Teaching with AI

Teaching with AI Fellows Showcases

Join members of the Columbia teaching community for a showcase of adaptable models for using AI to support better teaching and learning across a variety of disciplines. These models have been developed, tested, and refined by 2024-25 Teaching with AI Fellows, a cohort of select graduate students with advanced interest and CTL-supported experience in applying AI to teaching.

At the showcase, after a description of these pedagogical models and a panel discussion with the Fellows, participants will be able to try out the models and engage in informal conversation with the Fellows and CTL staff about adapting them to different teaching contexts.

These showcases count towards track completion in the Teaching Development Program.

Showcase 1:  STEM focus
Date: Thursday April 10
Time: 3:00 PM – 4:30 PM
Location: 212 Butler Library
Register: Register for April 10 session

Showcase 2:  Humanities focus
Date: Tuesday April 22
Time: 11:00 AM – 12:30 PM
Location: 212 Butler Library
Register: Register for April 22 session

🌟 Teaching with AI Showcase preview 🌟

In this short video, Teaching with AI Fellow Nova Qi described the model she’s built — in which students improve their learning of neurobiology concepts by teaching them to an AI agent.

Upcoming Programs

A special online panel  

Celebrate teaching and learning with us! Join us for an online panel and live Q&A discussion. Panelists David Helfand, Larry Jackson, and Monica Lypson will share insights from the past ten years of teaching, their innovations in pedagogy, discuss their collaborations with the CTL, and look ahead to the next decade of teaching at Columbia. The panel will be moderated by Amanda Irvin, Executive Director of the Center for Teaching and Learning

This session counts towards track completion in the Teaching Development Program.

Date: Wednesday April 9
Time: 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM
Location: Online

CTLgrads Journal Club

Online discussions designed and facilitated by CIRTL Fellows

Are you interested in creating an inclusive educational climate for all STEM learners? This informal discussion community is an opportunity to discuss resources and research on teaching and learning with fellow grad students and postdocs across the CIRTL Network. These sessions are designed by a Columbia graduate student to help you consider how you can use findings in education research–in your field and beyond–to inform your own teaching practices.

CTLgrads Journal Club sessions count towards track completion in the Teaching Development Program.

Date: Friday April 11
Time: 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Location: Online
Register: Register for April 11 session

Practice Teaching

Looking for a supportive place to try out instructional approaches? This Practice Teaching session (formerly known as “Microteaching”) will pair you with a trained peer facilitator and a group of 3-4 other graduate students. Together, you and your fellow participants will take turns delivering short samples of instruction to each other. After each teaching sample, your facilitator and your peers will offer structured feedback to support your teaching. Whether you are currently teaching at Columbia or not, all graduate students looking to practice teaching are welcome to attend this Practice Teaching session.

Practice Teaching sessions towards track completion in the Teaching Development Program.

Date: Friday April 18
Time: 12:00 PM – 2:00 PM
Location: 212 Butller

Syllabus from Scratch

Are you drafting a syllabus? Whether the syllabus is for the Teaching Scholars program, the academic job market, or a dream course in the future, join us to begin designing an effective, student-centered syllabus from scratch. During this Syllabus from Scratch workshop, participants will learn about the elements of an effective and inclusive syllabus, define course learning goals, and discuss assessments that can promote student learning, engagement, and accessibility in their course.

This workshop counts towards track completion in the Teaching Development Program.

Date: Friday April 25
Time: 12:10 PM – 1:40 PM
Location: 212 Butller

⭐️ Resource Spotlight ⭐️

Approaches to making a syllabus inclusive

This CTL resource is intended to provide a starting point for instructors designing inclusive syllabi. Explore general strategies for inclusive syllabus design, dive deeper into specific syllabus elements, and reflect your current syllabus and re-imagine it with a focus on inclusivity. 

Access resource: Designing an Inclusive Syllabus

LTF Departmental Events

2024-25 Lead Teaching Fellows are running workshops and discussions in their departments all around Columbia. These are generally advertised locally. Below are upcoming events that are open to participants beyond the LTF’s home department.

LTF events count towards track completion in the Teaching Development Program. 

In Your Own Words: The Role of Language in STEM Higher Education

Science is more than a way of knowing—it’s also a language. In STEM education, concepts (e.g., gravity) are often bundled with technical language (e.g., free-fall, acceleration, vectors), which can overwhelm students—especially those from underrepresented cultural backgrounds. In Science in the City: Culturally Relevant STEM Education, Bryan A. Brown argues that transmitting science ideas separately from specialized language—the practice of disaggregate instruction—can improve learning outcomes.

In this workshop, we’ll explore the applications and limits of disaggregate instruction in university STEM classrooms. We’ll consider the role of language in accelerating science learning, and we’ll discuss practical teaching tactics to make science teaching more accessible without compromising accuracy.

This workshop is led by Lead Teaching Fellow Sean Li (Physics). The workshop will focus on STEM, but though all Columbia community members are welcome. 

Date: Wednesday, April 9
Time: 2:00 – 3:00 PM
Location: Emailed to registrants
Register: RSVP here

Teaching in the Museum

This session will meet at the Metropolitan Museum of Art to focus on strategies for teaching in the museum. We will discuss and practice ways to encourage students to engage with the unique pedagogical opportunities permitted by studying works of art in person. The 90-minute session will allow participants to share and design exercises for classes that take place in museums, and to practice leading those activities. We will also discuss logistics including moving through crowded spaces with large groups via accessible routes.

This workshop is led by Lead Teaching Fellow Julia Carabatsos (Art History and Archaeology). Graduate students from any discipline who are considering strategies for teaching in spaces beyond the classroom are welcome; RSVP required.

Date: Friday, April 11
Time: 1:00 – 2:30 PM
Location: Metropolitan Museum of Art
Register: RSVP here

Creativity in Assessment: An Introduction to Creative Assignment and Rubrics Design

Creative pedagogies, or the implementation of ‘creativity’ as a core teaching value and practice, has run parallel with the interrelation of critical thinking and classroom innovations across disciplines. In times of socio-political turmoil, hybrid classes, and rapidly evolving AI technologies, creative pedagogies are becoming an emerging field of discussion and experimentation.

This session will provide key notions and strategies for the appropriate integration of creativity into activity planning and evaluation. We will explore the relationship between critical thinking and pedagogical creativity through the consideration of AI in lesson planning, as well as the crafting of creative-inspired rubrics for assessment. These two main threads will help to revitalize our engagement with formative feedback, peer review, or assessment transparency.

This workshop is led by Lead Teaching Fellow Miguel Ángel Blanco Martínez (Latin American and Iberian Cultures). Language and content instructors from any language department are welcome.

Date: Friday, April 11
Time: 4:00 PM
Location: Biblioteca Sobejano, Casa Hispánica, Floor 2, 612 W 116th St.
Register: RSVP to mb4613@columbia.edu

The CTL is here to help!

Office Hours

Drop by CTL’s Office Hours for graduate students to consult with us about any aspect of teaching, CTL fellowships and other offerings, job market preparation, or making progress in the Teaching Development Program. Learn more about office hours.

Consultations

Graduate students can now request consultations to get support for their teaching and learning needs. The CTL provides consultations on a range of topics, including syllabus design, creating and refining a teaching statement, integrating instructional technologies into class activities, and presentation practices. Learn more and request a consultation.