UCLA Chancellor Julio Frenk joined the TLC for a tour of classrooms in Kaplan Hall and the Physics and Astronomy Building that were upgraded through the General Assignment Classroom Modernization Pilot Project.
Summer is fast approaching, yet we know there is still much to do before the end of the term. The TLC has new resources and programming to carry you through the quarter. The Summer Institute on Evidence-Based Teaching closes applications on May 8. This program helps instructors explore strategies to improve student engagement and active learning. We’ll also host our latest Scholarly Teaching Seminar this June, which will examine adaptive equity-oriented pedagogy as a means to address barriers to student learning. Due to extensive interest, there is now a virtual option for the UCLA Teaching Symposium’s keynote address and faculty panel discussion. We hope you can join us on June 10.
Additionally, UCLA Student Experiences of Teaching (SET) surveys will open at the end of May. We encourage you to begin discussing the survey process with your students to highlight the importance of sharing their feedback about their experience. Our Timely Teaching Resource offers recommendations on how to communicate about the surveys to promote greater participation. Also, instructors can now offer participation points or extra credit for completing the survey. Our newest How-to Guide on SET walks through integrating Gradebook into UCLA’s feedback platform.
Making Your Course Accessible
The UC Office of the President’s policy on information technology and Federal requirements mandate that UCLA meet certain accessibility standards for all digital content. To follow these guidelines, UCLA instructors may need to adjust their course materials so that all students can access and understand them. Learn more about making your course accessible.
Summer Institute on Evidence-Based Teaching
July 13-16 | Applications due May 8
Co-facilitated by the TLC and the Center for Education Innovation and Learning in the Sciences (CEILS), this four-day learning opportunity guides instructors through exploring effective teaching strategies to improve student engagement and active learning. Learn more.
News
New Virtual Option for UCLA Teaching Symposium on AI
Due to extensive interest, a virtual option is now available for the Symposium’s keynote address and faculty panel discussion. The afternoon sessions will only be available to in-person attendees. Register for the virtual option.
HET Staff and TLC Executive Director Highlight Aligning Evaluation with Academic Values
Valeria Dominguez, Adrienne Lavine, and Kem Saichaie authored an article reflecting on the Holistic Evaluation of Teaching Initiative’s work to reform the evaluation process across departments at that was published in HigherEdJobs.
Senior Survey Insights from the Class of 2025
The annual survey was administered to graduating seniors across six of UCLA’s undergraduate degree-granting schools and provides a snapshot of the current undergraduate experience, including their uses of AI. Learn more.
New Teaching Resources
Developing a GenAI Syllabus Policy
Our new teaching resource aims to support you in developing an informed position, grounded in research and critical reflection about the implications of using Generative AI tools. Find step-by-step guidance for crafting a policy suited to your course context that supports student learning.
Giving Feedback
The newest teaching guide provides strategies for effectively delivering formative and summative feedback in a variety of modalities and highlights how these strategies can be used purposefully to enhance student learning.
Ways to Cite GenAI
If you have already begun to outline acceptable student uses of GenAI that advance learning goals, this Timely Teaching Resource describes how to teach students the appropriate ways to cite Generative AI tools based on your discipline’s norms.
Mindful Play for Learning & Wellbeing
Instructors can use active and reflective learning experiences that employ embodied mechanics to promote creativity and exploration. Find guidance and starter activities to incorporate into your courses.
SET Participation Points Integration for Gradebook
Instructors may offer participation points or extra credit for students completing the Student Experiences of Teaching (SET) surveys. Learn how points can be automatically added through MyUCLA Gradebook.
Events
10 + 10 Pop-up Series
Educational designers and developers offer a weekly series of brief learning sessions on teaching topics. Sessions will be held at 10 a.m. each Tuesday during the academic quarter, starting Week 2. Visit the 10+10 Pop-up Series website page for the complete schedule.
Student Experiences of Teaching Weekly Drop-In Hours
Student Experiences of Teaching (SET) will offer virtual drop-in hours with Cassidy Alvarado, Program Manager of Student Experience Initiatives, for support navigating Blue, accessing reports, and more. SET offers virtual drop-in hours every week:
Mondays: 3–4 p.m.
Tuesdays: 2–3 p.m.
