Workshops and Training
Workshops and Training
OTEAR offers multiple workshops on the improvement of teaching evaluation and assessment. All current workshops that are available are listed below, and each session is facilitated by OTEAR staff unless otherwise noted. If you are interested in scheduling a specific workshop for your office or department, or would like to speak with an OTEAR staff member, please email us at otear@rutgers.edu.
To stay informed of our upcoming workshops and trainings, please sign up for the OTEAR email listserv.
The Classroom Inclusivity Series is now being administered by University Equity and Inclusion.
Available Sessions
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Introduction to Learning Analytics September Cohort
September 8-22, 2025
The Introduction to Learning Analytics for Instructors is an asynchronous learning opportunity to support instructors in starting to build their capacity around learning analytics. Topics include defining learning analytics, ethical considerations, limitations, the impact of course design, and an introduction to New Analytics in Canvas. A digital badge can be earned through the completion of all module activities and assignments. The program is open to all Rutgers faculty and instructional staff at no cost.
Some activities are designed to provide opportunities for discussion with colleagues, and therefore, the module will be run in two-week cohorts, once per month.
-
Blue Dashboard Training for Administrators
Wednesday, September 10, 2025
9:30 am – 11:00 amThe Blue Dashboard allows Deans, Directors and administrators to look longitudinally across their SIRS data to glean actionable insights and have meaningful conversations in their departments. While not an alternative to an official teaching grid, the Blue Dashboard will provide an opportunity for units to look at trends across their courses and determine strengths and areas for improvement.
This training session will explain how to use the Blue Dashboard, understand the statistics that are provided, and the differences in reporting between the Blue Dashboard and individual reports. We hope that this will be a powerful tool to support improving your courses and teaching within your units.
-
Interpreting SIRS and other forms of Student Feedback (Virtual Interactive Workshop)
Thursday, September 11, 2025
9:30 am – 11:00 amWhile students are crucial stakeholders in the university’s teaching enterprise, their feedback should not be mistaken for “evaluation of teaching,” which is a task for instructional colleagues. Student feedback is an indicator which provides evidence that must be interpreted. In this workshop, we explore scholarly research on the limitations and potential biases of student feedback. We present strategies for how department chairs and program directors should review, interpret, and utilize the likert-scale and comment responses from the Student Instructional Ratings Survey (SIRS) to improve course curriculum, support faculty, and evaluate teaching. This workshop is especially beneficial for those who regularly engage with SIRS, but we also encourage anyone from the university community interested in learning about best practices in interpreting student feedback to join us. To attend the workshop or to receive the video recording after the workshop, please register.
-
Designing a Departmental- or School-Level Midcourse Survey Process (Virtual Interactive Workshop)
Tuesday, September 16, 2025
1:30 pm – 3:00 pmMidcourse student surveys provide a valuable option for formative assessment of instruction. Departments and schools can encourage this work and support instructors by establishing a midcourse survey process for all instructors or a subset, such as new part-time lecturers. This session is designed for chairs and deans and will review how some other departments and schools have implemented midcourse surveys, helping to ensure that a new midcourse survey process is an informative and worthwhile endeavor for all.
-
DIG Training (Virtual)
Thursday, September 18, 2025
9:30 am – 10:30 amThe DIG system was updated during the last week of May 2025, and there are some significant functional differences. Therefore, we are suggesting that all department administrators who are responsible for validating instructor details for SIRS setup attend a DIG training session. For this virtual offering, you will receive a confirmation email with the Zoom link a few days before the session.
-
DIG Training (Virtual)
Tuesday, September 23, 2025
1:00 pm – 2:00 pmThe DIG system was updated during the last week of May 2025, and there are some significant functional differences. Therefore, we are suggesting that all department administrators who are responsible for validating instructor details for SIRS setup attend a DIG training session. For this virtual offering, you will receive a confirmation email with the Zoom link a few days before the session.
-
Navigating Peer Review of Teaching (Virtual Interactive Workshop)
Thursday, September 25, 2025
9:30 am – 11:00 amPeer review of teaching is an important part of the advancement, reappointment, and promotion process for instructors of all ranks. This workshop is primarily designed to prepare reviewers tasked with conducting peer review of teaching, but instructors preparing to be observed may also find this session helpful. This session focuses on peer review of in-person classroom instruction and peer review of course materials, and provides suggestions for effectively documenting observations. A version of this workshop was previously offered in Spring 2024. If you wish to attend the workshop or to receive the video recording after the workshop, please register.
