Events

Join Teaching and Learning with Technology, the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence, and Top Hat for an interactive session on driving student engagement from day one. Faculty will explore practical Classroom Assessment Techniques (CATs) and collaborative learning strategies, then discover how to easily execute them using Top Hat’s polling and interactive features. Through faculty examples and hands-on design time, faculty will leave with actionable ideas, an engagement strategy tailored to achieving student learning goals. Participants will also leave with a clear understanding of the resources available to support engaging, student-centered teaching.

Registration Link

Registration will close and applicants will receive a Zoom link approximately 1 hour before the event.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

In this interactive session, we'll explore how to design effective teaching proactively for challenging topics. We’ll focus on the level of structure that is needed to decrease the likelihood of hot moments in our learning environments. Despite all planning, we might still experience unanticipated tensions, and we'll also examine concrete language for responding to disruptions in the moment.  

Registration will close 1 hour before the event starts. Registrants will receive a Zoom link at least 1 hour before the event.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

When writing precedes or structures conversation, it can lower the barriers to participation, surface a wider range of perspectives, and give students time to think before they speak. In this session of our workshop series on “Building your Classroom Discussion Repertoire”, participants will explore how writing-based strategies, ranging from brief reflective prompts to structured written exchanges, can serve as powerful on-ramps to richer classroom dialogue. Participants will experience several techniques, examine the pedagogical intentions behind each, and leave with strategies ready to adapt for their own courses and disciplines.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

This is a closed event customized for the requesting department. If you would like a similar event for your department/program or graduate student group, please contact SITE@psu.edu.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

This Provost Endorsement is a partnership between The Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence (SITE) and World Campus Online Faculty Development (WCOFD).
   
It begins with an asynchronous self-guided course, OL 3600: Universal Design for Learning (UDL), in which participants explore the rationale and research that supports designing learning experiences with UDL, read scenarios about UDL applications, and reflect on ways to apply UDL to their own instructional practices. OL 3600 is available throughout the calendar year.
   
Those who complete OL 3600 will be invited to enroll in Teach to Reach with UDL, a four-week, asynchronous, instructor-led online course offered by SITE, where participants draw upon their own teaching or learning design experience and their existing understanding of UDL to generate and respond to discussions, create a UDL-inspired instructional activity, and provide feedback on their peers’ activities. Teach to Reach is offered in spring and fall semesters.
   
Current Penn State faculty and postdocs can earn Provost Endorsements. Provost Endorsements are not available to Penn State graduate students.
   
Completion of both OL 3600 and Teach to Reach within one year are required to earn this endorsement.
   
Email Mary Ann Tobin at matobin@psu.edu with questions about this endorsement or our UDL courses.
   

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

In this free, non-credit, self-directed, and entirely asynchronous course, participants explore the rationale and research that supports designing learning experiences with UDL, read scenarios about UDL applications, and reflect on ways to apply UDL to their own instructional practices. This course is open to faculty of any rank or status, teaching assistants, and post-doctoral instructors and members of the learning design community.

Register anytime at the following link: https://psu.catalog.instructure.com/browse/wcfd/courses/ol-360001-universal-design-for-learning-2026 . You will have 90 days to complete the course.

This course is a collaboration between the Schreyer Institute and World Campus Online Faculty Development.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

In this webinar, participants will discover the types of student learning assessments and begin to consider how they might effectively measure learning in their courses.

Registration will close 1 hour before the event starts. Registrants will receive a Zoom link at least 1 hour before the event.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

The rise of generative AI is challenging traditional models of assessment. In this workshop, we will explore a framework of practical strategies for building resilient assessments that withstand evolving AI capabilities as well as assessments that integrate AI in ways that support learning. Includes an optional 30-minute design sprint at the end.

Registration will close 1 hour before the event starts. Registrants will receive a Zoom link at least 1 hour before the event.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

In this webinar, participants will discover the types of student learning assessments and begin to consider how they might effectively measure learning in their courses.

Registration will close 1 hour before the event starts. Registrants will receive a Zoom link at least 1 hour before the event.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

Teaching assistants have a crucial role—and one that can be challenging. In this interactive workshop, we’ll explore ways that TAs can navigate their roles to meet the needs of undergraduate learners, faculty, and TAs’ own professional development.

