer to observe each other’s classes and to provide and receive feedback on teaching methods. Through the discussions and class observations with my peer, I could consider many different methods to help my students learn the lessons through their participation in class activities. The program motivated me to continue my exploration of the methods for active and inclusive teaching in the future.

Hyun Suk Park Asian Languages and Cultures

InnovationMetacognitive Interviews as Exit Tickets

The most beneficial thing for me during my PARSOL experience was to have my partner and facilitator observe me. Teaching can be an isolating profession and just having colleagues to talk to numerous times (i.e., in our planning and debrief meetings) was most valuable. Both my partner and I are new to UCLA, and we have different teaching backgrounds. PARSOL “forced” us to talk to each other, which was so valuable for me. I highly recommend PARSOL to anyone!

Jada PatchigondlaWriting Programs

Innovation: Student-Created Weekly Dictionary and Students Self-Monitor Participation Through Individual “Engagement Trackers”

It was a really good experience. I liked the way my PAROSL facilitator was always available for us, and I really liked working with my partner. We’re a good fit, we understand each other. And observing her class—I enjoyed that part a lot. We usually don’t have the opportunity, and it’s very useful to watch what other people do. I think it’s important that this type of program stays and goes beyond a particular moment in the life of the university. We have to reflect. We have to constantly reflect about our teaching. Because this is what we do. This is our purpose, as a university and an institution of education.

Jimena RodríguezSpanish and Portuguese

Innovation: Improving Peer-Peer Interaction with Collaborative Google Docs and Jamboard

PAROSL has given me an opportunity to reflect on my teaching practices, and I have been able to design assignments that are more focused on student outcomes / intended learning. When you’ve taught for many years, you tend to rely on what you know worked and are less likely to question your practices. This process has forced me to look at student outcomes much more closely. Also, this is really important: Innovation can take place in very small ways and make a HUGE difference. In PAROSL, I did very small tweaks that I loved and will continue to use, and the students responded so extremely well. They were engaged, excited. Some even stayed after class to say, “this was so much fun, we really loved it!”

Susannah Rodríguez DrissiWriting Programs

Innovation: “Significant Questions” to Orient Lessons and Gauge Prior Learning

The observations themselves—both observing and being observed—were probably my favorite part, just because there are so few opportunities like that. You can go to a workshop, but nothing like that is ever going to have quite the same impact as putting yourself out there and then finding strategies based on what you’re already doing. So, that very tailored experience is really something you could only get through this kind of program.

Stephanie Bosch Santana Comparative Literature

Innovation: Student-Created Visual Aids for Understanding a Text

One of the most useful things about PAROSL was the opportunity to have extensive conversations about teaching with a colleague over the course of a quarter, with concrete examples in front of us from observing each other’s classes.

Lydia SpielbergClassics

Innovation: Structured Use of Chat Feature for Active Learning and Screen Annotation to Support Non-Linguistic Participation

¡Cuatro ojos ven más que dos! Having a colleague with whom you can hold constructive and non-evaluative conversations based on class observations can help you see areas of improvement you might have missed. I would be thrilled to continue having conversations with colleagues on innovations and best pedagogical practices.

Carla Suhr Spanish and Portuguese

Innovation: Student-Generated Assessment Questions; Student-Student Metacognitive Interviews

One of the most illuminating parts of PAROSL was observing my partner. This was when I had my epiphany regarding what was truly student-centered instruction, and by extension, inclusive. Her innovation was great in this respect. Seeing her teach made the light bulb go off in my mind by offering a powerful model as to how to increase the student-centeredness of my own instruction.

Stephen C. TobinSpanish and Portuguese

InnovationDecentering the Instructor: Students Model and Lead “Cross-Elicitation” of Data

PAROSL is a bigger time commitment than a two-hour lecture or workshop, that’s true. But the thing is, it’s different if someone just hands you something and says, “here are things you should do. You should think about learning to blah, blah, blah.” But when you actually have to design a task and think closely about the process and bring it down to one class, one lesson—that was extremely helpful for me.

Harold Torrence Linguistics

Innovation: Learning Activity: Collaborative Annotation

The benefit of PAROSL is the input from your partner. And also, not having to worry about being evaluated—that was why I wanted to participate. It was for my own benefit because I wanted to improve the way I help students.

