Teaching and Learning Scholarship (TLS)

Have you considered conducting research on the teaching and learning that takes place in Penn State classrooms (physical and virtual)? The Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence provides multiple levels of support for any Penn State instructor (including graduate students) interested in developing a project for presentation or publication.

What is teaching and learning scholarship (TLS)?

Here at Schreyer, teaching and learning scholarship (TLS) includes any form of systematic inquiry into teaching and learning practice at Penn State. We chose to call this teaching and learning scholarship (TLS) to be inclusive of a range of scholarly approaches, including the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL), disciplinary-based educational research (DBER), teaching as research (TAR), and similar identifiers.

How does the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence support instructors who wish to engage in TLS?

Our goal is to make the process of engaging in teaching and learning scholarship as inclusive, transparent, and reflective as possible.

• We offer a range of support services to ease the most persistent bottlenecks identified by Penn State instructors who do this kind of research. We want to make it as easy as possible for Penn State instructors to do research on their teaching and learning practice.

  These support services include the following:

  • Training in research design & methods (including student co-researchers)
  • Literature reviews
  • Statistical data analysis and visualization
  • IRB protocol writing and development (including templates for most frequent designs)
  • Academic writing support and developmental editing
  • Survey design and dissemination
  • Honest broker services, including consent administration and secure storage
  • Research consultation and coaching

• We offer opportunities to collaborate with other Penn State instructors on topics of shared interest. The Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence seeks to create opportunities for instructors to participate in innovative, evidence-based, and multi-disciplinary scholarship in teaching and learning.

  These opportunities include:

  • Research toolkits, which provide a comprehensive package (pre-built tools, approved IRBs, step by step instructions, related resources) to conduct research on topics of strategic interest to Penn State. Current toolkits include virtual exchange (EDGE) projects and general education courses.
  • Professional development opportunities, including webinars, short courses, academies, and program-specific activities)
  • Incubators which bring instructors together to explore new, cutting-edge research methods and/or approaches to teaching and learning
  • Partnerships in external grant opportunities related to teaching and learning scholarship
  • The TLS conference travel grant program (link here)

To determine what support services may be right for you, please contact Laura Cruz, Research Professor in Teaching and Learning Scholarship, at lxc601@psu.edu.