Webinar 
Tuesday, September 3, 2:50pm - 4:05pm - In-Person
This workshop, the first in the series, will provide participants the opportunity to establish the group dynamics essential to successfully developing mentorship ability. Participants will have the opportunity to develop their own philosophy of mentoring as a part of the program and prepare for upcoming workshops within the Entering Mentoring sequence.
This is a required session for theEntering Mentoringcertificate of Completion. Register
Tuesday, September 3, 3:00pm - 4:00pm - Webinar
This workshop familiarizes attendees with Blackboard’s Ultra Course View. eLearning Services will demonstrate how instructors can navigate a UCV course, communicate with students, add content, find and utilize Blackboard tools, and grade assignments. Register
Wednesday, September 4, 1:10pm - 2:00pm - Webinar
In this session, we will focus on leading good discussions that promote student engagement, facilitate learning, and foster community in the classroom. First, we'll work together to define what we mean by 'good' discussions before turning our attention to general strategies that work for a variety of disciplines and to troubleshoot potential problems. Drawing on both the latest research and from a range of experiences, we'll consider our audience broadly (what, as human beings, do we expect and need from conversation?) and more specifically (how do we best connect with Generation Z?). By the end of our session, we'll have compiled our own instructional manual that will help us connect with the diverse student population that USC serves across its many campuses and through multiple modalities. Register
Wednesday, September 4, 2:00pm - 2:45pm - Webinar
Blackboard Ultra Course View (UCV) is the newest version of the Blackboard Learning Management System. With new improvements being made monthly to Ultra Course View there are exciting changes which instructors may not have seen. This is a short presentation about the most recent updates that have occurred in Blackboard Ultra Course View and will include information on how to stay up to date on future improvements. Register
Thursday, September 5, 10:00am - 11:00am - Webinar
This workshop is designed for Blackboard users who are familiar with the new Ultra Course View but want a more intensive look at the UCV Gradebook. In this 60-minute session, a consultant from eLearning Services will share best practices and tips & tricks for setting up a Gradebook that works for you, present a live demonstration, and answer questions. Register
Tuesday, September 10, 10:00am - 11:00am - Webinar
In this workshop, you will learn how to enhance your courses in Blackboard's Ultra Course View. This session will guide you through setting accommodations for students, making your content more accessible, and applying universal design best practices. By the end of the workshop, you’ll be equipped with practical strategies to create a more inclusive and effective learning environment for all students. Don't miss this opportunity to make your courses better for everyone! Register
Tuesday, September 10, 10:05am - 11:20am - Webinar
Creating an environment of integrity within the classroom truly takes a village. Faculty, administrators, and students all play a role in maintaining an ethical campus community. This workshop will explore preventative tools to address classroom roadblocks.
This is a required session for a certificate of completion in Fostering Proactive Learning Environments. Register
Tuesday, September 10, 1:30pm - 3:30pm - In-Person
Enhance your courses and get personalized assistance for teaching with the new Blackboard Learn Ultra Course View (UCV). Whether you have specific inquiries or just need general assistance, facilitators from the Center for Teaching Excellence (CTE) and eLearning Services (eLS) are here to help! Register
Wednesday, September 11, 12:00pm - 12:50pm - Webinar
Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly becoming an integral part of our world. However, it's crucial to understand that AI complements human innovation and creativity rather than replacing it. In this webinar, we'll explore how Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) can empower learners and educators alike, fostering responsible and innovative use across disciplines.
By the end of this webinar, participants will be able to:
This is a required session for the Teaching and Learning with Generative Artificial Intelligence certificate of completion. Register
Wednesday, September 11, 1:10pm - 2:00pm - On-Line Meeting
The Virtual Environments Community of Practice is planning ways to integrate virtual reality, augmented reality and mixed reality into teaching and learning environments at USC. Meetings are open to faculty, staff and students.
If you are interested in participating in the Virtual Environments CoP, or would like to be on the email list for further information, please email Charles Andy Schumpert at schumpca@mailbox.sc.edu.
In our first meeting of Fall 2024, we'll hear from Dr. Taylor Wen, director of the BaUX lab here at USC. Register
Thursday, September 12, 10:05am - 11:20am - In-Person
In this introductory workshop, participants will learn how publishing models affect students’ abilities to access affordable course materials and how libraries can acquire learning resources for the classroom. Workshop facilitators will demonstrate how to use the library to provide affordable and equitable access to course materials through e-reserves, purchasing, video streaming, and open educational resources.
This is a required session for a certificate of completion in Teaching with the Library. Register
Thursday, September 12, 1:15pm - 2:30pm - In-Person
During their time at USC, our undergraduate students enroll in courses, participate in cocurricular engagements, hold down jobs while preparing themselves for their future careers, engage with the community, and manage their own personal challenges (AAC&U/Carnegie Foundation, 2004), but how do they make sense of these varied experiences and realize how they all interconnect? Integrative learning provides students with strategies to make connections between these within and beyond the classroom activities to help them apply their skills to new and complex problems and challenges.
