Center for Education, Innovation, and Learning in the Sciences

Critical (re)Engagement: Transformative Teaching and Learning for a ‘New Normal’ | 19th Annual Teaching & Learning Conference at Elon University (Virtual)
2023-06-07 | Online
19th Annual Teaching & Learning Conference at Elon University
Elon University welcomes university and college educators to the 19th Annual Teaching & Learning Conference on Wednesday, June 7th, 2023. This free, fully-virtual conference is sponsored jointly by Elon’s Center for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning (CATL) and Teaching and Learning Technologies (TLT).
Conference Theme: Critical (re)Engagement: Transformative Teaching and Learning for a ‘New Normal
In an era of endemic COVID, higher education finds itself at a precipice of potential, where we, as educators, can redefine the roles of instructor and learner, rediscover the values that guide our pedagogies and curriculum, and reimagine learning environments. This work requires space, time, and a thoughtful consideration of the collective trauma we have experienced over the last three years. What does our ‘new normal’ look like and how do we ensure that we acknowledge and address the significant inequalities that have been exacerbated over the last three years? This year’s Teaching and Learning Conference envisions exploring, discussing, deconstructing, and rebuilding what it means for us and learners to critically (re)engage in learning.

The 2023 Grading Conference
2023-06-09 08:00 - 2023-06-10 17:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | The Grading Conference
The 2023 Grading Conference
June 9 & 10 | Online | Register Here
The Grading Conference is a place where faculty join together to learn about grading practices that best support student learning, promote diversity, equity and inclusion in the classroom, and enhance student and faculty classroom experiences. Now in its fourth year, the purpose of the conference is to support instructors as they strive to challenge traditional grading practices that have been shown to be damaging to students and their learning.

DBER-SiT event, Education Career Pathways: A virtual panel event
2023-07-13 13:00 - 14:30 | Zoom
DBER-SiT event, Education Career Pathways: A virtual panel event
The panel will be hosted by the DBER-SiT Professional Development team via Zoom on Thursday July 13 2023, 1pm-2:30pm PT / 4pm-5:30pm ET. The goal of the event is to highlight different education-focused career pathways available to those with a life sciences and/or DBER background. Some of the jobs they’ll highlight include teaching/research faculty positions, community outreach-focused roles, directors at centers for teaching & learning, and education technology developers.
The 1st hour of the event will consist of a structured panel discussion, followed by an open Q&A with the audience. If you are interested in attending the event, please RSVP here.
Feel free to contact Zack (Zachary…@colorado.edu) and Ming (min…@mit.edu) if you have any questions about this or future events.

True North Intercultural presents Facilitating Intercultural Learning Professional Development Program Info Session
2023-07-21 10:00 - 12:00 | Zoom
Facilitating Intercultural Learning Professional Development Program Info Session: July 21st
Would you like to better integrate intercultural learning into your courses, experiential learning programs, orientations, or other aspects of your work? If so, this information session is for you! Come learn more about Facilitating Intercultural Learning, the professional development program for higher education faculty and staff that helps you: (1) develop your own intercultural competence, and (2) learn how to design and facilitate intercultural learning.
What: Facilitating Intercultural Learning Information Session
Date: Friday, July 21st
Time: 12pm Central (1pm Eastern, 11am Mountain, 10am Pacific)
Register Here: www.truenorthintercultural.com/fil-info-session

Building the Right Foundation, the Right Way: Curriculum Mapping for Equity and Student Success
2023-08-09 13:00 - 15:00 | Online
Building the Right Foundation, the Right Way: Curricular Mapping for Equity and Student Success

Webinar starts at 1:00 PM Pacific on Wednesday, August 9th, 2023
Curriculum mapping and its upkeep is often relegated to a faculty colleague or administrator who has been voluntold to be responsible for it – usually for accreditation purposes. However, building a strong curriculum map and using it effectively, as a program, offers exponential value: for faculty learning and development, programmatic continuous improvement and in planning interventions to bolster student success.

