This Week for Faculty: Blended Learning and Provost Teaching and Learning Grants

Preparing for a Provost RFP? Or planning to blend face-to-face and online facilitation of learning? We can help.

Thinking of applying for a Provost Teaching and Learning Grant? Schedule a consultation today! We can help you think through your project and prepare for the May 18 submission deadline. Find inspiration from Faculty Spotlights of past recipients of grants.

Blended Learning: On-Demand Resources

Blended Learning Guide

Blended Learning is a learner-centered approach that carefully considers what parts of learning should occur in person / in community with the guidance of the instructor, and which can occur online on the learner’s own time.

What are the benefits to a blended learning approach? What are some strategies for getting started? The CTL has developed a guide that helps instructors answer these questions by describing the elements of an effective, learner-centered “blend” derived from research and evidence-based practices. In addition, the guide offers questions that instructors can reflect on before designing their course and additional references and resources.

This guide is particularly useful to faculty applying for the Provost’s Innovative Course Design grant program (formerly know as the Hybrid Learning Course Redesign and Delivery grants) and similar requests for proposals.

Active Learning for Your Online Classroom: Five Strategies

Moving your class sessions to a virtual space, such as Zoom video conferencing, brings new opportunities for active learning and student engagement. This resource provides simple strategies that combine active learning principles with online tools so students can encounter and engage with information and ideas, and reflect on their learning. 

Self-Paced Course: Blended / Hybrid Learning Essentials

This self-paced course provides a deeper overview of blended learning (with a focus on the “flipped classroom”) and guides instructors through the design process for a lesson or unit of study. The course features videos of Columbia University faculty and former recipients of the Provost’s Innovative Course Design grants who share their blended teaching and learning experiences. Instructors are provided worksheets and checklists to draft and document their blended learning design and implementation plans. 

Teaching with Do-It-Yourself Video

This guide offers examples, principles, and best practices to help instructors create active and engaging classroom experiences using video.

• Review our recommendations for creating effective instructional videos.

• Learn best practices for setting up, recording your presentation, editing and publishing your video, and other technical considerations.

Get advice on the tools you will need to produce your own videos.

The CTL is Here to Help!

CTL staff are holding daily virtual Office Hours Monday through Friday to help faculty with questions related to teaching remotely, as well as any other teaching-related inquiries. 

You can also arrange a one-on-one consultation by phone or via Zoom for support on everything from facilitating classes with Zoom and Panopto, to creating exams and assessments with CourseWorks, to fostering an engaging and inclusive online learning environment for all your students. Please email CTLfaculty@columbia.edu to set up a time to meet with one of our consultants.