This presentation explores teaching strategies and philosophies that encourage students to engage in activities beyond the classroom and then have students relate those experiences to their courses and curriculum. We will review current research and practices on integrative and experiential learning and how the Center for Integrative and Experiential Learning supports IL and EL, including the impactful role of our Quality Enhancement Plan, Experience by Design. Participants will discuss strategies for encouraging students to reflect and make interdisciplinary connections between their experiences within and beyond the classroom to promote creativity, collaboration, and problem-solving.
This workshop is a required session for a certificate of completion in Integrative and Experiential Learning. Register
Thursday, September 12, 3:00pm - 4:00pm - Webinar
In this session you'll learn how to transform your Blackboard Ultra course from ordinary to extraordinary! Discover how best to organize your content to make your course visually engaging and user-friendly, and then take it a step further with customization to add some pizazz. Whether you're looking to streamline your course structure, add some creative touches, or both, this session will give you the tools to make your course stand out. Register
Friday, September 13, 12:00pm - 1:00pm - Webinar
If you’ve heard a student comment, “I’m a visual learner so I prefer to watch videos,” you may have recognized it as a description of their “learning style.” The theory of learning styles maintains that by matching instruction to students’ preferred mode of learning, students learn better, and this seems to be supported by scores of hypothesized frameworks categorizing learning styles (visual/auditory/kinesthetic, sensing vs. intuition, etc.). But did you know that learning styles have been definitively debunked in cognitive psychology and neuroscience research literature? Despite the intuitive appeal, there is little to no empirical evidence that learning styles are real.
So as an instructor, what does this mean for your teaching and student learning? In this webinar, you will learn about several common learning style models, applying two models to your own preferences to better explore their fallacies and help clarify our understanding of student learning abilities. We’ll also discuss techniques and recommendations for being more inclusive in your teaching style to address varying student abilities. A broader teaching approach is needed to improve learning outcomes, one that invites students to reflect on their learning, rather than narrow their style down (Ambrose et. al, 2010).
NOTE: Participants will be asked to complete in advance several “Learning Style Inventories” (i.e. quizzes) prior to the event in order to have a more productive discussion of participants’ results, perceptions, and experiences with them. Register
Monday, September 16, 10:00am - 10:50am - In-Person
We often hear the term 'politically correct' or 'PC' to describe when individuals feel they have to change their terminology to not offend another person. However, this presentation will challenge us to move away 'politically correct' terms and focus more on inclusive, validating terms, phrases, and descriptors for different groups. The focus will be on exploring how inclusive language in the classroom when teaching, discussing students/faculty, and when creating materials can transform how students absorb information, feel welcomed and safe, and embrace inclusivity.
This introductory presentation will focus on defining marginalized population, person-first language, and addressing some of our implicit bias & stereotypes.
This is an elective session for a certificate of completion in Teaching Towards Inclusive Excellence. Register
Monday, September 16, 12:00pm - 12:50pm - Webinar
How do we view our students? How can you harness their strengths and abilities to
succeed? In this session, we will recognize how the lenses that we view students through
form a hidden curriculum of expectations and how we can shift to leveraging the strengths
of all students. We will apply strategies for creating more equitable teaching to
enhance our teaching practices and empower students.
This session is part of a series of four Foundations of Learning workshops. Register
Tuesday, September 17, 10:00am - 10:30am - Webinar
In partnership with faculty and staff from USC, the Center for Teaching Excellence has developed a set of quality standards for online courses. These standards are useful for various purposes, such as conducting self-reviews of courses, designing online courses, assisting faculty with course design, and conducting internal peer reviews by units. This session offers an opportunity to learn about the standards and explore ways to leverage them in order to design exceptional online courses. Register
Tuesday, September 17, 1:30pm - 2:30pm - Webinar
Unleash the full potential of assessments in Blackboard Ultra Course View with this virtual workshop designed for faculty members. Explore how to create engaging and effective assignments and tests that not only evaluate student learning but also enhance their experience. We’ll cover the essentials of setting up assignments and tests and incorporate engaging and creative elements to add that extra flair. By the end of this one-hour session, you will be better equipped to take the assessments in your course to the next level. Register
Tuesday, September 17, 2:50pm - 4:05pm - In-Person
Mentors play a vital role in both teaching and modeling ethical behavior. There are ethical issues centering on the research itself – how to conduct, report, and writeup research – as well as relationships between mentors and mentees. Most relationships in academia establish a power dynamic, and it is a mentor’s responsibility to learn how to manage their power. Reflecting upon and discussing ethical behavior is an important part of becoming an effective mentor.
This is an elective session for theEntering Mentoring certificate of completion. Register
Wednesday, September 18, 1:10pm - 2:00pm - In-Person
The focus of this session will be examining Exploratory Engagements and how college instructors can integrate these enhancement experiences into their course design. Exploratory Engagements are defined as “purposeful activities focused on exploration of student interests through participation in significant events intended to extend one’s curiosity or early understanding of a topic or focus” (Quality Enhancement Plan, 2021). Example engagements include attending a campus speaker or social event, organization fair, Discover USC, Service Saturday, etc.
