How do we know?

Interesting question . . . how do we know? How do we really know if . . . .

• the Read Me First section in our online courses is helpful for students?
  
• that the support we are providing for video conference or Smartboards is the best way?
  
• that the processes we use to do curriculum reviews with programs is working?
  
• that our Angel sessions with faculty are what they need?
  
• the Instructional Skills workshops or Survival Skills session are meeting instructors' needs
  
• that a learning object or activity in an online course helps students learn?

And the list goes on. What evidence could we gather to help us make decisions and to improve the support we provide?

The conference Chris G., Karen O'Dwyer and I attended the past few days in Banff was on the "Scholarship of Teaching and Learning". Here's one definition of this term from the workshop I attended on Wednesday: It "involves the gathering and interpretation of evidence of student learning" (Gale, 2008). The term applies most directly to what instructors are doing in their own classrooms, with a focus on understanding and improving student learning. But we support instructors, so where do we come in?

It's about following through on our curiosity . . . asking critical questions . . . gathering evidence . . . sharing what we have learned. It's also about helping instructors do this. If we have a culture of evidence in EET, it will most certainly come through in the work we do with instructors.

Watch for more presentations on the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in the next month of so. There's a lot more to it . . .