-
Interpreting and Utilizing Student Feedback for Change: Midcourse Surveys
Friday, September 26, 2025
9:30 am – 11:00 amDo you know what your students think about your lectures, discussions, activities, or your carefully crafted selected assignments? This workshop is geared toward instructors and explores how to conduct a midcourse survey using Blue or another platform like Google Forms. We provide a discussion of how to employ quantitative and qualitative methods to analyze the data you obtain, and how you should share this information with your students. Our underlying focus in this session is to help you develop the insight you need to address student concerns and make course adjustments before the term is over.
-
Assessment of Learning 101
Friday, October 17, 2025
1:00 pm – 2:30 pmThis workshop explores the fundamentals of academic assessment, including program learning outcomes, course learning goals, and both direct and indirect assessment techniques. We will examine the crucial role of rubrics within the assessment process and discuss how assessment strategies can effectively inform course design. The workshop will also address best practices for enhancing assessment quality, including the implementation of blind grading procedures, ensuring grading reliability through inter-rater checks, and utilizing multiple reviewers for comprehensive evaluations. This workshop is designed for faculty who are new to academic assessment or need a refresher on learning about different methods of assessment and the assessment cycle. Last offered in Spring of 2025. Please register to attend or receive the recording.
-
Peer Review of Online Teaching (Virtual Interactive Workshop)
Tuesday, October 21, 2025
12:30 pm – 2:00 pmPeer review of teaching plays a crucial role in the advancement, reappointment, and promotion process for instructors across all ranks. Many educators now teach courses with significant online components, including asynchronous online, synchronous online, and hybrid formats. Peer review of these courses presents unique challenges, such as defining the concept of “observation,” understanding the integration of course design and student engagement, and recognizing the specific challenges faced by both instructors and students in online settings. This workshop offers a platform to share best practices and engage in discussions about these issues. If you wish to attend the workshop or to receive the video recording after the workshop, please register.
-
Designing Assessment Plans for Academic Programs
Tuesday, November 4, 2025
9:00 am – 10:30 amThis workshop will guide you through the process of developing a comprehensive assessment plan. You will learn to articulate clear learning goals, design a curriculum map that aligns with these goals, and effectively measure program success. We will explore a variety of direct and indirect assessment techniques and demystify the difference between programmatic and learning-focused evaluation. Whether you are launching a new program for Board of Governors review, revitalizing an existing curriculum, or aiming to improve your current assessment strategies, this session will provide you strategies for success. Please register to attend or receive the recording:
-
Using the Rutgers Guidelines for Presenting Evidence of Effective Teaching (Virtual Interactive Workshop)
Wednesday, December 3, 2025
1:30 pm – 3:00 pmThis workshop will explore the Guidelines for Effective Teaching, which adopts a framework showing what effective teaching looks like and encourages faculty to present evidence that shows their strengths across all aspects of teaching. As part of this session, participants evaluate samples of evidence and brainstorm what sources of evidence they can muster to build their promotion packets. This workshop is intended for all instructors presenting evidence for effective teaching. Please register to attend or receive the recording:
-
Developing a Teaching Portfolio (Virtual Interactive Workshop)
Tuesday, January 6, 2026
12:30 pm – 2:00 pmCraft a standout teaching portfolio to effectively communicate your teaching responsibilities, philosophy, goals, and achievements. This interactive workshop will teach you how to present an engaging teaching philosophy and compile compelling evidence of your teaching success. You will also learn to highlight your professional growth and development as an educator. If you wish to attend the workshop or to receive the video recording after the workshop, please register.
-
Peer Review of the Teaching Portfolio (In-Person Hands-on Workshop)
Thursday, January 15, 2026
9:30 am – 11:00 am
in-person in New BrunswickDoes your teaching portfolio present strong evidence showcasing your teaching success? Is the teaching philosophy clear and well-matched with your instructional goals? In this workshop we provide a rubric for evaluating teaching portfolios and assign participants to small teams to peer review their portfolios and document effective strategies and presentation of evidence. We will share results so that all participants can see the best strategies and learn from each other. This workshop will be held in person in New Brunswick, and is meant for those who can bring a draft portfolio to share with others.
