Teaching in the Canadian Classroom (TCC)

Teaching in the Canadian Classroom is a 3-week 20-hour online certificate program with mandatory synchronous and asynchronous components.

The program is designed for international graduate students and postdoctoral fellows who would like to enhance their confidence in their teaching skills in the Canadian postsecondary academic environment. Participants will reflect on the role of culture in their classrooms, practice lesson planning and active learning techniques, and give and receive feedback on lesson planning and classroom management.

Topics

The program also provides the participants with an opportunity to:

1. Practice instructional techniques in microteaching sessions, receive constructive feedback from peers and the instructor, and thus gain hands-on experience with strategies that can be used in their current and future teaching roles.
2. Reflect on their experiences as international teaching assistants to produce initial written work that can be used in parts of job applications for teaching-centered jobs.

The program aims to build on the participants’ skills and expertise and supports them in practicing and reflecting on their teaching, while engaging with peers in a supportive atmosphere.

Learning Outcomes

By the end of the program, participants will be able to:

• Acquire and build on their teaching skills and competencies for an enhanced confidence in the classroom.
• Design and deliver lessons using the Bridge-Outcomes-Pre-Assessment-Participatory Learning-Post-Assessment-Summary (BOPPPS) model.
• Reflect on their teaching strategies and approaches during two microteaching sessions to a) improve their teaching skills; b) produce useful pieces of application documents for teaching-centered jobs.
• Build upon and enhance their understanding of the nature, norms, and values of the classrooms at Western University and how to navigate them to excel at and enjoy teaching.
• Acquire, build on, and practice strategies for speaking with confidence and explaining difficult concepts in synchronous and asynchronous environments.
• Assess the role of culture in giving effective feedback and practice giving and responding to feedback synchronously and asynchronously.
• Build a community with fellow international students and postdoctoral scholars, learn from each other, and understand the benefits of peer-learning.

What to expect

Please note: All times are in Eastern Time

• Participants are required to devote at least 20 hours to this program.
• This is a blended course with synchronous and asynchronous components. The mandatory synchronous components will take place over Zoom, as follows:
  • January 24: 4:30pm – 5:30pm EDT
  • January 28: 4pm – 5pm EDT
  • February 4: 4pm – 5pm EDT
• Microteaching is a mandatory component of this program. Participants are expected to attend two synchronous microteaching sessions with their group:
  • Group 1: February 7 AND February 10: 9am-12pm EDT
  • Group 2: February 7 AND February 10: 1pm-4pm EDT
  • Group 3: February 7 AND February 9: 10am-1pm EDT
  • Group 4: February 8 AND February 10: 1pm-4pm EDT
  • Group 5: February 9 AND February 11: 1pm-4pm EDT

Research on the impact of TCC

• Evaluating the Differential Impact of Teaching Assistant Training Programs on International Graduate Student Teaching (Canadian Journal of Higher Education,  2015)
• Bridging the gap: The impact of the 'Teaching in the Canadian Classroom' program on the teaching effectiveness of international teaching assistants. (HEQCO, 2013)