Research literature suggests completion of engagements impacts degree completion, learning, career earnings, civic engagement and satisfaction with the college environment (Astin, 1984; Gonyea, et. al., 2008; Harper, 2008; Hu & Wolniak, 2010). This is particularly true for students with first-generation, transfer, and/or racialized identities (Finley & McNair, 2013; Kinzie, 2012; Kuh, et. al., 2017; Pascarella & Terenzini, 2005).
This session will connect exploratory engagements to student success outcomes, identify example engagement opportunities on and off campus, and motivate participants to consider how they may incorporate these experiences into their courses. Register
Wednesday, September 18, 3:00pm - 4:15pm - Webinar
This comprehensive 75-minute training session is designed to help educators effectively use Zoom and Blackboard together to enhance their online teaching experience. Whether you are new to Zoom or looking to optimize your use of these tools, this training covers everything you need to know.
Participants will learn how to set up and use Zoom and its features right from their Blackboard course; how to schedule and manage Zoom meetings; how to manage recordings after your Zoom sessions, and more! Register
Friday, September 20, 10:00am - 11:00am - Webinar
Panopto is an all-in-one video management platform built into Blackboard Learn. In this session, attendees will learn how to create and manage video learning content in Panopto that can be easily integrated into Blackboard courses. Register
Monday, September 23, 11:00am - 12:00pm - In-Person
Through Recovery Ally workshops, Gamecock Recovery strives to empower students, faculty and staff to make campus more supportive of students in recovery from substance use disorder. Learn to: confront myths and stigma about substance use disorder; use and model acts of allyship in everyday interactions; and identify, access, and direct people to recovery resources at USC.
Recovery Ally workshops are presented in a flipped-classroom model that includes a self-paced video module as prework (estimated 20 minutes) and a one-hour in-person session. Please review the recorded content prior to your scheduled workshop session.
This is a required session for a certificate of completion in Mental Health and Well-being Competency. Register
Wednesday, September 25, 12:00pm - 12:50pm - Webinar
Are you curious about the potential of Generative Artificial Intelligence to transform teaching and learning? In this webinar, we will explore the world of Generative AI, a powerful technology that can generate text, translate languages, write different creative content, and answer your questions with human-like responses. With prompt engineering, the art of crafting effective instructions for Generative AI, you will discover how to design prompts that elicit thoughtful responses.
By the end of this webinar, participants will be able to:
This is a required session for the Teaching and Learning with Generative Artificial Intelligence certificate of completion. Register
Wednesday, September 25, 1:10pm - 2:00pm - Webinar
You'll feel more comfortable in the classroom when you understand how copyright applies to course materials. Come explore how to use freely available, licensed, and copyrighted materials in instruction and on Blackboard. We’ll discuss the practical applications of fair use and other exceptions and limitations. Finally, we’ll examine how the library can assist you with posting materials for your class.
This is an elective session for a certificate of completion in Teaching with the Library. Register
Thursday, September 26, 11:45am - 1:00pm - In-Person
Join us for a Mutual Expectations Discussion on “Experiential Learning at Carolina” during our September session. This engaging dialogue will focus on intentional strategies for bridging academic studies with extracurricular activities. We will explore the concept of experiential learning and discuss its various forms. Additionally, we will consider how faculty can facilitate these connections for students.
Enjoy a lively discussion with colleagues and students. Complimentary lunch will be provided.
This is an elective session for a certificate of completion in Understanding USC Student Populations and Experiences. Register
Thursday, September 26, 1:00pm - 2:15pm - Webinar
This comprehensive 75-minute training session is designed to help educators effectively use Zoom and Blackboard together to enhance their online teaching experience. Whether you are new to Zoom or looking to optimize your use of these tools, this training covers everything you need to know.
Participants will learn how to set up and use Zoom and its features right from their Blackboard course; how to schedule and manage Zoom meetings; how to manage recordings after your Zoom sessions, and more! Register
Thursday, September 26, 2:50pm - 4:05pm - Webinar
The Resilience in the Classroom training is a 50-minute training that focuses on three major components of resilience:
Resilience is associated with academic success and psychological well-being. This session will help instructors identify how they can strengthen students' resilience and help them adapt to change and hardships by integrating these core competencies into their curriculum.
This is a required session for a certificate of completion in Mental Health and Well-being Competency. Register
Tuesday, October 1, 10:05am - 11:20am - Webinar
Technology misuse in the classroom has become so pervasive that we must rethink whether our energies should be spent fighting it or whether to work with students on a new paradigm. Yet struggles around technology are also the most obvious symptom of a much larger problem of many students' inability to focus and the value many of them hold for multitasking.
This is an elective session for a certificate of completion in Fostering Proactive Learning Environments. Register
Tuesday, October 1, 1:30pm - 2:45pm - In-Person
This interactive session will explore the needs, demographics, and attitudes of today’s first-year students, both nationally and locally. Through a facilitated discussion and game show format, participants will learn more about the realities and needs of students entering college in 2024.