-
Interpreting SIRS and other forms of Student Feedback (Virtual Interactive Workshop)
Thursday, September 11, 2025
9:30 am – 11:00 amWhile students are crucial stakeholders in the university’s teaching enterprise, their feedback should not be mistaken for “evaluation of teaching,” which is a task for instructional colleagues. Student feedback is an indicator which provides evidence that must be interpreted. In this workshop, we explore scholarly research on the limitations and potential biases of student feedback. We present strategies for how department chairs and program directors should review, interpret, and utilize the likert-scale and comment responses from the Student Instructional Ratings Survey (SIRS) to improve course curriculum, support faculty, and evaluate teaching. This workshop is especially beneficial for those who regularly engage with SIRS, but we also encourage anyone from the university community interested in learning about best practices in interpreting student feedback to join us. To attend the workshop or to receive the video recording after the workshop, please register.
-
Designing a Departmental- or School-Level Midcourse Survey Process (Virtual Interactive Workshop)
Tuesday, September 16, 2025
1:30 pm – 3:00 pmMidcourse student surveys provide a valuable option for formative assessment of instruction. Departments and schools can encourage this work and support instructors by establishing a midcourse survey process for all instructors or a subset, such as new part-time lecturers. This session is designed for chairs and deans and will review how some other departments and schools have implemented midcourse surveys, helping to ensure that a new midcourse survey process is an informative and worthwhile endeavor for all.
-
Navigating Peer Review of Teaching (Virtual Interactive Workshop)
Thursday, September 25, 2025
9:30 am – 11:00 amPeer review of teaching is an important part of the advancement, reappointment, and promotion process for instructors of all ranks. This workshop is primarily designed to prepare reviewers tasked with conducting peer review of teaching, but instructors preparing to be observed may also find this session helpful. This session focuses on peer review of in-person classroom instruction and peer review of course materials, and provides suggestions for effectively documenting observations. A version of this workshop was previously offered in Spring 2024. If you wish to attend the workshop or to receive the video recording after the workshop, please register.
-
Interpreting and Utilizing Student Feedback for Change: Midcourse Surveys
Friday, September 26, 2025
9:30 am – 11:00 amDo you know what your students think about your lectures, discussions, activities, or your carefully crafted selected assignments? This workshop is geared toward instructors and explores how to conduct a midcourse survey using Blue or another platform like Google Forms. We provide a discussion of how to employ quantitative and qualitative methods to analyze the data you obtain, and how you should share this information with your students. Our underlying focus in this session is to help you develop the insight you need to address student concerns and make course adjustments before the term is over.
-
Peer Review of Online Teaching (Virtual Interactive Workshop)
Tuesday, October 21, 2025
12:30 pm – 2:00 pmPeer review of teaching plays a crucial role in the advancement, reappointment, and promotion process for instructors across all ranks. Many educators now teach courses with significant online components, including asynchronous online, synchronous online, and hybrid formats. Peer review of these courses presents unique challenges, such as defining the concept of “observation,” understanding the integration of course design and student engagement, and recognizing the specific challenges faced by both instructors and students in online settings. This workshop offers a platform to share best practices and engage in discussions about these issues. If you wish to attend the workshop or to receive the video recording after the workshop, please register.
-
Using the Rutgers Guidelines for Presenting Evidence of Effective Teaching (Virtual Interactive Workshop)
Wednesday, December 3, 2025
1:30 pm – 3:00 pmThis workshop will explore the Guidelines for Effective Teaching, which adopts a framework showing what effective teaching looks like and encourages faculty to present evidence that shows their strengths across all aspects of teaching. As part of this session, participants evaluate samples of evidence and brainstorm what sources of evidence they can muster to build their promotion packets. This workshop is intended for all instructors presenting evidence for effective teaching. Please register to attend or receive the recording:
-
Developing a Teaching Portfolio (Virtual Interactive Workshop)
Tuesday, January 6, 2026
12:30 pm – 2:00 pmCraft a standout teaching portfolio to effectively communicate your teaching responsibilities, philosophy, goals, and achievements. This interactive workshop will teach you how to present an engaging teaching philosophy and compile compelling evidence of your teaching success. You will also learn to highlight your professional growth and development as an educator. If you wish to attend the workshop or to receive the video recording after the workshop, please register.