Hoang TruongItalian

Innovation: Pressing Students to Show Their [Cognitive] Work

Because student evaluations are only received once a course is completed, implementing course-specific changes to improve teaching can only occur the next time the course is taught, which may be as much as six months to a year later. At that point, it can be difficult to be in touch with what did and did not work the first time. Being able to reflect on my teaching practices and implement changes in real time over the course of a quarter was the real utility of PAROSL, and I perceived the quality of my teaching improving in practical, measurable degrees.

Adriana VasquezClassics

InnovationRefining ‘Think-Pair-Share’ to Cultivate Active Listening, Synthesis, and Community Building

The spirit to keep innovating is the most important part of PAROSL. “What is your innovation going to be?”—I want to ask myself that question every quarter. Maybe I’ll be teaching the same class, but what will differ are the students, their opportunities for development, and the class dynamics. PAROSL illuminated dynamic methods and reminders to manifest a commitment to the art of pedagogical innovation.

Raffi WartanianWriting Programs

InnovationScaffolding Students’ Move from Brainstorm to Viable Essay Topic with Guiding Questions, Visual Aids, and Google Docs

So much of what we do with teaching is performative, and in the classroom we’re often juggling a lot of things at once. With PAROSL, it was great to have an engaged observer in the classroom with me who knew what I was trying to do, and who thought-partnered with me based on that. Being observed in a completely non-evaluative manner, and working with a colleague that I trusted, made the whole process feel incredibly collegial and supportive while it was also quite fruitful.

Amber West Writing Programs

Innovation: Soliciting Student Feedback on Learning Activities

I learned a lot about my teaching practice and student learning from PAROSL, and I see these things as intertwined. In talking with Peggy at my final debrief, I came up with a new teaching motto for myself: “just ask.” I realized through this process that if I truly want to be a reflective teacher, I need to ask my students for feedback more regularly (not just at the midterm and end of the course), and that this feedback can be less formal. The several times that I’ve co-reflected with students this quarter while assignments are in progress have been immensely helpful.

Laurel WestrupWriting Programs

InnovationActive Learning Through Real-Time Polling in a Large GE Course

PAROSL opened my mind to new possible approaches to teaching a large lecture course. I realized that, previously, I put too much emphasis on conveying information to students. PAROSL taught me to break down each lesson into clear and concrete learning objectives and design diverse and engaging activities to make sure students can achieve these objectives.

Yinghui WuAsian Languages and Cultures

InnovationDecentering the Instructor: Multiple, Clear Roles for Student-Facilitated Discussion

I wanted to really change the way we did discussions. And it was just so helpful to have external support for that. Having that additional input from my partner and PAROSL facilitator was really useful. And having a forum where I could talk things out with someone else was useful too—having that scheduled time to reflect. It made the innovation work a lot better than I thought it would, and the students ended up being really happy with the new discussion method.

Kie Zuraw Linguistics

Innovation“Two Sides of the Room, Two Sides of the Issue” (Using Physical Movement to Support Learning)

Beyond my particular innovation, PAROSL has been enormously generous to and generative for me. I’ve enjoyed my conversations with my partner and my facilitator tremendously. The opportunity to both give and receive constructive feedback in a validating, affirming, and structured environment has re-energized me, and some of the enthusiasm for teaching that COVID-19 drained has been restored.

Anonymous ParticipantWriting Programs

Life Sciences

InnovationEnhancing Collaboration and Inclusion in Small-Group Work with a “Team Meeting” Structure

I spend time making these kinds of innovations and trying to get my students to be more active learners. But it’s often time “in my head,” not really time “doing.” PAROSL brought it into reality in a nice, concrete way, which I really liked.

Amanda FreiseMicrobiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics

Innovation: Using Mentimeter to Gauge Prior Learning and Alignment of Lesson to Learning Objectives

I’ve done summer programs, I’ve done year-long programs, I’ve done a lot of this type of work. And I really have to say that—by far—PAROSL has been the most beneficial, the most eye-opening, the most transformative. Genuinely. And I think part of that had to do with the concentrated nature of it. The fact that we turned this out as quickly as we did forced us to dive in a little deeper than if it had been spread out over multiple quarters. That was something that worked really well.