This is a required session for a certificate of completion in Understanding USC Student Populations and Experiences. Register
Wednesday, October 2, 2:20pm - 3:10pm - Webinar
How do you conceptualize learning? How do you guide your students toward integrating
new knowledge and skills into their existing ideas and abilities? In this session,
you will review key principles of cognitive constructivism, social constructivism,
and connectivism and strategies to apply them to our teaching to enhance student learning.
You will then reflect on how these strategies could affect your students’ learning
experience and how you might apply them to your own teaching practices.
This session is part of a series of four Foundations of Learning workshops. Register
Thursday, October 3, 10:05am - 11:20am - In-Person
In this presentation, the presenter will share multi-semester data collected from
novice graduate teaching assistants before and after Teaching Assistant Orientation,
and over the course of their first semester in their graduate program. Through qualitative
and quantitative data, GTAs' primary teaching-related concerns are summarized.
This presentation will include practical suggestions for helping GTAs have a successful
start in their degree program while working productively with faculty and undergraduate
students. Register
Thursday, October 3, 1:15pm - 2:30pm - In-Person
Undergraduate research creates meaningful experiences that drive student learning further than theory alone. Multiples studies have demonstrated the importance of research experiences in helping students in STEM feel connected and engaged with their major (especially students from underrepresented groups) along with enhanced student outcomes. However, there's a limited number of labs/research groups and with so many students searching for research opportunities there's student needs not being met. The use of a course based undergraduate research experience (CURE) can help alleviate this undergraduate research bottleneck.
This session will explore the creation, implementation, and delivery of a CURE in biological sciences. We'll outline how we developed our CURE, recruited our student scientists, ensured student success, and the products created in one semester that will stay with our student scientists for a lifetime.
This workshop is an elective session for a certificate of completion in Integrative and Experiential Learning. Register
Friday, October 4, 10:00 am - 10:45am - Webinar
Blackboard Ultra Course View (UCV) is the newest version of the Blackboard Learning Management System. With new improvements being made monthly to Ultra Course View there are exciting changes which instructors may not have seen. This is a short presentation about the most recent updates that have occurred in Blackboard Ultra Course View and will include information on how to stay up to date on future improvements. Register
Monday, October 7, 3:30pm - 4:20pm - Webinar
The first half of the Support Zone training focuses on providing context for the necessity of faculty and staff being well-versed in recognizing and responding to students experiencing mental health distress. The facilitator will review definitions, national and local statistics about mental health in college students and discuss how stigma affects help-seeking behaviors. The facilitator will also discuss how COVID-19 has exacerbated the aforementioned issues. This session will also cover crisis support protocol, how to recognize signs of distress, warning signs of suicide, non-suicidal self-injury, and how to respond and intervene to a student of concern.
This is a required session for a certificate of completion in Mental Health and Well-being Competency. Register
Tuesday, October 8, 10:00am - 12:00pm - In-Person
Enhance your courses and get personalized assistance for teaching with the new Blackboard Learn Ultra Course View (UCV). Whether you have specific inquiries or just need general assistance, facilitators from the Center for Teaching Excellence (CTE) and eLearning Services (eLS) are here to help! Register
Tuesday, October 8, 2:50pm - 4:05pm - In-Person
An important goal of any mentoring relationship is helping the mentee become independent; yet, defining what an independent mentee knows and can do is often not articulated by the mentor or the mentee. Defining what independence looks like and developing the skills to foster that independence are important to becoming an effective mentor. Defining independence becomes increasingly complex in the context of a larger research team.
This is an elective session for the Entering Mentoring certificate of Completion. Register
Wednesday, October 9, 12:00pm - 12:50pm - Webinar
Enhance your teaching approach with innovative content creation. This webinar offers educators practical insights into using Generative Artificial Intelligence to craft lectures and instructional materials tailored to the needs of 21st-century learners. From transforming traditional content delivery methods to infusing creativity and interactivity into course materials, participants will explore innovative approaches to content creation that harness the power of Generative AI. Discover how Generative AI can enhance engagement, foster deeper understanding, and inspire curiosity in their students.
By the end of this webinar, participants will be able to:
This is a required session for the Teaching and Learning with Generative Artificial Intelligence digital badge. Register
Wednesday, October 9, 1:10pm - 2:00pm - On-Line Meeting
The Virtual Environments Community of Practice is planning ways to integrate virtual reality, augmented reality and mixed reality into teaching and learning environments at USC. Meetings are open to faculty, staff and students.
If you are interested in participating in the Virtual Environments CoP, or would like to be on the email list for further information, please email Charles Andy Schumpert at schumpca@mailbox.sc.edu.
Our second session of the semester will be all about creating VR experiences from scratch with Kate Bernheisel from the College of Nursing.. Register
Thursday, October 10, 11:45am - 1:00pm - In-Person
Join us for a Mutual Expectations Discussion on the topic of free speech on campus, both inside and outside the classroom. This workshop will delve into how we can engage in respectful dialogue, even when we disagree. Students, faculty, and staff will explore expectations for classroom discussions, particularly on topics with diverse and opposing viewpoints. Our goal is to find common ground for respectful conversation and engagement.
Enjoy this lively discussion with colleagues and students. Complimentary lunch will be provided.