-
Peer Review of the Teaching Portfolio (In-Person Hands-on Workshop)
Thursday, January 15, 2026
9:30 am – 11:00 am
in-person in New BrunswickDoes your teaching portfolio present strong evidence showcasing your teaching success? Is the teaching philosophy clear and well-matched with your instructional goals? In this workshop we provide a rubric for evaluating teaching portfolios and assign participants to small teams to peer review their portfolios and document effective strategies and presentation of evidence. We will share results so that all participants can see the best strategies and learn from each other. This workshop will be held in person in New Brunswick, and is meant for those who can bring a draft portfolio to share with others.
-
Introduction to Learning Analytics September Cohort
September 8-22, 2025
The Introduction to Learning Analytics for Instructors is an asynchronous learning opportunity to support instructors in starting to build their capacity around learning analytics. Topics include defining learning analytics, ethical considerations, limitations, the impact of course design, and an introduction to New Analytics in Canvas. A digital badge can be earned through the completion of all module activities and assignments. The program is open to all Rutgers faculty and instructional staff at no cost.
Some activities are designed to provide opportunities for discussion with colleagues, and therefore, the module will be run in two-week cohorts, once per month.
-
Designing a Departmental- or School-Level Midcourse Survey Process (Virtual Interactive Workshop)
Tuesday, September 16, 2025
1:30 pm – 3:00 pmMidcourse student surveys provide a valuable option for formative assessment of instruction. Departments and schools can encourage this work and support instructors by establishing a midcourse survey process for all instructors or a subset, such as new part-time lecturers. This session is designed for chairs and deans and will review how some other departments and schools have implemented midcourse surveys, helping to ensure that a new midcourse survey process is an informative and worthwhile endeavor for all.
-
Assessment of Learning 101
Friday, October 17, 2025
1:00 pm – 2:30 pmThis workshop explores the fundamentals of academic assessment, including program learning outcomes, course learning goals, and both direct and indirect assessment techniques. We will examine the crucial role of rubrics within the assessment process and discuss how assessment strategies can effectively inform course design. The workshop will also address best practices for enhancing assessment quality, including the implementation of blind grading procedures, ensuring grading reliability through inter-rater checks, and utilizing multiple reviewers for comprehensive evaluations. This workshop is designed for faculty who are new to academic assessment or need a refresher on learning about different methods of assessment and the assessment cycle. Last offered in Spring of 2025. Please register to attend or receive the recording.
-
Designing Assessment Plans for Academic Programs
Tuesday, November 4, 2025
9:00 am – 10:30 amThis workshop will guide you through the process of developing a comprehensive assessment plan. You will learn to articulate clear learning goals, design a curriculum map that aligns with these goals, and effectively measure program success. We will explore a variety of direct and indirect assessment techniques and demystify the difference between programmatic and learning-focused evaluation. Whether you are launching a new program for Board of Governors review, revitalizing an existing curriculum, or aiming to improve your current assessment strategies, this session will provide you strategies for success. Please register to attend or receive the recording:
-
Blue Dashboard Training for Administrators
Wednesday, September 10, 2025
9:30 am – 11:00 amThe Blue Dashboard allows Deans, Directors and administrators to look longitudinally across their SIRS data to glean actionable insights and have meaningful conversations in their departments. While not an alternative to an official teaching grid, the Blue Dashboard will provide an opportunity for units to look at trends across their courses and determine strengths and areas for improvement.
This training session will explain how to use the Blue Dashboard, understand the statistics that are provided, and the differences in reporting between the Blue Dashboard and individual reports. We hope that this will be a powerful tool to support improving your courses and teaching within your units.
-
DIG Training (Virtual)
Thursday, September 18, 2025
9:30 am – 10:30 amThe DIG system was updated during the last week of May 2025, and there are some significant functional differences. Therefore, we are suggesting that all department administrators who are responsible for validating instructor details for SIRS setup attend a DIG training session. For this virtual offering, you will receive a confirmation email with the Zoom link a few days before the session.
-
DIG Training (Virtual)
Tuesday, September 23, 2025
1:00 pm – 2:00 pmThe DIG system was updated during the last week of May 2025, and there are some significant functional differences. Therefore, we are suggesting that all department administrators who are responsible for validating instructor details for SIRS setup attend a DIG training session. For this virtual offering, you will receive a confirmation email with the Zoom link a few days before the session.