Next Call for Grant Proposals in Fall 2016

Purpose

The Center for Teaching Excellence, with support from the Office of the Provost, invites full-time faculty to submit proposals for the development of creation of exemplary Distributed Learning (DL) courses that will enhance the overall quality, scope, and reach of teaching and learning at the University of South Carolina. This goal will be accomplished by providing funding, expert instructional design assistance, pedagogical resources and technological support to faculty to develop courses for DL delivery.

Distributed Learning

DL courses include fully online, site-to-site and blended courses (courses that meet in a traditional classroom, studio, or lab for up to 50% of the instruction and deliver the remaining instruction online.) DL combines technology tools with innovative teaching methods in order to facilitate students’ access to instructional content and help them learn. In addition, DL:

• Provides students with guided pathways to interact with course material, faculty and other students
• Increases access to the university for nontraditional and geographically disadvantaged students for whom traditional course offerings pose scheduling or transportation barriers, and
• Enables academic units to serve traditional on-campus students better by easing limitations on classroom space and scheduling

A DL version of any course should incorporate equivalent learning outcomes, instructional content and opportunities for faculty and student interaction to those provided by the traditional version of the same course.

Eligible Principal Instructors

Any full-time faculty member at USC Columbia and the Palmetto College campuses (Extended University, Lancaster, Salkehatchie, Sumter, and Union) is eligible to apply. A faculty member who submits a proposal is expected to serve as the Principal Instructor (PI) of the course the first time it is offered. PIs may receive funding for only one course per grant cycle, except for cases in which a connected two-course sequence (e.g., CHEM 111, 112) might be effectively covered by a single proposal. Prior recipients of Distributed Learning Course Development Grants must have completed the prior project(s) and submitted final report(s) to be eligible to reapply this year.

Eligible Courses

Proposals must be for the development or creation of fully online asynchronous courses (in which 100% of the instruction is offered online, with no required synchronous class meetings) or blended courses (in which 50% or more of the instruction is offered online, with one or more traditional class meetings). Proposals to simply add a few online components to a traditional course, or to make minor changes to an existing DL course, will not be competitive. Proposals for courses that have already received a prior course development grant will also not be competitive.

Funds Available and Project Timeframe

Projects are available for funding of up to $7,500 per project. Funded projects will also be provided with individualized instructional design support and other pedagogical and technological resources via the CTE. 

Expectations during the Grant Period

Grant recipients will:

• Attend a kickoff luncheon and workshop with fellow grantees and up to two additional cohort meetings during the grant period to discuss course development and DL best practices.
• Collaborate regularly with an Instructional Designer from the CTE to design, develop and prepare the proposed course for DL delivery. (Note: funded courses will be expected to meet the university’s Distributed Learning Quality Assurance standards, which include accessibility standards required by the Americans with Disabilities Act.)
• Participate in a CTE-facilitated grantee cohort via Blackboard, which will include three-to-four benchmark deadlines for posting updates and sharing course materials in progress.
• If the proposed course has not previously been offered via DL, obtain university DL delivery approval following the procedure outlined in ACAF 2.03 [pdf].
• Fully develop the proposed course in Blackboard.
• Submit a final report consisting of the course syllabus, documentation of university approval for DL delivery, and a brief statement indicating when the course will be offered for the first time and plans for future offerings.
• Share with colleagues the results, experiences, and/or best practices gained through the project in a CTE panel presentation or similar venue.

Application Process

To apply, submit the Application Cover Sheet and Budget [doc], a two-to-three page proposal, and a current CV.  The proposal should include the following information:

1. A description of the targeted course or courses
2. The goals of the planned project and their relationship to the course learning outcomes
3. Why delivering the course with DL methods is important to the University, academic unit, and/or curricular objectives
4. A timeline and description of the activities to be accomplished during the grant period, and
5. The applicant’s teaching philosophy and qualifications as instructor of record for the proposed course.

Proposals will be evaluated by the following criteria:

1. Completeness of application and conformity to guidelines.
2. Clear and pedagogically coherent rationale for the project.
3. Likelihood that the course will enhance the quality or extend the reach of USC’s Distributed Learning program.
4. Feasibility of completing the project in the time proposed and with the funds available.
5. Likely impact and sustainability of the proposed course.

Next Call for Grant Proposals in Fall 2016

This grant opportunity is sponsored by the Office of the Provost and the Center for Teaching Excellence. For more information, contact the CTE at 803-777-8322 or cte@sc.edu.