This is an elective session for a certificate of completion in Understanding USC Student Populations and Experiences. Register
Thursday, October 10, 1:15pm - 2:30pm - In-Person
Utilizing integrative learning principles, the presenters will share examples of how high impact practice (HIP) characteristics are incorporated across different disciplines and identify classroom assessment techniques (CATs) that can be applied across a variety of academic settings. Participants will have opportunities to share examples of reflection and integrative learning principles in the design of assignments and appropriate assessment methods for their classroom.
This workshop is a required session for a certificate of completion in Integrative and Experiential Learning. Register
Monday, October 14, 3:30pm - 4:20pm - Webinar
The second half of the Support Zone training focuses on participants learning how to refer students of concern experiencing varying levels of distress (mild, moderate and severe), what to do if a student refuses a referral, how to maintain the students' privacy, and how to follow-up with the student. This session includes role-plays and other interactive activities to help participants practice their recently acquired skills. The facilitator will also discuss the how responding to students of concern affects faculty/staff mental health and how to respond accordingly.
This session includes a review of resources specific to faculty/staff needs and tips on dealing with COVID-19 related stressors. Lastly, the facilitator will review campus and community resources to ensure participants have a thorough understanding of what is available to students and when to use each resource.
This is a required session for a certificate of completion in Mental Health and Well-being Competency. Register
Tuesday, October 15, 10:00am - 11:15am - Webinar
This comprehensive 75-minute training session is designed to help educators effectively use Zoom and Blackboard together to enhance their online teaching experience. Whether you are new to Zoom or looking to optimize your use of these tools, this training covers everything you need to know.
Participants will learn how to set up and use Zoom and its features right from their Blackboard course; how to schedule and manage Zoom meetings; how to manage recordings after your Zoom sessions, and more! Register
Wednesday, October 16, 1:00pm - 2:00pm - Webinar
This workshop familiarizes attendees with Blackboard’s Ultra Course View. eLearning Services will demonstrate how instructors can navigate a UCV course, communicate with students, add content, find and utilize Blackboard tools, and grade assignments. Register
Thursday, October 17, 2:00pm - 3:00pm - Webinar
Panopto is an all-in-one video management platform built into Blackboard Learn. In this session, attendees will learn how to create and manage video learning content in Panopto that can be easily integrated into Blackboard courses. Register
Monday, October 21, 1:10pm - 2:00pm - Webinar
Do you want to learn techniques for involving your learners in your course? In this session, you will discuss strategies for active learning and student engagement that will help advance learning for everyone, such as Universal Design for Learning (UDL). You will engage with small teaching strategies to design learning activities that can enhance engagement as soon as your next class!
This session is part of a series of four Foundations of Learning workshops. Register
Tuesday, October 22, 8:30am - 9:45am - In-Person
Learn to question your assumptions about what students know and explicitly identify the knowledge and skills you want them to acquire when completing library research assignments. [In this session, participants will explore common challenges students face when conducting library research and identify best practices for designing assignments that require or encourage the use of library resources. Participants will also have the opportunity to learn about ways in which faculty can partner with librarians to support student success. By creating research assignments with specific learning outcomes that are clear to your students, you can improve the experience for everyone involved.
This is a required session for a certificate of completion in Teaching with the Library. Register
Tuesday, October 22, 2:50pm - 4:05pm - In-Person
Good communication is a key element of any relationship, and the mentoring relationship is no exception. As mentors, it is insufficient to say we know good communication when we see it. Participants will learn how to identify the key characteristics of effective communication and practice these skills with other participants. At the end of workshop, participants will be better prepared to provide constructive feedback to mentees, engage in active listening, communicate across diverse dimensions (disciplines, ethnicities, positions of powers), and formulate strategies for improving their own communication style.
This is an elective session for theEntering Mentoringcertificate of Completion. Register
Wednesday, October 23, 10:50am - 11:40am - In-Person
Introduce your students to the integrative environment of digital projects without overwhelming yourself. A digital project assignment can be a web site, database, podcast, or any multimedia platform. This type of assignment can draw students into the class but can be cumbersome for the teacher. Drawing on faculty experiences and twenty years of managing USC Libraries’ Digital Collections, this presentation will help you understand how to set up and manage such an assignment so that you can all enjoy learning and collaborating and not lose sight of the main topic. Learn about the Libraries services so you can take full advantage of them. If this talk piques your interest, the Library offers in depth online, workshops on many of the tools mentioned in this overview.
This is an elective session for a certificate of completion in Teaching with the Library. Register
Wednesday, October 23, 12:00pm - 12:50pm - Webinar
Engaging students through interactive and dynamic activities is essential for fostering a stimulating learning environment. In this webinar, educators will explore how to leverage Generative Artificial Intelligence to enhance their teaching practices and create impactful activities for 21st-century learners. From designing collaborative projects to incorporating AI-generated prompts and feedback, participants will discover innovative ways to integrate Generative AI into their instructional activities.
