Faculty may have noticed something new in their e-mailboxes this year: IUP SPARKS is a new digital newsletter from the Center for Teaching Excellence.
For decades, CTE has been offering high-quality resources for faculty professional development—IUP SPARKS joins this list as a new resource for faculty. You may remember the Monday Morning Mentor series, a regularly occurring online resource delivered directly to faculty through email. The Monday Morning Mentor was a service from an outside vendor, but now Jacqueline McGinty, CTE co-director of Instructional Design and Educational Technology, is introducing IUP SPARKS as an alternative produced in-house.
SPARKS is an acronym for Scholarly Practical Advice, Resources, Knowledge, and Support.”
“We’re trying to curate the best scholarly advice—but also something that is practical,” says McGinty, when considering the content of the newsletter.
Each issue centers around a theme that is pertinent to the present teaching moment. The newsletter is a curated selection of research, evidence-based practice, tips gained from faculty experience, and multimedia such as videos and infographics. There is also an option to submit your own ideas with the aim to crowdsource the vast expertise found among IUP faculty.
“IUP has always been recognized as a great place for high-quality teaching and learning. We want the rest of the world to know that. Hopefully, IUP SPARKS can not only reach IUP faculty, but other faculty in different places too and let them know about the great work that we’re doing and hopefully improve teaching and learning for everyone.”
Besides benefiting faculty, IUP SPARKS is also an opportunity for students as well. Graduate students in the Education, Training and Instructional Technology program contribute ideas and gain experience alongside the guidance of McGinty and Theresa McDevitt, CTE co-director of Scholarship of Teaching and Learning. The current students working on these issues are Ebenezer Osei-Mensah and Laura Ramie, CTE graduate student worker.
In addition to producing IUP SPARKS, McGinty coordinates another program that benefits faculty: the Faculty Help Desk. The Help Desk is staffed by current graduate students in the Education, Training, and Instructional Technology program. Faculty can drop in on Zoom every Tuesday and Thursday from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. to ask advice about course design, digital tools, and gain a student perspective on what’s new and exciting in education.
There have been three issues published this academic year: “Tips for Community Building in Your Classes,” “Midterm grades and Mid-Semester Feedback,” and “Inclusive Teaching Practices.” Faculty receive the newsletter bi-weekly on Thursday afternoons. Past issues will be available to view on the Center for Teaching Excellence website and continue to serve as a resource for faculty everywhere to increase CTE’s web presence.