Overview

When: January 8th-10thth 2024 (all day events)

Where:  In-person on the Orono Campus 

CITL’s Course Design Institute (CDI) is a three day intensive educational development opportunity for faculty preparing to design a new course or re-design a current course.    

The CDI will introduce UMaine specific contexts and resources focused on improving your course design for greater student engagement, retention and learning. Through a mixture of learner-centered activities, one-on-one consultations and individual work time, we will provide you with time to design and align key elements of your course: relevant learning outcomes, effective assessments strategies, and engaging learning activities. Throughout the three days, we will surround you with a facilitation team, instructional designers, and your colleagues to help you become familiar with this course design process. You will then use this process iteratively as you continue to design your course, either alone or alongside an instructional designer. 

Each day will have a different course design focus supported by campus resources, inspirational models, and research-based evidence. We will weave aspects of equity and inclusivity in teaching throughout the three days. 

Participants should expect to commit to the activities throughout each day, with homework assignments each night to help keep the cohort on track. We will provide meals and recharging opportunities throughout the day. 

This program will provide a great mechanism to systematically identify areas of change for those teaching Spring courses , and will be a great start for those with Summer or Fall courses.  

Participants who participate in this CDI will be able to:

  • Define and align your own course goals and learning outcomes
  • Design effective assessments and learning activities
  • Apply research-based as well as inclusive teaching and learning strategies to course design
  • Evaluate which campus resources, tools and technologies to use during course development and instruction 
  • Integrate a reflective practice into your teaching  
“The CDI was fantastic and I'm glad I participated. Being able to meet with IDs was beyond helpful and probably not something I would have taken advantage of before the semester started.” 2022 CDI participant

Participants will walk away with:

  • At least one course unit with fully aligned outcomes, assessments and activities.
  • A revised syllabus that addresses issues of transparency, inclusion, and/or alignment
  • A partnership with instructional support at UMaine
  • A community of engaged colleagues 

Apply for this program here (opens in a Google form).

(Space will be limited) 

FAQs

Do I have to attend all three days?
Yes. If you have to miss a small part of a day, we can accommodate that, but we expect all who apply to  commit to the three days of in-person work.

Can I join remotely?
No. We designed this program for in-person engagement.

How is this different from the Summer Institute on Evidence Based Teaching?
This program focuses specifically on the course design process, developing your understanding of course alignment and improving your course using resources available at UMaine specifically. 

Will I get paid?
Participants who complete the institute will receive a certificate and a $250.00 stipend for participation*. 
*must be eligible for compensation.

Did you know that research supports that faculty who work in teams from the same department are more likely to influence change and shifts in teaching practices?