By the end of this webinar, participants will be able to:
This is a required session for the Teaching and Learning with Generative Artificial Intelligence digital badge. Register
Friday, October 25, 8:00am - 3:00pm - In-Person
The 15th Annual Oktoberbest Symposium celebrates teaching success at USC, actively engages attendees in professional development sessions that enhance innovative teaching practices, and establishes and fosters meaningful connections. The Oktoberbest agenda features engaging sessions, led by your USC colleagues, on innovative approaches to teaching, assessments, course design, and creative student learning opportunities.
Oktoberbest is free to all who teach or support teaching at USC, but is not open to the general public.
The Oktoberbest Keynote Address will be given by Sarah Rose Cavanagh, Senior Associate Director for Teaching and Learning in the Center for Faculty Excellence at Simmons University. Her keynote address and Gallery Walk workshop is entitled “Hope in a Time of Monsters: Supporting Faculty and Student Mental Health.” Register
Monday, October 28, 2:00pm - 3:15pm - Webinar
This comprehensive 75-minute training session is designed to help educators effectively use Zoom and Blackboard together to enhance their online teaching experience. Whether you are new to Zoom or looking to optimize your use of these tools, this training covers everything you need to know.
Participants will learn how to set up and use Zoom and its features right from their Blackboard course; how to schedule and manage Zoom meetings; how to manage recordings after your Zoom sessions, and more! Register
Tuesday, October 29, 10:00am - 11:00am - Webinar
This workshop is designed for Blackboard users who are familiar with the new Ultra Course View but want a more intensive look at the UCV Gradebook. In this 60-minute session, a consultant from eLearning Services will share best practices and tips & tricks for setting up a Gradebook that works for you, present a live demonstration, and answer questions. Register
Tuesday, October 29, 1:15pm - 3:15pm - In-Person
Hear from USCPD what to do to keep your students and yourself safe. This seminar is designed to provide guidance on what to do in a shooting incident, how to be prepared, how to think safely and how to recognize a potential problem, specifically in campus and classroom contexts. Register
Wednesday, October 30, 1:10pm - 2:00pm - Webinar
In this workshop we will tackle the plans, tips, and tricks necessary to get students to rave about your communication abilities – or, at least improve their enthusiasm. Clear communication in course design and in ongoing course messages is key to student satisfaction and improved course learning outcomes. We will use Blackboard Ultra as our tool and explore how we can use it to get clear, concise, and creative in our communications. We will take a hands-on approach: I will share evidence-based strategies for improved communication and show you examples from our sociology courses. Next, we will work on strategies that are uniquely applicable to your own courses. You will walk away with a draft of a quality communication plan for one of your courses and a number of immediately applicable Blackboard hacks up your sleeve. Register
Thursday, October 31, 10:05am - 11:20am - Webinar
Join us for a lively discussion of the benefits of formative assessment and feedback and strategies for implementing them in different teaching and learning contexts, including large enrollment courses. Participants will learn how to use formative assessment to foster students’ responsibility for their learning and enhance instructor’s awareness of students’ progress and challenges and their ability to intervene effectively. We will explore several types of formative assessments and easy-to-use tools for creating them. Register
Monday, November 4, 10:00am - 11:00am - In-Person
Join us for an engaging session focused on mental wellbeing in the workforce. The presentation will explore the importance of mental health for faculty, staff, and other member of academy. After discussing concepts such as stress, resilience, and burnout, we will address mechanisms to cope and self-care. The presentation will also include some interventions that can be completed with low resources and training to improve relaxation and long-term well-being.
This is an elective session for a certificate of completion in Teaching Towards Inclusive Excellence. Register
Wednesday, November 6, 9:40am - 10:30am - Webinar
Do you have a desire to help your learners become more motivated to do well and persist
through challenges? Join us to learn how to leverage motivation and emotion to create
positive, engaging learning environments. You will analyze motivational theories and
strategies to determine what might be able to best help your learners in your context.
This session is part of a series of four Foundations of Learning workshops. Register
Wednesday, November 6, 12:00pm - 12:50pm - Webinar
Assessments just got a major upgrade! This webinar explores how Generative Artificial Intelligence can transform your assessments from rote memorization exercises to engaging experiences that promote deeper learning. Discover how to generate assessments that align with your course learning outcomes to foster creativity, critical thinking, and personalized learning experiences.
By the end of this webinar, participants will be able to:
This is a required session for the Teaching and Learning with Generative Artificial Intelligence digital badge. Register
Thursday, November 7, 10:05am - 11:20am - In-Person
Helping students develop the skills for the growing demands of the job market means teachings students to integrate their work experiences with their educational background. Often these elements are treated as two distinct experiences, with few connections drawn between career opportunities and classroom education and skills.
This session will provide participants the opportunity for exploring mechanisms to connect these experiences through the integration of internship opportunities in classroom settings. We will focus on exploring potential internship sources for your students, highlighting skills, theories, and tools that can be developed within the classroom to compliment these experiences, and helping students to integrate in and out of class opportunities in clear and concise ways through reflection.