Fridays: Noon–1 p.m.
Unable to attend drop-in hours? Schedule a SET meeting.
Dialoguing with Your Instructional Team about AI
1–2 p.m., May 11 | Zoom
Open to all instructors, including faculty, TAs, and postdocs
This workshop supports instructors in designing an AI policy for their courses. Participants will discuss the benefits and risks of GenAI use in education before exploring their own disciplinary and instructional perspectives. Then, participants will draft some guidelines on AI use for a potential future course. Register.
Accessibility and Universal Design in Post-Pandemic Higher Education Classrooms
1–2 p.m., May 14 | Pritzker 1531
While the learners, technologies, and policies educators must consider in a post-pandemic setting may seem overwhelming, they also offer instructors new opportunities to review, reflect, and restock their pedagogical toolkit. This workshop will present key findings on the post-COVID students in higher education. Using these data, participants will discuss case studies and consider a range of practical, evidence-based practices to engage learners. Topics will include digital accessibility (including current requirements) and Universal Design for Learning. Register.
Active Learning in Any Classroom
Sparking Student Engagement
Noon–12:30 p.m., May 18 | Powell 186
Instructors who are first exploring active learning might wonder why these approaches matter and how they work in different learning spaces. This 30-minute interactive session will have participants step into the role of learners and engage in authentic active learning approaches. Participants will explore how these activities can be adapted for use in both modernized and low-tech, fixed-seat classrooms. Register.
TLC Drop-In Hours at the Graduate Student Resource Center
10–11 a.m., May 19 | Student Activities Center Suite B-11
Meet the TLC’s Graduate Student and Postdoctoral Scholar Engagement (GSPSE) team at the Graduate Student Resource Center (GSRC)! Chat with us about all of your TA training and other teaching-related professional development questions.
Bring Your Own Syllabus: Peer Review Session
3–5 p.m., May 21 | Powell 190
faculty, TAs, and postdocs.
This co-working peer review session will cover syllabus design best practices. Participants will look at example syllabi, consider best practices for student-centered, inclusive, and digitally accessible design, and peer review each other’s materials. Light refreshments will be served. Register.
Giving Feedback
10–11 a.m., May 22 | Zoom
Open to all instructors, including faculty, TAs, and postdocs
This foundational workshop explores how to give effective feedback to students, whether for a large lecture course or a small discussion section. Instructors will examine equity-minded practices to support students in developing a growth-mindset and feedback literacy, as well as how to foster a classroom culture that values feedback. Register.
Active Learning in Modernized Classrooms
3:30–5 p.m., May 27 | Powell 186
Part of the Practice and Play with EdTech series. This session is designed for graduate students, TAs, and postdocs, though all instructors are welcome to attend.
The Practice and Play with EdTech series offers instructors a hands-on opportunity to explore teaching tools and strategies with TLC staff. This session will explore how modernized classroom spaces can engage students and support meaningful active learning. Attendees will examine how flexible classroom layouts and integrated technologies support pedagogical goals through hands-on activities designed to foster collaboration, deepen content processing, increase student engagement, and promote inclusive participation. Register.
Increasing Student Engagement and Success Across Institutions through Adaptive Teaching and AI Strategies
11 a.m.–noon, June 5 | Powell 186 and Zoom
This session will introduce adaptive equity-oriented pedagogy as a means to address barriers to student learning and increase average student achievement. Participants will learn strategies to adjust their teaching to increase achievement across college courses. Register.
From Our Campus Partners
9th Annual Creating Connections Symposium on Writing Pedagogy
9 a.m.–3:30 p.m., May 8
Hosted by UCLA Writing Programs | Register
Using AI Tools Effectively and Ethically
1–2:30 p.m., May 12
Hosted by the UCLA Library | Register
True Bruin Values Campus Conversation
4–5:30 p.m., May 13
Hosted by UCLA Connects
The True Bruin Values are being refreshed for a new era of boldness at UCLA. The statement of values that we ultimately finalize and carry forward will only be as strong as the collective voices and action behind them. Register now for the final Campus Community Conversation.
Introduction to Document Accessibility
Noon–1 p.m., May 20 | Zoom
Hosted by Disabilities & Computing Program (DCP) | Register