C. Instructional practice

Resource Title:
Graduate Teacher Certificate Program: C. Instructional practice
Course Type:
All
graduate teacher certificate orientation graduate teacher certificate learning graduate teacher certificate practice graduate teacher certificate mentorship graduate teacher certificate reflection
A. Orientation to College Teaching & Student Learning B. Learning About Teaching C. Instructional Practice D. Mentorship on Teaching E. Reflection on Instructional Practice

Requirements:

To practice teaching and reflect on student learning, participants must complete:

C1: Two terms of teaching at U-M

Requirement

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Please note: Positions involving only grading, proctoring, and/or office hours do not fulfill this requirement. Teaching experience must include the range of responsibilities associated with college-level instruction. These typically include planning for instruction; consistent and direct contact with students in a classroom, studio, or lab on a weekly basis; and responsibility for assigning a final grade to students in a course or section. Teaching experience may be in-person or remote, provided that it still includes this range of responsibilities.

Graduate students who cannot complete a second term of teaching as a GSI, for whatever reason, may petition the U-M Graduate Teacher Certificate Working Group (UMGraduateTeacherCertificate@umich.edu) to complete BOTH requirements B1 AND B2 in lieu of a second term of teaching, or to complete a second mentorship (requirement D) in lieu of a second term of teaching.

If you were a GSI for the same course in two different semesters, you must submit separate documentation for each GSI appointment. You may submit documentation for GSI appointments completed before participating in this program.

 

Documentation

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Please note: Participation in the U-M Graduate Teacher Certificate Program does NOT guarantee participants a GSI appointment. To locate and apply for a GSI position, contact the GSI Coordinator for the department(s) in which you would like to teach or visit the University of Michigan Academic Human Resources web site to review GSI job postings. Please note that individual departments coordinate hiring for GSI positions. CRLT does not oversee or coordinate GSI appointments.

  1. Submit documentation describing the teaching responsibilities for your GSI appointment on the My Dashboard page. Include the correct uniqname for the appropriate course/GSI supervisor.
  2. An automatically generated email is then sent to the course supervisor, requesting verification.
  3. Via a secure website link, the course supervisor verifies your documentation. Course supervisors do NOT evaluate your teaching. Nor will their responses be shared with individual departments for use in GSI hiring decisions or departmental teaching evaluations.
  4. Participants are responsible for securing verification from faculty. Please expect a time lag of at least two weeks for receipt of faculty verification and an additional time lag for CRLT staff to update the status of your submission after receiving faculty verification. If you have questions about or problems requesting faculty verification, please send an email to UMGraduateTeacherCertificate@umich.edu.

 

AND

C2: A consultation on teaching at U-M

Requirement

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To qualify for the C2 requirement, consultations must involve reflection on student feedback or your interactions with students. As a result, it should include discussion of one of the following: discussion of results of Midterm Student Feedback (MSF) or end-of-term student ratings, or debriefing of a classroom observation that includes a focus on student engagement (i.e., going beyond a focus on course content and considering instructional practice and interactions with or among students; see this list of discussion prompts to consider when debriefing an observation). MSFs and observations require classroom visits by a consultant. However, if you are not currently teaching and are not expecting a GSI appointment in the future, you may request a consultation regarding your student ratings from a previous GSI appointment (see instructions below for obtaining reports on student ratings). To select the consultation type that is best for you, refer to the resources and support section below.

 

Documentation

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  1. If you completed your consultation with a CRLT consultant, the consultant will confirm the consultation, and you do not need to submit any further documentation. CRLT consultants will not share their responses for use in GSI hiring decisions or departmental teaching evaluations.
  2. For consultations with someone in your department (e.g., a GSM, course supervisor, or other faculty member), submit form C2 on the My Dashboard page describing the consultation. Include the correct uniqname for the consultant with whom you worked.
  3. An automatically generated email is then sent to the consultant requesting verification.
  4. Via a secure website link, the departmental consultant verifies your documentation. Consultants are not asked to evaluate your teaching for the GTC or to divulge confidential consultation contents.
  5. Participants are responsible for securing verification from departmental consultants. Please expect a time lag of at least two weeks for receipt of departmental consultant verification and an additional time lag for CRLT staff to update the status of your submission after receiving verification. If you have questions about or problems requesting faculty or consultant verification, please send an email to UMGraduateTeacherCertificate@umich.edu.

 

Resources and Support:

CRLT Consultations on Teaching

CRLT staff are available to consult with individual GSIs who want to discuss their teaching. Consultations are confidential. For more information about CRLT consultation services, and to make an appointment with a consultant, please visit https://crlt.umich.edu/crlt-consultation-services. 

  • Midterm Student Feedback: The consultant works with the instructor to design an in-person or remote process for collection of midterm student feedback that best meets the instructor’s needs. Approaches include student surveys, small group method, and consultations on feedback gathered by the instructor. Typically the consultant will also observe the class as part of this service, to gain additional context for the feedback students provide. After observing the class and collecting student feedback, the consultant meets with the instructor to discuss how the instructor might address the feedback and potential next steps.
  • Classroom Observation: The consultant observes your class, or a classroom video recording, and then discusses it with you. Please note that discussion of a video recording of your class requires student consent.
  • Consultation on Student Ratings: You and the consultant review and discuss reports on your student ratings that you obtained from your teaching department or the Registrar’s Office. CRLT does not administer, coordinate, oversee, or archive student ratings.

Departmental Consultations on Teaching

  • Many departments across campus employ one or more experienced GSIs as Graduate Student Mentors who provide support to GSIs. GSMs are trained to provide the consultations listed above. You may contact GSMs directly to arrange a consultation. Check with the Graduate Student Coordinator in your department to locate or identify your GSM.  
  • Faculty course supervisors often observe GSI teaching, or consult around student ratings or midterm feedback. In addition, many graduate students ask their mentors or committee chairs to observe their teaching or discuss student feedback.