Bonnie GoffPsychology

Innovation: Using Flipgrid to Flip the Online Classroom and Exit Tickets to Gauge Current Learning

I learned a great deal from the design of PAROSL itself. Everything from the initial training materials to the forms and questions provided to guide reflection and dialogue offered a model for just the sort of teaching I aspire to. I can’t think of a learning experience I have had in my professional discipline—let alone in my limited pedagogical training—that so effectively modeled best practices in university-level academic instruction.

Elisheva GrossPsychology

InnovationExit Tickets for Formative Assessment and to Address Student Concerns

With a workshop, you don’t have the reinforcement of PAROSL, where you build a relationship with your colleague, do the observations, try something new, and then really have a chance to talk about it afterwards. That was really valuable.

Rachel PrunierEcology and Evolutionary Biology

Innovation: Small-Group Active Learning: Interactive Simulation / Role Play

The aha moment for me in PAROSL was how much efficiency can be gained by linking the intended learning with how learning’s made visible. The closer those two can be tied, the better. And when one exists without the other, it points out areas to cut. That realization became kind of a guide for how to lesson plan.

Timothy WilliamsonPsychology

Physical Sciences

InnovationConsistent Working-Groups to Foster Peer-Peer Support and Calling on “Rows and Columns” of Students

One thing I really liked about PAROSL was getting the opportunity to approach another instructor and conduct some observations with them in sanctioned space and in a way that wouldn’t seem weird.

Phil ChodrowMath

InnovationPurposeful Pause

Through this process, I have learned that I am capable of making small changes. Even when it is a lecture-based class, there are strategies to help facilitate students’ thinking and make this process visible for me. I used to assume that more questions meant more opportunities to think at a higher level. But given the time limitations and the fast-paced lectures, students often missed the learning opportunity I intended with the many questions I was asking. I learned that students, as learners, need time to process, especially if it is a higher order question. My students are very capable of answering the questions I pose in class if they are given the time to process and struggle through them. This is a definite shift in my thinking about student learning.

Nicolas ChristouStatistics

InnovationUsing Simulation Software to Help Students Visualize Qualitative Solutions

What I loved about PAROSL is that I could get feedback on my instruction from someone that I’m close to, without any pressure. It’s not like when your boss observes you. In this program, you can really relax and think about what you want to improve.

Koffi EnakoutsaMath

InnovationFlipping the Online Classroom

I always kind of hated doing peer reviews, because I would sit in the classroom and not quite know what to say or do or record. And I think what stands out [about PAROSL] is a much more enjoyable practice of listening to a colleague’s lecture and knowing better what to listen for.

Rob GouldStatistics

Innovation“Making and Checking Predictions”: A Collaborative, Active-Learning Workflow for Solving Difficult, Multistep Problems

I loved having a fellow faculty member that I could talk with. And I loved working with my partner. We came up with so many great ideas for each other that were way beyond anything I could have come up with on my own.

Abby KavnerEarth, Planetary, and Space Sciences

Innovation: Applying Learning Through Mini-Case Studies; Group Signs to Build Team Spirit

I truly, truly believe it can improve your teaching tremendously to participate in PAROSL. The structured thinking and planning for a lesson, the opportunity to watch someone else and see with an open mind… it sort of becomes part of your own mix and understanding of teaching. I’d like more professors to know about it, and I think they should try it.

Vivian LewStatistics

InnovationIn-Class Individual or Partner Work that Culminates in a Collective, Whole-Class Product

The most impactful thing about the experience was that I was trying to improve something within the constraints of my classroom. And something about talking to my partner and facilitator helped accelerate that innovation. The fact that there were two people observing gave so much more relevant information and different perspectives. There were things I didn’t even realize, things I may never have realized on my own, or may have taken me 10 years to realize.

Joshua SamaniPhysics and Astronomy

Innovation: Purposeful Pause and Think-Pair-Share

Before PAROSL, I was always concerned about how much material I covered in the lecture. I used to try very hard to cover as many topics as possible. During PAROSL, I learned what is more important is how much students have learned and remembered. Rather than covering every detail, I learned to focus on some key topics and to actively engage students. The PAROSL process helps me change my teaching style and hopefully improve my teaching, too.

Hongquan XuStatistics

Innovation: Bringing Active Learning with R Code into Lectures

The best part was being able to revamp my lectures because it’s been a few years. You know when you have something in your mind and you want to do it, but you don’t have the chance or you don’t get the time? PAROSL just forced me to really sit down and add some new ideas. And it gave me an opportunity to view someone else who’s doing the same thing. I had a chance to look at [my partner’s] examples and think, “oh, that’s a really good idea – I didn’t see it that way…okay, let me try that.” I was able to look at my own teaching from an outside perspective. That’s what I liked the most.