This workshop is an elective session for a certificate of completion in Integrative and Experiential Learning. Register
Friday, November 8, 10:50am - 11:40am - Webinar
The first half of the Support Zone training focuses on providing context for the necessity of faculty and staff being well-versed in recognizing and responding to students experiencing mental health distress. The facilitator will review definitions, national and local statistics about mental health in college students and discuss how stigma affects help-seeking behaviors. The facilitator will also discuss how COVID-19 has exacerbated the aforementioned issues. This session will also cover crisis support protocol, how to recognize signs of distress, warning signs of suicide, non-suicidal self-injury, and how to respond and intervene to a student of concern.
This is a required session for a certificate of completion in Mental Health and Well-being Competency. Register
Monday, November 11, 10:50am - 11:40am - Webinar
The second half of the Support Zone training focuses on participants learning how to refer students of concern experiencing varying levels of distress (mild, moderate and severe), what to do if a student refuses a referral, how to maintain the students' privacy, and how to follow-up with the student. This session includes role-plays and other interactive activities to help participants practice their recently acquired skills. The facilitator will also discuss the how responding to students of concern affects faculty/staff mental health and how to respond accordingly.
This session includes a review of resources specific to faculty/staff needs and tips on dealing with COVID-19 related stressors. Lastly, the facilitator will review campus and community resources to ensure participants have a thorough understanding of what is available to students and when to use each resource.
This is a required session for a certificate of completion in Mental Health and Well-being Competency. Register
Monday, November 11, 1:00pm - 2:15pm - Webinar
This comprehensive 75-minute training session is designed to help educators effectively use Zoom and Blackboard together to enhance their online teaching experience. Whether you are new to Zoom or looking to optimize your use of these tools, this training covers everything you need to know.
Participants will learn how to set up and use Zoom and its features right from their Blackboard course; how to schedule and manage Zoom meetings; how to manage recordings after your Zoom sessions, and more! Register
Tuesday, November 12, 11:45am - 1:00pm - In-Person
Join us for a Mutual Expectations Discussion where we will explore participants' views on the appropriate use of AI on campus. When is ChatGPT appropriate, and when is it not? What other AI tools are being used beyond ChatGPT? Should we establish common expectations as a campus community for AI usage?
Enjoy this engaging discussion with fellow students and faculty. Complimentary lunch will be provided.
Sponsored by the Carolina Experience, the Center for Teaching Excellence, and the Office of Student Conduct and Academic Integrity.
This is an elective session for a certificate of completion in Understanding USC Student Populations and Experiences. Register
Tuesday, November 12, 12:00pm - 2:00pm - In-Person
Through Recovery Ally workshops, Gamecock Recovery strives to empower students, faculty and staff to make campus more supportive of students in recovery from substance use disorder. Learn to: confront myths and stigma about substance use disorder; use and model acts of allyship in everyday interactions; and identify, access, and direct people to recovery resources at USC.
Recovery Ally workshops are presented in a flipped-classroom model that includes a self-paced video module as prework (estimated 20 minutes) and a one-hour in-person session. Please review the recorded content prior to your scheduled workshop session.
This is a required session for a certificate of completion in Mental Health and Well-being Competency. Register
Tuesday, November 12, 2:50pm - 4:05pm - In-Person
One of the most critical elements of the mentor-mentee relationship is having a shared understanding of what the objectives of the relationship are. When challenges arise in the relationship, it is likely because there has been a misunderstanding about what the expected objectives of the relationship are. Additionally, relationships and their expectations change over time as the mentee grows, meaning that frequent and consistent adjustment of the expectations of mentors and mentees is required for mentorship to be successful. This workshop is an elective for the Entering Mentoring Certificate of Completion.
This is an elective session for the Entering Mentoring certificate of Completion. Register
Wednesday, November 13, 10:00am - 11:00am - In-Person
Through Recovery Ally workshops, Gamecock Recovery strives to empower students, faculty and staff to make campus more supportive of students in recovery from substance use disorder. Learn to: confront myths and stigma about substance use disorder; use and model acts of allyship in everyday interactions; and identify, access, and direct people to recovery resources at USC.
Recovery Ally workshops are presented in a flipped-classroom model that includes a self-paced video module as prework (estimated 20 minutes) and a one-hour in-person session. Please review the recorded content prior to your scheduled workshop session.
This is a required session for a certificate of completion in Mental Health and Well-being Competency. Register
Wednesday, November 13, 12:00pm - 12:50pm - Webinar
A teaching philosophy statement provides a concise description of an instructor's perspective on teaching, student learning, methodologies, and implementation, and institutions typically request a teaching philosophy statement from applicants for faculty positions and as part of the tenure and promotion process.
What, then, is your teaching philosophy? What aspects should you reflect upon, write, or include? And how has the writing of this document changed as a result of ChatGPT, both in the document construction as well as your perspective on this fundamental shift in higher education? This will be a working webinar, where we will discuss strategies for composing the statement, incorporating time for theme development, group discussion and feedback, and ChatGPT prompt exploration. Participants will leave with a thematic outline of their statement, a draft of the opening paragraph, and guidelines to continue crafting it.
NOTE: For you and other participants to benefit the most in the time available, this webinar
requires that you do some reflective writing in advance of the session.
