Academic Teacher Training Course, Distance Course

The Academic Teacher Training Course is arranged for international teachers, researchers and doctoral students that have or will have teaching duties at Uppsala University. The course welcomes all staff who already have some teaching experience in the field of higher education and are required, for various reasons, be provided with the opportunity to undergo formal teaching training.

Teaching arranged at Uppsala University should be of the highest possible quality and training provided for the University’s teaching staff becomes an important vehicle for achieving this educational objective. According to the University´s programme “Teaching and learning at Uppsala University; Visions for educational activity and development”, as well as the employment statutes, professors, senior lecturers and lecturers are required to have 10 weeks formal training (or a demonstrable equivalent) in the field of academic teaching and learning. A basic training of at least five weeks is required for doctoral students with teaching duties.

The overall aim of the course is to enhance the quality of the education provided at Uppsala University. This is accomplished by furthering the development of the participants´ competences regarding planning, implementing and managing learning and teaching processes.

Target group

The course is intended for teaching staff at Uppsala University (including doctoral students with teaching duties) who are obliged to teach and/or tutor/supervise university students in Sweden.

The number of course participants is limited to approximately 40.

Prerequisites

No specific prerequisites. Teaching experiences are of course advantageous.

Course goals

Based on best practice and a scholarly approach, you should be able to:

• justify your pedagogical positions and demonstrate a reflective approach to your own pedagogical practice and your own role as a teacher
• choose between different varieties of learning activities and learning spaces, based on knowledge and experience of what benefits students' learning, and be equipped to plan and implement teaching
• reflect on students' conditions and perspectives, as well as on the interaction with the students
• apply national and local regulations and guidelines and discuss the purposes and contexts of higher education
• discuss how perspectives such as sustainable development, internationalization, inclusion and norm-criticism can be integrated into teaching
• meet students in an inclusive way and inform about support and services available for students with special needs
• evaluate learning outcomes and reflect on the alignment between learning outcomes, teaching and learning activities, and assessment
• use formative and summative course evaluations to support student learning and for course development
• to demonstrate a deeper reflective stance in text, grounded in didactic and/or higher education research, which contributes to the development of a scholarship of teaching and learning and one´s own pedagogical practice

Content

The basis for the course is an academic teacher’s training needs, and an ambition to acquire knowledge and experiences regarding teaching approaches and teaching/learning activities in higher education. The course focuses on teaching and learning in a broader context, oral presentation skills and communication, teaching duties and teaching practices in Sweden, and on working with a heterogeneous student body.

The course comprises specific content components, including for example:

• Teaching and learning in higher education; theory and practice
• Planning, delivery and evaluation of teaching/learning activities
• Examination/assessment, grading and classroom assessment/feedback
• Teacher—student interaction and inclusive teaching
• The regulatory framework of Swedish university education
• Practical teacher training by means of video-recording

Course literature consists of the textbook Academic Teaching by Elmgren, M. and Henriksson, A. -S., as well as Classroom Assessment Techniques by Angelo, T.A. and Cross, K.P. and other relevant journal articles and book chapters. Course work is largely based on reading and composing reflective text based on questions posed in the course assignments. These texts are then utilized as a source for discussion and feedback from course colleagues, critical friends and course facilitators.

Extent

The course is the work-time equivalent of five weeks, arranged over a period of roughly five (5) months from November to the end of March.

The course is divided into several themes, each of which entails a number of specific course assignments.

There is an initial task which must be finalized before the first on-campus course session (please see course requirements for more information). Course tasks are both individual and group-based.

Preparations

You are required to finalize a preparatory assignment before the first formal course session. These include particular readings, viewing several film clips and producing a presentation recording according to the instructions provided in the assignment.

Course Requirements

In order to finalize the course and receive the certificate of completion you are obliged to participate actively in all course activities and complete all course assignments according to instructions.

The course formally begins with an on-campus session where attendance is mandatory, with no exceptions. Please check to make certain that you are able to attend at this date.

Registration

Course start, see Calendar.
The number of course participants is limited to approximately 40.
NOTE! You must provide all the information requested in the application form for the application to be considered.

Course language format

The course is arranged in a mixed-language format. Presentations and instructions are primarily in English. Participants choose between Swedish and English when engaging in group work and discussions as well as when writing or selecting individual readings.

Venue

With the exception of the initial on-campus introductory session, the course is arranged via a learning management system and web-based communication tools. The course includes three mandatory seminars arranged via Zoom.

Financial conditions

The course is free of charge for staff members affiliated with Uppsala University.

More information

Division for Quality Enhancement, Unit for Academic Teaching and Learning

Course administrator
Malin Gadeborg, telefon 018–471 69 08, malin.gadeborg@uu.se

Coordinators
Helena Lindqvist, telefon: 018-471 54 94, e-post: helena.lindqvist@uu.se
Inger Olausson, telefon 018-471 15 96 , e-post: inger.olausson@uu.se

Please contact the coordinators with questions regarding course structure and content, validation of corresponding course etc.

If you have questions concerning non-completion of a course/unfinished assignments, please contact the head facilitator of the course in question. If unavailable, please contact course administrator Malin Gadeborg.

The following applies for all courses given by the Unit for Academic Teaching and Learning: If a course participant is unable to complete a course within the given timeframe, all elements/assignments must be completed within three years from the start of the course in order to receive a passing grade/certificate of completion. The prerequisite for this is that course information and course objectives are the same.