Linda ZanontianStatistics

Innovation: Student-Generated Assessment Questions; Opening Temperature Check

This just sounds like I’m just being self-congratulatory, but I think the innovation was a wonderful success. The goal was very simple: to stimulate conversation, welcome dialogue, get cross-communication between students. The student-based questions really got students interested because here was their chance to really use their creativity and also synthesize some of the previous activities.

David "Dave" ZesStatistics

School of Nursing

InnovationIntegration of Short Videos into Lecture; Polling Cards for Equitable Participation

Having a peer give feedback on my method of instruction helped me a great deal to identify areas for improvement from a different lens. Simple innovations can make a difference in students’ engagement. The bottom line is to provide an inclusive and effective method of instruction that assesses if learning has taken place. PAROSL has helped me do that for my class.

Emma CuencaSchool of Nursing

InnovationIntegration of Case Studies into Lecture; Polling Cards for Equitable Participation

This PAROSL teaching innovation was a real wake-up call for me. It showed that we always should look for new ideas which can affect positively students’ learning and teaching outcomes. Also, many times we are getting comfortable with our teaching approach, and we do not want to try new ideas. I will continue this pathway which was opened up by this PAROSL experience.

John LazarSchool of Nursing

InnovationIdentifying and Analyzing Misinformation and Problematic Thinking about COVID-19

One major thing I learned from participating in PAROSL was the importance of shifting my focus from “content” – what I think I must get across in any given lesson (and nursing is very content heavy) to “intended student learning” – a concept which shifts the focus entirely to the student and their needs within each learning opportunity. This is HUGE for me, and I am very excited about the possibilities that this brings for improving my teaching in the future.

Elizabeth ThomasSchool of Nursing

InnovationBringing Case Studies to Life with In-Person Classroom Visitors

PAROSL will stay with me for the rest of my life. It reinforced for me that I can always learn something… It just unleashed a paradigm shift to a different focus: it’s not really about teaching, it’s about the learning process.

Glenda TottenSchool of Nursing

Social Sciences

InnovationStudent-Generated Assessment Questions; Using Students’ Discussion Board Posts to Design Subsequent In-Class Activities

The challenge of my innovation is closely linked to its reward: while it can be risky to cede some control of class composition to students, this process also invites their energy and engagement. PAROSL was fun—in observation, conversation, interaction, and implementation of innovation—and it feels now like my expectations for what I can do with online teaching are only beginning to expand.

Terri AndersonSociology

Theater, Film and Television

Innovation: Mind Mapping to Visualize a Course Roadmap for Students

By engaging in peer observation with my faculty colleague, I learned that it is tremendously helpful for the course, and ultimately the students, when I am able to clearly discuss a course’s learning goals with colleagues (even outside of my field) and then also be accountable to their feedback after observation. [As I began] to implement my innovation, I learned that taking time to reflect and solicit feedback during the term will improve relations between the instructor and students.

Veronica ParedesFilm, TV and Digital Media

Who can apply to PAROSL? Do I need to have a partner when I apply?

We welcome applications from pairs of UCLA faculty (including lecturers and adjunct and tenure-track faculty). Pairs should be from the same department or familiar enough with each other’s disciplines that they can discuss student learning in a meaningful way. Because you will be opening up your course to your colleague and engaging in authentic reflection about your practice, we suggest that you pair with a colleague you trust and communicate well with–and thus recommend that you apply together with a partner. However, if you do not have a partner in mind and still want to participate, please contact us by emailing parosl@teaching.ucla.edu. We will do our best to match solo applicants with a partner in a related field. If we are unable to match you when you first contact us, we will put you on our wait-list for future quarters. You might also want to consider reaching out to your department chair to see if they can help you identify a partner.

When does PAROSL operate?

CAT runs PAROSL cohorts in fall and spring each year. We accept pairs on a rolling basis until each cohort reaches capacity and then begin building a wait-list. Please apply as soon as possible in the weeks leading up to fall and spring quarters. If our current application window is closed, sign up for CAT’s faculty newsletter to be notified of upcoming opportunities.