By the end of this webinar, participants will be able to:
This is a required session for the Teaching and Learning with Generative Artificial Intelligence digital badge. Register
Wednesday, November 13, 1:10pm - 2:00pm - On-Line Meeting
The Virtual Environments Community of Practice is planning ways to integrate virtual reality, augmented reality and mixed reality into teaching and learning environments at USC. Meetings are open to faculty, staff and students.
If you are interested in participating in the Virtual Environments CoP, or would like to be on the email list for further information, please email Charles Andy Schumpert at schumpca@mailbox.sc.edu.
In our third and final meeting of Fall 2024, we'll discuss accessibility concerns using VR and the potential for VR to help create more inclusive spaces for all. Register
Thursday, November 14, 10:05am - 11:20am - Webinar
Engaging in conflict is challenging whether you are an experienced instructor or new to your role. A common strategy is to ignore the behavior due to our own discomfort, concern over retaliation or fear that our intervention may cause more harm or disruption. We will identify what our fears are about classroom disruption and use case study examples to practice strategies to stretch participants' comfort zones. This workshop will also explore Gerald Amada's research from Coping with Misconduct in the College Classroom and provide participants with tangible strategies to prevent and respectfully address disruptive behavior.
This is a required session for a certificate of completion in Fostering Proactive Learning Environments. Register
Monday, November 18, 1:15pm - 2:30pm - In-Person
Students not reading your syllabus? Want a quicker, efficient way to get information to your students about our courses? Try supplementing our regular syllabus with a graphical syllabus! In this session, we'll explore the benefits of graphical syllabi, how to quickly create one, and some ways we can engage students with our syllabi in fresh and creative ways. Participants are encouraged to bring a laptop or device to begin creating a graphical syllabus but it's not required. Participants will leave with a template graphical syllabus that can help jumpstart their journey. Register
Tuesday, November 19, 1:15pm - 2:30pm - In-Person
With the launch of Carolina Experience in 2024, a heightened emphasis has been placed on understanding and supporting the experiences of sophomore, junior, transfer, and senior student populations through an emphasis on community development and career readiness. To help in these endeavors, longitudinal qualitative and quantitative data collected from the Student Success Center has been instrumental in better understanding these target populations.
What are the common experiences of students in the middle years of college? What are the biggest challenges they face and what do they most look forward to? How does this align with the national research on these populations? And most importantly- how can this information be used to support their overall experience at USC and in support of student engagement, including experiential learning, and career readiness?
We will go over the assessment findings and what specialized resources are already in place at USC to support these populations, as well as provide recommendations for instructors and course-based activities. Finally, we will wrap up this session with group discussion on suggestions to further support the target populations through the Carolina Experience, including additional ways for campus stakeholders to get involved.
This is a required session for a certificate of completion in Understanding USC Student Populations and Experiences and an elective session for a certificate of completion in Integrative and Experiential Learning. Register
Tuesday, November 19, 2:50pm - 4:05pm - Webinar
The Resilience in the Classroom training is a 50-minute training that focuses on three major components of resilience:
Resilience is associated with academic success and psychological well-being. This session will help instructors identify how they can strengthen students' resilience and help them adapt to change and hardships by integrating these core competencies into their curriculum.
This is a required session for a certificate of completion in Mental Health and Well-being Competency. Register
Wednesday, November 20, 1:15pm - 2:30pm - In-Person
The diversity in USC classrooms is rapidly increasing to include students from a range of countries and linguistic backgrounds. With all of the benefits that come from having a global classroom, there are challenges that are presented by this shift. As students try to succeed in a language that they do not natively speak and in a country where cultural differences can be confusing and overwhelming, these challenges often come to light in the classroom.
This session will equip you with strategies for ensuring that your international students successfully learn the material and meet your expectations in the classroom.
This is an elective session for a certificate of completion in Teaching Towards Inclusive Excellence. Register
Thursday, November 21, 1:15pm - 2:30pm -Webinar
It’s time to start thinking about your upcoming course! Have you already started planning your syllabus and have ideas but don't know where to start? Or are you feeling mired down in syllabus details, feeling like you're missing a prime opportunity to rethink and revise certain sections? You're not alone - and we're here to help! Join other instructors as we break down the components of the syllabus using the backwards design model: the role of learning outcomes and how to craft them, developing quality learning activities, formulating the appropriate assessment, and determining the most effective teaching methodology. Other tips and advice for syllabus development, including required and recommended components, along with examples of good and bad syllabus construction, will be discussed. Register
Wednesday, December 4, 2:00pm - 4:00pm - In-Person
Enhance your courses and get personalized assistance for teaching with the new Blackboard Learn Ultra Course View (UCV). Whether you have specific inquiries or just need general assistance, facilitators from the Center for Teaching Excellence (CTE) and eLearning Services (eLS) are here to help! Register
Blackboard Learn Ultra Course View (UCV) is the latest version of Blackboard Learn. If you need assistance with UCV, attend webinars and presentations hosted by CTE Instructional Designers and eLearning Services Consultants.
CTE's professional development sessions empower educators to innovate and inspire. We record many of these workshops and post them on our YouTube Channel Video Archives.