Learning Innovation is now accepting proposals for Faculty Learning Communities for the 2022-2023 academic year.

Faculty Learning Communities (FLCs) are groups of teaching faculty, led by one or more faculty facilitators, who meet regularly to work together in an active, collaborative program on a pedagogical or curricular topic of interest.  These communities meet for an extended period of time in order to create connections and solve problems.

DLI’s overall goal in offering this program is to support the development of faculty-focused pedagogical communities of practice at Duke by encouraging a culture of talking about teaching, exploring how to create more student-centered learning experiences, and engaging with the pedagogical literature in order to apply research-based teaching approaches to more Duke courses. The program’s aim is to support FLCs that have the potential to produce outcomes that bring meaningful, positive change to teaching and learning at Duke.

This year, FLCs are eligible for funding up to $3,000. Learning Innovation will also offer limited planning support to the facilitator, but the facilitator is ultimately responsible for running the FLC and guaranteeing that the goals of the FLC are met.  FLCs should have 8-10 faculty participants, but the actual number of participants could fall outside of this range if it meets the needs of the FLC. Learning Innovation will consider supporting FLCs that run from December 2022 – June 2023 OR from January – December 2023.

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Criteria for Selection

Applications should include:

  • The name(s) of one or more faculty facilitators who lead and coordinate the meetings of the community, and maintain focus on the community’s goals and proposed outcomes.
  • The names of teaching faculty who are committed to participate in the community. If you are still seeking community members, include a plan to recruit them before the proposed start date.
  • A statement of the FLC goals and planned outcomes.
  • A proposed set of activities designed to meet the FLC’s goals and outcomes and to build social connections among the FLC members.
  • A detailed budget that clearly aligns with the goals and proposed activities of the FLC.
  • A plan to share the FLC outcomes with the campus community in some way.

Preference will be given to applications that include:

  • Consideration of diversity, equity, and inclusion in teaching.
  • Teaching faculty from multiple disciplines.
  • A plan to meet at least once every three weeks over the length of the FLC. 

Budget Guidelines

Faculty Learning Communities can request funding up to $3,000, which may include the following:

  • Expenses related to hosting the FLC meetings (food, etc.)
  • Materials (such as books)
  • Honoraria for guest speakers
  • A stipend for the facilitator (payable to a research account)
  • Development funds for participants (payable to a research account)
  • Other expenses expressly related to the goals of the community

Timeline

FLC Information Session (held via Zoom) – Wednesday, September 7, 2022

Drop-In Zoom Session for Applicant Questions/Help – Friday, October 7, 2022 (Register)

Application Deadline – Friday, October 14, 2022

Notification of FLC Selection – Friday, October 21, 2022

Inspirational Examples of Faculty Learning Communities

Designing Course Assessments To Be More Inclusive

In this FLC, a facilitator and 7 participants:

  • Met about every 3 weeks during the 2021-22 academic year, to discuss selected readings related to equitable assessment.  Often these meetings included social activities such as lunches or outings.
  • Modified their usual assessments to be more inclusive, and shared their experiences with each other.
  • Supported each other’s teaching modifications; listening to each other and offering suggestions.
  • Wrote blog posts to report results to the Duke Community.
  • Held a panel discussion to inform other Duke faculty of their experiences.

Small Group Learning Best Practices for Improved Student Learning Experiences

In this FLC, the facilitator and 10 participants:

  • Met every three weeks, with different participants guiding each meeting, and alternating lunch meetings with dinner meetings.
  • Read about different types of research-based group learning such as Problem-Based Learning, SCALE-UP and Team-Based Learning.
  • Discussed how to improve student buy-in for small group learning activities and projects.
  • Tried a small-scale version of one of the group learning techniques at least twice in one course, with one or two observers.
  • Reported to the group about their results, and prepared recommendations for other teaching faculty at the institution, including a written guide to best practices in small group learning.
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If you have additional questions about FLCs or the application process, contact us.