Faculty Learning Communites
A Faculty Learning Community (FLC) offers a cross-disciplinary group of 10 to 12 participants the opportunity to meet regularly to study pedagogical topics of shared interest in an in-depth, ongoing, scholarly, and systematic manner. FLC participants meet at least twice a month for two hours, delve into existing research on their common area of inquiry, then design and pursue individual projects that require to apply and test new ideas and information about student learning. FLCs offer a more structured, intensive, and student-centered and outcome-driven approach to faculty development than do more traditional methods, such as one-time workshops or ongoing but informal brown bag conversations. For a more in-depth explanation of FLCs and the theory and research that drive them, click here.
The 2008-2009 FLC at WMU will focus on active and collaborative learning strategies in the classroom -- for both smaller and larger courses. Active and collaborative learning has been defined as instructional activities involving students in doing things and thinking about what they are doing. A good description of active learning can be found here.
Participants in the 2008-2009 FLC will study the principles of active and collaborative learning, examine the research on strategies for active and collaborative learning, and will plan and implement strategies within a "focus course."