Creating a Teaching Dossier

Shea Wang, Ph.DInterim Faculty Evaluation Coordinator

780-633-3591

Oct. 21, 2013

Faculty Evaluation at MacEwanFive elements to evaluation:• Teaching Dossier• Peer Review• Annual Report• Online Student Feedback• Stakeholder review (ASAC)

Principles of Policies C5065Evaluation is guided by the philosophy that we: • promote a culture of teaching & learning• foster professional development & scholarly activity• promote fairness & transparency• benefit faculty members through timely & accurate

feedback• comply with Collective Agreement• undertake as a process involving multiple

stakeholders & a variety of assessment approaches

What is a Teaching Dossier?

Policy C5065:• “A teaching dossier is a concise, evidence-

based record of teaching activities and other academic accomplishments prepared by a faculty member.”

What information does it contain?• It documents achievement and reflection

through the following information: Teaching Philosophy Teaching ResponsibilitiesNarrative of Evidence (reviews & reports;

assignments; achievements)Appendix of Documents

Why do we need a dossier?Probationary -> Continuing

• Evaluation of faculty performance for purposes of granting a continuing appointment is conducted by Academic Staff Appointment Committees (ASACs)

• C5065:“Sessional and probationary faculty members shall prepare and submit teaching dossiers to Chairs or immediate supervisors annually (and to ASACs when required). Although not mandatory, continuing and term faculty members may choose to prepare and submit teaching dossiers at any time.”

What else can we use it for?• Help when applying for employment • Keeps teaching accomplishments organized• Vehicle for presenting information about our

teaching activities• Could be presented to institutional & legislative

bodies or for consideration of awards• Understand & reflect on teaching skills &

weaknesses• Plan for future teaching events• Promote yourself through personal websites

Writing a Teaching Dossier

FIVE STEPS:

• Step 1: Develop an outline. • Step 2: Write a statement of teaching philosophy. • Step 3: Clarify your teaching responsibilities. • Step 4: Reflect on your future teaching goals. • Step 5: Select and compile your best evidence.

Step 1: Develop an Outline• Teaching Philosophy and Goals• Teaching Responsibilities • Course Development • Service • Research• Appendices

See handout for example of tables of contents

Step 2: Activity

Break into small groups and discuss the following sentences:• I most enjoyed teaching when __________• I knew I had a problem when __________• What do you think this says about your

teaching and learning environment?• What is your teaching philosophy?

See handout for information on teaching perspectives

Step 2: Philosophy Statements

• Most are brief ~ less than 1 page• Use language appropriate for the audience• Use a first-person voice• Use reflection to create a vivid description

of your teaching & learning ideas• Personalize (insightful, interesting, & lively)

Step 2: Review Statements • Review the teaching philosophy statement

on your table (choose1 example)• Roll the “Teaching Cube” and discuss the

teaching philosophy based on that facet • Can you apply this question to your own

teaching philosophy?See handout for examples on teaching

philosophy

Step 3: ResponsibilitiesConsider:• Workload• Courses taught with student numbers/levels/credit

hours• Details of other academic activity: seminars,

research supervision, coaching, advising…• Student supervision• Resource materials development• Did you or any of your students get an award as a

result of your teaching?

Step 4: Goals

short-term (1 year) & long-term (2-5 years) goals• Efforts at improving teaching, learning,

service… Formal courses Conferences Participation in peer consultation/review• How will you be changing your performance… New technology? Lecture -> case study?

Step 4: Goals Teaching goals other considerations…

• How do your courses contribute to students' achievements in and outside of MacEwan?

• How do you nurture students in a setting where grades can be the key motivation to learn?

• How do you help students to learn and master knowledge in their field? (teaching methods/tools)?

• What steps do you take to encourage higher level learning (such as critical thinking, problem-solving, etc.)?

• What is engaged learning and how do you use it in the classroom and in assignments?

• How do you evaluate these goals (manageable & realistic) ?

Step 5: Appendices

• Curriculum Vitae • Bibliography• Service contributions• Awards• Information from student/stakeholder

feedback• Information from peer reviews• Information from administrators

Dossier as a Tool for Personnel Decisions

• For personnel decisions, faculty members need to gather and present hard evidence and specific data about teaching effectiveness. This involves demonstrating student learning through instruction.

• The burden falls to the faculty member to provide a carefully organized case that establishes the connections with the evidence.

Personnel Decisions: ActivityPolicy 5065: 4.2.2 Faculty members are evaluated on performance pertaining to academic responsibilities which can include:

- instruction

- research, scholarly activity, artistic engagement- service

In small groups, discuss what specific criteria you think is used to assess a teaching/professional portfolio and ways you can demonstrate it…

What are ASAC’s Looking For?Reviewers will be looking for:• Clear statement of responsibilities• Purposes and goals consistent with department

and institution• Evidence-based success in teaching as

demonstrated by student learning• Comments from peer reviewers and colleagues• Student ratings and commentsSee handout for example of reflection on student feedback survey

Evaluating Your DossierQuestions to ask:• Is real evidence of accomplishment presented, not

just a reflective statement?• Is the reflective statement consistent with the

syllabi, student evaluations, and peer feedback?• Does the dossier present evidence that the

student’s actually learned in the instructor's course(s)?

• Have efforts been made by the faculty member to assess and improve their teaching?

See handout for guide to evaluating teaching dossiers & organizational matrix

Online Portfolios

• Many faculty are now compiling online portfolios:• http://home.gwu.edu/~nmilman/service/index.html• http://ageducation.org/portfolio/index.html• http://kinzie.edschool.virginia.edu/• http://

academic.macewan.ca/katod/instructional-philosophy (PhyEd)

• http://academic.macewan.ca/pollardc4/test-page/ (Nursing)

Resources

https://facultycommons.macewan.ca/services/faceval

• Teaching Dossier – examples, instructions, resources

• Student surveys – incl. instructions on accessing CoursEval

• Faculty Evaluation Policies [C5065]• Chair & Faculty Evaluation Handbooks • Events, speakers, workshops & past presentations

Thank you!