This is a closed event customized for the requesting department. If you would like a similar event for your department/program or graduate student group, please contact SITE@psu.edu.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

Teaching assistants have a crucial role—and one that can be challenging. In this interactive workshop, we’ll share advice to help TAs navigate their role to meet the needs of undergraduate learners, faculty, and TAs’ own professional development.

Registration will close and applicants will receive a Zoom link approximately 1 hour before the event.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

The Course in College Teaching (CCT) is a half-semester professional development experience for Penn State faculty, graduate students, and post-doctoral instructors who want to strengthen their teaching practice and develop the materials and language needed to present themselves confidently in academic hiring and review processes.

Running from September 10 to October 15, 2026, the CCT guides participants across the full arc of best practices in college teaching: designing an effective course, facilitating active and meaningful learning experiences, and articulating a clear and compelling teaching identity grounded in reflective practice. Learning takes place through structured, facilitated activities with peers from across disciplines, making each session both a professional development experience and a scholarly learning community.

Upon completion, participants receive a Certificate in College Teaching from the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at Penn State. This credential documents your preparation in evidence-based course design and facilitation and can be included in your application materials as a signal to hiring and review committees that you have received structured, expert-guided training in college teaching best practices.

The CCT is open to Penn State faculty, graduate students, and post-doctoral instructors with prior teaching experience. Those who have not yet taught are encouraged to begin with the Instructional Foundations Series before enrolling. For eligibility details and to apply, please visit the application linked below.

Application

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

The rise of generative AI is challenging traditional models of assessment. In this workshop, we will explore a framework of practical strategies for building resilient assessments that withstand evolving AI capabilities as well as assessments that integrate AI in ways that support learning. Includes an optional 30-minute design sprint at the end.

Registration will close 1 hour before the event starts. Registrants will receive a Zoom link at least 1 hour before the event.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

In this interactive workshop, participants will explore the role of culture in shaping classroom dynamics; the academic foundations of culturally responsive teaching; and how cultural (mis)alignment can impact the learning environment.

Registration will close and applicants will receive a Zoom link approximately 1 hour before the event.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

As generative AI tools like ChatGPT become increasingly available, students need a critical understanding of how these tools shape thinking, creativity, and scholarship. In this workshop, we will use Penn State’s AI Literacy Framework to identify ways to introduce AI concepts in your courses and intentionally design learning activities that support students in evaluating when, how, and why to use AI responsibly. Includes an optional 30-minute design sprint at the end.

Registration will close 1 hour before the event starts. Registrants will receive a Zoom link at least 1 hour before the event.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

In this four-week, entirely asynchronous online course, participants draw upon their own teaching or learning design experience and their existing, basic understanding of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) to generate and respond to discussions, create an instructional activity inspired by UDL, and provide feedback on their peers’ activities.

The course is open to faculty of any rank or status, teaching assistants, post-doctoral instructors, and members of the learning design community with existing teaching or learning design experience and a basic understanding of UDL. For eligibility requirements, see https://www.schreyerinstitute.psu.edu/teachtoreach.

To register, complete our enrollment survey at https://tinyurl.com/RegisterTTR. Participants will be notified via email approximately one week prior to the start of the course.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

AI literacy does not have to begin with a chatbot. In this workshop, participants will use Penn State’s AI Literacy Framework as a guide to explore how to teach foundational AI literacy concepts without requiring students to use generative AI tools directly. We will consider activities that help students examine how AI systems work, where they show up in everyday life, how they shape knowledge and decision-making, and what ethical questions they raise. Participants will leave with practical strategies for helping students develop the critical judgment needed to evaluate AI tools, whether or not those tools are used in the course.

Registration will close 1 hour before the event starts. Registrants will receive a Zoom link at least 1 hour before the event.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

This workshop will focus on why and how instructors can integrate active learning into their courses to support student learning and engagement. Participants will consider the ways students can learn by actively engaging with one another, the instructor, and course content. Participants will have the opportunity to apply specific examples of active learning activities to their individual teaching circumstances.

This is a closed event. If you are interested in a custom activity for your area, please contact us at site@psu.edu.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

Inclusive teaching practices support a strong sense of belonging for students, which is vital for their success. Participants will explore inclusive teaching practices that enhance a sense of belonging among students with varying cultural backgrounds and abilities, including Universal Design for Learning (UDL), and consider ways to apply them in their courses.

This is a closed event. If you are interested in a custom activity for your area, please contact us at site@psu.edu.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.