Attend this webinar to gain a brief overview of the language, tools, strategies, and techniques to engage in mapping – a seemingly arduous task – in ways that advances Universal Design Learning (UDL), inclusive teaching and learning best practices, and Equity – all for faculty and student success.
REGISTER NOW

Shaping the Future: Policy Considerations for AI in Higher Education Institutions
2023-08-10 11:00 - 13:00 | Online
An important step toward unlocking the full potential of AI in education is to develop sound policies for use. Join our exclusive webinar for higher education leaders to explore key considerations and best practices for implementing AI and ChatGPT at both the institutional and course levels. Engage with experts and practitioners in AI, education, and policy to navigate the ethical, legal, and practical aspects of AI integration. You will leave better equipped to harness the transformative power of AI while upholding academic integrity, enabling student success and maintaining the human touch that is vital to higher education.

Ed Talks @CEILS: Interdisciplinary approaches to advancing anti-racist pedagogies in biology higher education
2023-10-18 15:00 - 16:00 | Terasaki Life Sciences 1100
Benjamin Hà
October 18 | 3:00 – 4:00pm PDT
Interdisciplinary approaches to advancing anti-racist pedagogies in biology higher education
Register Here
This talk will review the course structure and pedagogical strategies applied when teaching an undergraduate seminar titled “The History and Racism of Biology Research.” While this course covered broad biology disciplines, many of the strategies and perspectives are transferable across STEM disciplines
Benjamin Hà is a recent PhD graduate from UCLA in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology with a passion for improving student success in STEM higher education
For more information, please visit: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benandrewha

Ed Talks @CEILS: Academic Experiences of Queer, Trans, Black, Indigenous, Students of Color at UCLA
2023-10-25 15:00 - 16:00 | Terasaki Life Sciences 1100
Manuel Ramirez
October 25 | 3:00pm – 4:00pm PDT
Academic Experiences of Queer, Trans, Black, Indigenous, Students of Color at UCLA
Register here
Using qualitative interview data from the UCLA LGBTQ+ Campus Resource Center’s 2023 QTBIPOC Student Experiences Project, we highlight the unique experiences that our QTBIPOC students face on our campus and how to address it.
Manuel is a second year doctoral student in the psychology program studying stigma and health processes among sexual and gender minorities. Currently, he works at the UCLA LGBTQ Campus Resource Center as a student researcher for the QTBIPOC Student Experiences Project, a qualitative needs assessment of the experiences of UCLA’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, asexual, aromantic, and intersex (LGBTQIA+) graduate and undergraduate Black, Indigenous, Students of Color (BIPOC).
For more information, please visit: https://lgbtq.ucla.edu/qtbipoc-experiences

48th Annual POD Network Conference
2023-11-14 08:00 - 2023-11-17 17:00 | In-person and Online
We invite you to join us this year as we Envision the Future: Developing Equitable Opportunities for Success (Educational Developer success → Instructor success → Student success) at our institutions. The 48th annual POD Network conference envisions what the future of educational development might look like amid rapid changes in our lives, institutions, and societies. As educational developers, we are in a unique position to influence the success of faculty, students, institutions, and our own programs. By seeing our work through these multiple lenses, we seek a more holistic view of how educational development (see POD definition of Educational Development) can drive and facilitate the ongoing pursuit of equity in higher education.

The Conference Team has been working to increase access to our conference, and one of the most effective ways to do this is to again offer online and on-the-ground venues; this year in Pittsburgh. Both experiences will offer the same “session types”—workshops, roundtables, the keynote, etc.—and provide opportunities for deep engagement with teaching and learning while interacting with fellow POD members.

A new feature this year is a day of “hybrid” sessions that allow attendees in Pittsburgh and online to connect and learn together. The keynote speaker presentation will also be live streamed to virtual attendees. We are also offering a “dual venue” option: attend both Pittsburgh AND online conferences for a reduced rate. You will have the option to attend the online sessions as they are presented during the conference (November 14-17), or watch the session recordings at a later time. Sessions will be recorded upon the approval of the facilitators and made available for a period of time (TBD) after November 17.

