The TA Workshop Series provides ongoing professional development opportunities for Brock Teaching Assistants, Lab Demonstrators, Course Coordinators, Marker-Graders, and Seminar Leaders. Each workshop offers an opportunity to explore topics related to teaching and learning as part of Brock’s TA community.
Participation in workshops earns TAs credits towards the available TA Certificates in Teaching and Learning in Higher Education.
Who can attend?
TA workshops are open to all Brock Teaching Assistants, Lab Demonstrators, Course Coordinators, Marker-Graders and Seminar/Tutorial Leaders
How can I register?
You can find workshop details and register to attend on ExperienceBU. If you have any questions please feel free to reach out to eddev@brocku.ca
Where are workshops held?
CPI will continue to host TA workshops through a variety of mediums. On-campus workshops are hosted in CPI’s Active Learning classroom ST 103 (near the Market Eatery). Asynchronous workshops will be hosted in the CPI Teaching and Learning Brightspace site. Synchronous online workshops will be hosted in Microsoft Teams (invites are shared with registrants ahead of the workshop).
Asynchronous workshop Information
All asynchronous workshops take place in the CPI Teaching and Learning Brightspace site.
Once you have registered for the workshop you will automatically be added to the Brightspace site ahead of the workshop start date. You can then work through the content and activities at your own pace.
If you have any questions please reach out to the Educational Development team at cpi@brocku.ca
Available August 1 through September 16
What To Do in the First Class
The first meeting with students is an ideal opportunity to establish a positive learning climate and to build community. In this workshop, we will explore different strategies to support the development of an effective and positive learning environment.
Building a Classroom Community for Learning
Cultivating a classroom community for learning is an ongoing process across a course. Join us in this workshop to discuss strategies and approaches to develop and maintain a classroom community that is productive, inclusive, safe, and effective for your learners.
Available September 4 through September 30
Instructional Strategies 101
What on earth are “snowball” and “fishbowl”? While you may be familiar with activities like “think-pair-share” there are a wide variety of strategies and techniques one can use to deepen learning. This is an interactive workshop that will help you add more tools to your instructional toolbox.
Relationship Building in the Classroom
This workshop will explore the dynamics of the relationships in the classroom with a focus on TAs and students. We work in academic spaces that are demanding and require high-level skill sets. How do we value the complex relationships we encounter and must navigate in the classroom and beyond?
Available October 1 through October 31
Active Learning Online
In this workshop, we will explore, discuss, and reflect on active learning strategies employed in the online teaching and learning context. There will be opportunities to explore resources and active learning strategies as well as to share and reflect on experiences with other TAs.
Building an Online Learning Community
Cultivating a classroom community for learning is an ongoing process across a course. Join us in this workshop to discuss strategies and approaches to develop and maintain a classroom community that is productive, inclusive, safe, and effective for your learners.
Available November 1 through November 30
Supporting Student Critical Reading
The ability to read beyond comprehension is a skill that we tend to take for granted all students are equipped with. In this asynchronous online workshop, we will discuss strategies that TAs can use to encourage students to engage in critical reading and to promote deep learning.
Navigating Difficult Conversations in the Classroom
Difficult conversations on challenging topics are often uncomfortable for educators and students. However, difficult conversations can help improve critical thinking skills and can assist in fostering a more inclusive educational environment. This workshop explores the potential of engaging students in challenging conversation -we will discuss the importance of multiple perspectives in teaching and pedagogical approaches in disseminating challenging topics in the classroom.
Saturday Workshop Information
All of our Saturday TA workshops will take place synchronously on Microsoft Teams.
Teams meeting links are available when you register on ExperienceBU and will be shared with registrants again ahead of the workshop.
If you have any questions please reach out to the Educational Development team at cpi@brocku.ca
September 14, 2024
Building a Classroom Community for Learning (10am-10:50am)
Cultivating a classroom community for learning is an ongoing process across a course. Join us in this workshop to discuss strategies and approaches to develop and maintain a classroom community that is productive, inclusive, safe, and effective for your learners.
Accessibility and Inclusion in the Classroom (11am-11:50am)
Explore ways of facilitating greater access to learning in our seminars, labs, and tutorials. We will explore some of the challenges students with disabilities may experience in learning contexts and discuss ways to address these challenges to foster engagement and learning.
October 5, 2024
Navigating difficult conversations (10am-10:50am)
Difficult conversations on challenging topics are often uncomfortable for educators and students. However, difficult conversation can help improve critical thinking skills and can assist in fostering a more inclusive educational environment. This workshop explores the potential of engaging students in challenging conversation – we will discuss the importance of multiple perspectives in teaching and pedagogical approaches in disseminating challenging topics in the classroom.
