Carnegie Academy for SoTL (CASTL)
Cross Chair in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning
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The Cross Endowed Chair in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning requests proposals for the Department/School/Program Initiative in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Grant Program. At Illinois State University, through our work (starting in 1998) with the Carnegie Academy for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (CASTL) Campus Program, we have developed the following definition of SoTL, “systematic study/reflection on teaching and learning made public.” The focus of this work is on teaching and learning at the college level. The work may be quantitative and/or qualitative in nature. All SoTL work must be made public and peer reviewed in some way via presentation, performance, juried show, and/or publication.
Department/School/Program SoTL Initiatives include work that provides the opportunity and resources for several people in a department/school or in a multidisciplinary program to be involved in one or more connected SoTL projects. The initiatives will provide information on teaching and learning at the class, course, or program level which will be applied to improve student learning in the discipline or area. These initiatives may involve 1. engaging in original SoTL research and application AND/OR 2. conducting thorough literature reviews, integration and synthesis of existing SoTL work and application of that knowledge. For example, a department heavily invested in the use of a new pedagogical strategy in several courses may propose a set of original SoTL studies on the learning outcomes of that strategy. Or a school may propose to search, read, summarize, and apply the extant SoTL work on an issue critical to student learning in their field. Or an interdisciplinary program might apply disciplinary best practices in curriculum and pedagogy based on the literature then conduct an original SoTL study(ies) to measure faculty and student perceptions of these changes or learning outcomes related to the changes. See specific criteria for selection below.
Two academic units will receive awards of up to $10,000 each for FY10. Funds may be used in any budget category or categories (e.g., printing, commodities, contractual, travel, student help, and salary). We strongly encourage departments/schools or colleges to provide some matching funds or other resources (such as travel money to present in FY11). All awards are subject to the availability of funds.
All ISU Academic Departments or Schools, as well as Milner Library and Mennonite College of Nursing, and academic interdisciplinary programs are eligible to submit proposals. EACH proposal MUST be from a team with broad representation in the unit. Thus, if there are fewer than 15 full-time faculty in the unit, the team must include a minimum of three faculty/academic staff members and at least one student (graduate and/or undergraduate). If there are 15 or more full-time faculty in the unit, the team must include a minimum of five faculty/academic staff members and at least two students (graduate and/or undergraduate). There may be only one application per department/school/interdisciplinary program. For this program, special consideration for one of the grants will be given to units with no or limited SoTL experience and activity.
Award recipients (as teams) must meet five requirements.
Volunteers from different disciplines and with expertise in SoTL will review the proposals using the following criteria.
Send three copies of the following to Kathleen McKinney, Box 6370 or drop off to ITDC building by 4:00 pm on April 10, 2009.