ASCN presents "When things don't go as planned... what happens then?"
2023-11-28 13:00 - 14:00 | Online
ASCN has an upcoming webinar on November 28th, 4-5 pm ET/ 1-2 pm PT. The panel session will be on “When things don’t go as planned… what happens then?” Register here: https://bit.ly/TheoriesInPractice
When things don’t go as planned… what happens then?: Panel on change leadership and change theory
Register now »
Tuesday, November 28, 2023
1-2 pm PT | 2-3 pm MT | 3-4 pm CT | 4-5 pm ET
Moderator: Tessa Andrews, University of Georgia
Panelists: Gita Bangera, Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU), Melissa Eblen-Zayas, Carleton College, and Laura Muller, The Jackson Laboratory

Abstract
This panel discussion will re-engage with Gita Bangera, Laura Muller, and Melissa Eblen-Zayas about how their projects have pivoted and responded to challenges. In a collaboration between working groups 1 and 3, we will have a lively discussion about how leadership and theory are tools to make projects more effective and to increase flexibility in the face of challenges.

UCLA Bruin Learn Training December Sessions
2023-12-01 08:00 - 2023-12-21 17:00 | Zoom
Register or join us for live training over Zoom. For specific questions and 1:1 guidance, drop in during daily office hours.
UCLA Bruin Learn Training Sessions

Session Details and Registration Links

Session

Audience

Day

Date

Time (PST)

Registration Link (includes event description)

Peer review and group member evaluation using FeedbackFruits
Faculty/TAs/Staff
Wednesday
12/6/2023
10:00 – 11:00 am
RegisterLinks to an external site.

End-of-Term Grading in Bruin Learn and MyUCLA
Faculty/TAs/Staff
Thursday
12/7/23
10:00 – 11:00 am
RegisterLinks to an external site.

Quick Start: Preparing to Teach with Bruin Learn
Faculty/TAs
Monday
12/11/23
12:00 – 1:30 pm
RegisterLinks to an external site.

Engage, Evaluate, and Elevate: Boost Classroom Interaction with iClicker Cloud Polling Tools
Faculty/TAs/Staff
Tuesday
12/12/23
10:00 – 11:30 am
RegisterLinks to an external site.

Tracking student progress and understanding results in Peerceptiv (peer review)
Faculty/TAs/Staff
Tuesday
12/12/23
1:00 – 2:00 pm
RegisterLinks to an external site.

End-of-Term Grading in Bruin Learn and MyUCLA
Faculty/TAs/Staff
Wednesday
12/13/23
12:00 – 1:00 pm
RegisterLinks to an external site.

Quick Start: Preparing to Teach with Bruin Learn
Faculty/TAs
Thursday
12/14/23
10:00 – 11:30 am
RegisterLinks to an external site.

End-of-Term Grading in Bruin Learn and MyUCLA
Faculty/TAs/Staff
Friday
12/15/23
10:00 – 11:00 am
RegisterLinks to an external site.

Quick Start: Preparing to Teach with Bruin Learn
Faculty/TAs
Monday
12/18/23
12:00 – 1:30 pm
RegisterLinks to an external site.

End-of-Term Grading in Bruin Learn and MyUCLA
Faculty/TAs/Staff
Tuesday
12/19/23
10:00 – 11:00 am
RegisterLinks to an external site.

Engage, Evaluate, and Elevate: Boost Classroom Interaction with iClicker Cloud Polling Tools
Faculty/TAs/Staff
Wednesday
12/20/23
10:00 – 11:30 am
RegisterLinks to an external site.

End-of-Term Grading in Bruin Learn and MyUCLA
Faculty/TAs/Staff
Thursday
12/21/23
12:00 – 1:00 pm
RegisterLinks to an external site.