Microaggressions in the classroom (11am-11:50am)
Participants will be introduced to the concept of microaggressions, defined as the pervasive, intentional or unintentional, and brief acts of discrimination that are often rooted in bias and systems of power. We will discuss ways that TAs can proactively create a classroom environment that helps to prevent microaggressions, as well as strategies that can be used if microaggressions do occur.
November 2, 2024
Essays, Exams, and Beyond! End-of-Term Grading Strategies (10am-10:50am)
Anticipating a pile of exams to grade? A stack of papers to read and provide feedback on? Join us to discuss grading strategies to help you work through your end-of-term grading.
Preparing Students to Give and Receive Feedback (11am-11:50am)
In this workshop, we will explore the why and how(s) of preparing your students to give and receive feedback. We will explore a variety of mediums and methods as well as contexts for giving and receiving feedback in teaching and learning with a focus on cultivating an environment of effective feedback.
Reading student feedback (12pm-12:50pm)
Receiving feedback on your teaching can be a challenging experience. In this workshop we will discuss the various ways you might receive student feedback as a TA and explore strategies to approach the reading of this feedback in a way that supports your development as an educator.
Weekday Workshop Information
Weekday workshops will take place either in-person (in the CPI Active Learning classroom, ST103 – near the market eatery) or online via Microsoft Teams. The location of each workshop is listed below.
You can register for our weekday workshops by visiting the Centre for Pedagogical Innovation’s ExperienceBU page.
If you have any questions please reach out to the Educational Development team at cpi@brocku.ca
September Workshops
Feedback to Support Learning
Tuesday, September 17 at 1pm on TEAMS
Providing feedback to is an important part of being a TA. In this workshop we will explore the different types of feedback, consider various ways you can provide students with feedback, and practice providing feedback that supports student learning.
Inclusive Pedagogical Strategies for TAs
Tuesday, September 24 at 12pm in ST103
This workshop will discuss inclusive pedagogical strategies TAs can use in their classrooms. We will discuss ways to construct inclusive activities that are engaging and can support the development of an effective teaching and learning environment.
October Workshops
Assessment and Evaluation
Wednesday, October 2 at 10am on TEAMS
In this workshop we will review different approaches to assessment and evaluation in post-secondary education. We will consider the roles TAs play in assessment and evaluation as members of Brock’s teaching community.
Boost Student Success in your Classroom
Tuesday, October 8 at 10am in ST103 or Wednesday, October 9 at 1pm on TEAMS
This workshop will provide TAs with tips and strategies to implement in their classroom to promote more success for student learning in the classroom.
Trauma-Informed Pedagogical Practices
Wednesday, October 23 at 11am in ST103
One of the Brock academic plan priorities is to support trauma-informed pedagogies in our teaching and learning. In this workshop, we will consider some principles of trauma-informed pedagogies, the applications of those principles in your contexts, and reflect on discipline specific principles that we may want to see in our learning spaces.
Universal Design for Learning
Tuesday, October 29 at 11am on TEAMS or Wednesday, October 30 at 11am in ST103
At the end of July 2024 revised guidelines around Universal Design for Learning were released. Join us for this workshop where we will talk about the changes to the guidelines and how to apply these new aspects in your facilitation and teaching design.
November Workshops
Identifying Ableist Language and Supporting Inclusive Spaces
Tuesday, November 5 at 11am on TEAMS
Ableist language and terms can be used in academic spaces without realizing the words being used are ableist. This workshop explores ableist language that can appear in communications, how intent and impact factor into ableist language use, and provides opportunities for reflection on alternative non-ableist terms to express the same ideas.
Helping Students Prepare for Exams
Wednesday, November 6 at 3pm in ST103
This workshop will focus on strategies for TAs to set expectations for students in their courses regarding exams, to increase student independence through constructive feedback and exam preparation strategies, and to broaden their repertoire of exam review techniques.
Reflecting on a Semester of Teaching
Tuesday, November 19 at 10am on TEAMS or Wednesday, November 20 at 10 in ST103
After a semester of teaching, what questions do you still have? Have you answered some of the questions you began with? Have your questions changed? TAs will have the time and space to ask, share and reflect with each other.
Open Educational Resources: An Introduction
Wednesday, November 27 at 1pm on TEAMS
Open Educational Resources (OERs) can enhance student learning and engagement when incorporated into teaching. This workshop provides TAs and Instructors with a baseline of understanding what OERs are, how to integrate them into their (future) teaching, and what supports are available at Brock University for OER adoption, adaptation, and creation. This workshop will consist of key learnings and resources to equip participants with the information they need to achieve their goals for teaching with OERs.