How much time does it take to participate in PAROSL?

  • PAROSL training (conducted at the beginning of the quarter): 2.25 hours
  • 2 planning meetings, 2 debrief meetings (for your cycle): 2.5 hours
  • 2 planning meetings, 2 observations, 2 debrief meetings (for colleague’s cycle): 4.5 hours
  • Drafting the teaching innovation narrative: 3 hours (varies by individual)
  • Feedback to PAROSL researchers (at the end of the quarter): 0.75 hours
  • Total: 13 hours

What kind of instructors is PAROSL designed for?

PAROSL is designed to benefit all instructors—regardless of teaching experience, professional title, or time at UCLA—who are interested in collaboratively reflecting on and improving their practice. Departments may decide to use the process as an onboarding / acculturation activity for new faculty. Or they might decide to embed PAROSL in existing “teaching circles” or “pedagogical working groups,” or create such groups using PAROSL as a starting point.

What aspects of teaching does PAROSL focus on?

Conversations and reviews of lessons in PAROSL center on inclusive, student-centered teaching. In particular…

  • Articulating what students are supposed to learn
  • Figuring out where students are in their learning and responding to that information
  • Engaging students in active learning
  • Creating and maintaining learning environments that work for all students

How does PAROSL fit into the "peer evaluation of teaching" that is required in all merit / promotion cases?

PAROSL can be an important part of a teaching dossier for merit / promotion, but it is not designed to evaluate teaching directly. Instead, the program helps faculty develop “new and effective techniques of instruction, including techniques that meet the needs of students from groups that are underrepresented in the field of instruction” (from the Academic Personnel Manual, section 210-1, p. 5.). This development is documented in the teaching innovation narrative, written by the instructor themself.

What kinds of teaching modalities are a good fit for PAROSL?

PAROSL supports instructors who are teaching face to face or whose courses include synchronous online sessions (e.g., lessons via Zoom).

PAROSL involves introducing an “innovation” - what do these typically look like?

PAROSL innovations don’t usually involve huge changes to the structure of the course (i.e., you won’t need to revise the syllabus). Most innovations involve something you can try out during your lessons. For example, in-class activities, ways to engage students, systems to ensure equitable participation, different kinds of question prompts, ways of getting feedback from students, etc.

Do I need to know what my “innovation” will be before I start PAROSL?

Nope. Some participants have an idea of an innovation (or type of innovation) they want to try, and some don’t… either way is fine. The first time your partner observes you, their goal will be to understand how your class currently works. This gives them important context and helps them appreciate your teaching style. After this observation, you’ll work together to plan an innovation that makes sense for your class. You’ll implement the innovation, and your partner will be able to see it in action in the second observation.

What is the purpose of PAROSL’s Teaching Innovation Narrative?

The Teaching Innovation Narrative (TIN) is the culminating component of the PAROSL process. The purpose of this short narrative is to reflect on your experience with an eye toward how (a) implementing your innovation and (b) engaging in PAROSL changed your thinking and practice related to teaching. PAROSL is non-evaluative by design and TINs will not be shared with others, but we do ask that participants submit their TIN to CAT so that we can issue certificates of program completion and verify eligibility to apply for up to $1,000 to support teaching-related professional development.

PAROSL participants are eligible to apply for up to $1,000 to support teaching-related professional development. Tell me more!

Instructors who complete all program requirements for PAROSL are eligible to apply for up to $1,000 to support further teaching-related professional development. Please note that this is a new benefit for PAROSL participants and some details are still being finalized by the CAT team. We expect that allowable expenses will include the purchase of pedagogical books or teaching-related software licenses; registration and travel costs for teaching-related conferences, institutes, and other professional development programs; and other similar expenses. These funds cannot be used to supplement standard departmental supplies and expense budgets. Applications must be submitted within one year of completion of the program and instructors must be employed by UCLA in a teaching title at the time funds are transferred to the home department. Funds are limited and we particularly encourage applications from instructors with limited access to other funding to support professional development for teaching. Instructors who participate in more than one faculty program through CAT can apply for a maximum of $1,000 in teaching-related professional development funding per year. Contact us at parosl@teaching.ucla.edu with questions about the application process, timeline, and eligible expenses.

How can I learn more about the PAROSL program?

If you’d like to learn more, please email the PAROSL team at parosl@teaching.ucla.edu.