Quick Start: Preparing to Teach with Bruin Learn
Faculty/TAs
Friday
12/22/23
10:00 – 11:30 am
RegisterLinks to an external site.

Other UCLA Training Events

UCLA Center for the Advancement of Teaching Events
UCLA Center of Education Innovation & Learning in the Sciences (CEILS) Events
UCLA Disabilities & Computing Program Events & Resources
UCLA Online Teaching & Learning

Get Your Syllabus Ready for Winter Quarter!
2023-12-08 09:30 - 11:00 | Zoom
Get Your Syllabus Ready for Winter Quarter!
Join CEILS Director, Rachel Kennison and Senior Associate Director, Jess Gregg, for a virtual workshop on Inclusive Syllabus Design. We will share some examples, strategies, and resources to support you in getting your syllabus created.
December 8th, 2023 | 9:30 – 11am
Virtual on Zoom (link will be provided after RSVP)
View our CEILS guide on Designing an Inclusive Syllabus here.

The Effects of Collaborative Practice Testing on Memory for Course Content in Introductory Psychology
2024-01-23 14:00 - 15:00 | Terasaki Life Sciences 1100
Ed Talks @CEILS: Learning Community Meetings!
RSVP Here
Jan 23: Melissa Paquette-Smith, Assistant Teaching Professor, UCLA Department of Psychology
The Effects of Collaborative Practice Testing on Memory for Course Content in Introductory Psychology
Zoom Option Available.

UCLA Leveraging Dynamic Social Norms to Motivate Conversations on Difficult Topics in the Classroom
2024-01-30 14:00 - 15:00 | Terasaki Life Sciences 1100
Save the Dates for
Ed Talks @CEILS: Learning Community Meetings!
RSVP Here
Jan 30: Peter Fisher, PhD graduate, Social Psychology, UCLA
Leveraging Dynamic Social Norms to Motivate Conversations on Difficult Topics in the Classroom

Metacognitive approaches to prepare incoming students for STEM majors: Impacts & Lessons Learned from a Physical Sciences Bridge Program
2024-02-06 14:00 - 15:00 | Terasaki Life Sciences 1100
Ed Talks @CEILS: Learning Community Meetings!
RSVP Here
Feb 6: Britney Robinson (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Coordinator, UCLA Physical Sciences Division) & JoAnn Roberts (Associate Director for JEDI in Teaching, CEILS)
Metacognitive approaches to prepare incoming students for STEM majors: Impacts & Lessons Learned from a Physical Sciences Bridge Program

RECONNECT: The CSU Symposium on Teaching and Learning
2024-02-23 08:00 - 2024-02-24 17:00 | In-person and Online
RECONNECT: The CSU Symposium on Teaching and Learning
California State University, San Bernardino
February 23-24, 2024 (in-person)
March 1, 2024 (virtual)
California State University, San Bernardino (CSUSB) is excited to RECONNECT faculty and staff across the CSU and surrounding community colleges by hosting the 22nd Annual Symposium on Teaching and Learning (SoTL) this winter!
To be held on two consecutive weekends with both in person and virtual opportunities to RECONNECT, the symposium is an opportunity to join your colleagues in learning and sharing with each other some of the exciting work we have done across the system and state in the past five years.
The in-person portion of the symposium (the first since 2019) will be held on the beautiful CSUSB main campus nestled against the San Bernardino Mountains on Friday, Feb. 23 & Saturday, Feb. 24. The virtual portion will be held the following week on Friday, March 1.
We encourage participants to submit proposals for presentations on the following themes by 11:59 pm on Monday, November 13, 2023:

Culturally responsive pedagogies
Student engagement and belonging
(Emerging) technologies as tools for learning
Inclusive learning assessment and outcomes
CSU-community colleges partnerships

Presentations can be submitted as posters, interactive sessions, symposium sessions, mini sessions, and virtual sessions (Friday, 3/1 only). Descriptions of each type of presentation are shown below.
All proposals must be submitted by 11:59 pm on Monday, November 13, 2023 through the EventsAir submission portal by clicking on the Apply Now button below. New submitters will need to create an account and then be ready with the proposal title, presentation type, theme, author(s) and affiliation(s), abstract of up to 200 words, and presentation AV requirements. Also, please be ready to answer these additional questions:

How does your session address one or more of the symposium strands?
Who is your intended audience and why? (50 words maximum)
How will you engage your audience throughout the session?
If your first choice presentation type is oversubscribed, what would be your second choice and why? How might you change your presentation to fit this presentation type?
(Interactive Session only) Please outline the interactive facilitation plan for the 90 minute session
(Interactive Session only) What outcome/s do you intend for your participants and how will you know if they have been achieved?

Your submission can be saved as a draft and completed later.

Faculty Orientation for Spring 2025
2025-03-19 14:00 - 16:00 | Zoom link emailed to RSVPers
Are you teaching a course for the first time? Or are you seeking more guidance on what to do to set up your class? Do you have questions about effective ways to welcome students into your class on the first day? Are you concerned about your exams being both fair and rigorous?
CEILS is here to help! This orientation is specifically designed for folks teaching their first course in Spring 2025, and anyone teaching your first large enrollment course. In addition to having resources around logistics and BruinLearn setup, we’ll also discuss course and grading structure, syllabus design, how to manage student questions and engagement in large classes, and getting ready for the first day of class.
More info here
RSVP here

CEILS Faculty Orientation - Fall 2025
2025-09-11 14:00 - 17:00 | Zoom link emailed to RSVPers
Are you new to UCLA? Are you teaching at UCLA for the first time? Are you teaching a new course or a large-enrollment course for the first time? Do you have questions about effective ways to welcome students into your class on the first day? Are you concerned about your exams being both fair and rigorous? Are you wondering how to effectively work with your TAs?
This orientation is specifically designed for folks teaching their first course in Fall 2025, and anyone teaching their first large-enrollment course. In the last hour, we will be discussing tips for how to work effectively with your TAs and to adapt assignments or assessments if you have less TA support than expected. In addition to having resources around logistics and BruinLearn (Canvas) setup, we’ll also discuss course and grading structure, syllabus design, how to manage student questions and engagement in large classes, and getting ready for the first day of class.
Join us on Thursday, September 11, 2-5 pm on Zoom. RSVP Here by September 10. Once you RSVP, we will send a Zoom link and additional resources.

More info here
RSVP here

2025 CEILS Teaching Table for STEM Classrooms
2025-10-09 15:00 - 16:00 | CEILS Office Hershey Hall 230
Creating a more inclusive classroom for neurodivergent students
About 20-30% of college students are neurodivergent. In this Teaching Tables gathering, we invite you to share your experiences with neurodiversity in and outside the classroom and discuss how we can all better support our neurodivergent students.
Resource: Autism Goes to College Podcast. Episode 42: What professors need to know?
About Teaching Tables:
Teaching Tables is a space for all UCLA instructors to come together each month and share their joys and frustrations of teaching. We will also guide conversation around a selected resource (e.g., article, podcast, short video) on topics related to teaching STEM courses at UCLA, such as getting to know your students in this day and age, making space for everyone in your class, and more. We will explore each session’s resources and topics by tapping into your experiences and those of the community. Whether you’re a seasoned professor or you’ve just started your teaching journey, you’ll find strategies to try in your own classroom and a community to explore them with!
Join us in creating a communal space for faculty, teaching staff, postdocs, and graduate students to discuss, learn, and consider teaching strategies that support themselves and their students in the classroom.
Drop in for one or come for them all, we hope to see you there!
RSVP: RSVP for Teaching Tables Fall 2025

Supporting Neurodivergent Students: Evidence and Strategies for STEM Faculty - Special Event: UCLA Disability Pride Week
2025-10-16 15:00 - 16:00 | Zoom link emailed to RSVPers
Anywhere between 10-30% of college students identify as neurodivergent. Come join us at this Interactive Lecture to learn from Dr. Yasamin Bolourian, Director of Outreach and Dissemination at UCLA Tarjan Center and co-developer of NeuroPREP, a faculty training program on neurodiversity. Dr. Bolourian will share some strategies on how to better support neurodivergent students in our STEM courses.
More about the speaker:
Dr. Yasamin Bolourian is the Director of Outreach and Dissemination at the UCLA Tarjan Center and a research supervisor at the UCLA PEERS® Clinic. Her work focuses on supporting neurodivergent students and adults through inclusive practices, training, and evidence-based strategies that promote access, equity, and success across educational and workplace settings.
RSVP for Supporting Neurodivergent Students In STEM

2025 CEILS Teaching Table for STEM Classrooms
2025-11-13 12:30 - 13:30 | CEILS Office Hershey Hall 230
Cultivating attention amidst distraction
Laptops and cell phone use is extremely common in college classrooms now and there are growing concerns about students’ attention spans. What are some ways we might be able to help our students pay attention in the classroom? We invite you to share strategies that you have used to cultivate attention and learn from each other.
Resource: Resilient Pedagogy podcast. Episode: Distracted with James Lang
About Teaching Tables
Teaching Tables is a space for all UCLA instructors to come together each month and share their joys and frustrations of teaching. We will also guide conversation around a selected resource (e.g., article, podcast, short video) on topics related to teaching STEM courses at UCLA, such as getting to know your students in this day and age, making space for everyone in your class, and more. We will explore each session’s resources and topics by tapping into your experiences and those of the community. Whether you’re a seasoned professor or you’ve just started your teaching journey, you’ll find strategies to try in your own classroom and a community to explore them with!
Join us in creating a communal space for faculty, teaching staff, postdocs, and graduate students to discuss, learn, and consider teaching strategies that support themselves and their students in the classroom.
Drop in for one or come for them all, we hope to see you there!
RSVP for Teaching Tables Fall 2025

2025 CEILS Journal Club
2025-12-03 14:00 - 15:00 | Terasaki Rm 1100 | Zoom option available
Paper we will discuss on Dec 3:
Yuriev, Elizabeth, et al. “Integrating Generative AI in Chemistry Education: Enhancing Career-Ready Writing Skills in Pharmaceutical Science.” Journal of Chemical Education 102.5 (2025): 1991-2001.
CEILS Journal Club for STEM Education
About Journal Club: Are you interested in learning about the latest STEM education research but not sure where to start? Or feeling overwhelmed by the sheer quantity of literature out there and what it means for your teaching? Come to the CEILS journal club!
We will pick key recent papers from the STEM education research literature and provide a one-page summary to facilitate discussion. Our goal is to make it easier for instructors to explore relevant STEM education research literature and reflect on its implications for their courses in community with other instructors.
All UCLA instructors including faculty, graduate students and postdocs are welcome to participate!
RSVP for Journal Club Fall 2025

2025 CEILS Teaching Table for STEM Classrooms
2025-12-11 12:30 - 13:30 | CEILS Office Hershey Hall 230
Reflecting Together on the Fall Quarter
Come celebrate the end of the quarter with us and share your wins as well as the challenges you experienced in the Fall quarter.
About Teaching Tables
Teaching Tables is a space for all UCLA instructors to come together each month and share their joys and frustrations of teaching. We will also guide conversation around a selected resource (e.g., article, podcast, short video) on topics related to teaching STEM courses at UCLA, such as getting to know your students in this day and age, making space for everyone in your class, and more. We will explore each session’s resources and topics by tapping into your experiences and those of the community. Whether you’re a seasoned professor or you’ve just started your teaching journey, you’ll find strategies to try in your own classroom and a community to explore them with!
Join us in creating a communal space for faculty, teaching staff, postdocs, and graduate students to discuss, learn, and consider teaching strategies that support themselves and their students in the classroom.
Drop in for one or come for them all, we hope to see you there!
RSVP for Teaching Tables Fall 2025
