TLU Resources

"The Teaching and Learning Unit (TLU) and AnSEO - The Student Engagement Office are delighted launched our annual Combined Funding Call to support staff and students who wish to undertake short term projects related to teaching, learning, assessment and student engagement (TLASE) activities. This funding call enables teams of staff and/or students, to develop ideas that might enhance teaching, learning, assessment and student engagement across the student life cycle. The purpose of this session was to provide more information about the funding process itself, describe what supports are available and provide participants with an opportunity to hear from previous recipients in terms of what they achieved and how they felt about the experience and the impact these projects have on staff and students."

"Since 2019 the TLU have launched and supported over 40 learning communities across MTU. During this session we heard from Learning Community members about who they are, what inspired them to start/join a Learning Community, what they have achieved and how others might initiate or join an existing learning community. Professor Jim O’ Mahony also spoke about how funding can be awarded and used effectively to transform teaching and learning both within and across disciplines."

"The Teaching and Learning Unit (TLU) and AnSEO - The Student Engagement Office are delighted to announce our annual Combined Funding Call to support staff and students who wish to undertake short term projects related to teaching, learning, assessment and student engagement (TLASE) activities. This funding call enables teams, of staff and/or students, to develop ideas that might enhance teaching, learning, assessment and student engagement across the student life cycle. The purpose of this session was to provide more information about the funding process itself, describe what supports are available and provide participants with an opportunity to hear from previous recipients in terms of what they achieved and how they felt about the experience and the impact these projects have had on staff and students."

"The Teaching and Learning Unit (TLU) and AnSEO - The Student Engagement Office are delighted to announce our annual Combined Funding Call to support staff and students who wish to undertake short term projects related to teaching, learning, assessment and student engagement (TLASE) activities. This funding call enables teams, of staff and/or students, to develop ideas that might enhance teaching, learning, assessment and student engagement across the student life cycle. The purpose of this session was to provide more information about the funding process itself, describe what supports are available and provide participants with an opportunity to hear from previous recipients in terms of what they achieved and how they felt about the experience and the impact these projects have had on staff and students."

"Learning communities provide a space and a structure for people to align around a shared goal. Effective communities are both aspirational and practical. They connect people, organisations, and systems that are eager to learn and work across boundaries, all the while holding members accountable to a common agenda, metrics, and outcomes. These communities enable participants to share results and learn from each other, thereby improving their ability to achieve rapid yet significant progress. Over the last three years, the TLU have initiated and supported over 30 learning communities across MTU. This seminar provided a short update from each of our learning communities which highlighted their successes and challenges. The session was also useful to those wishing to learn more about the benefits of initiating or joining learning communities in MTU."

"Learning communities provide a space and a structure for people to align around a shared goal. Effective communities are both aspirational and practical. They connect people, organisations, and systems that are eager to learn and work across boundaries, all the while holding members accountable to a common agenda, metrics, and outcomes. These communities enable participants to share results and learn from each other, thereby improving their ability to achieve rapid yet significant progress. Over the last three years, the TLU have initiated and supported over 30 learning communities across MTU. This seminar provided a short update from each of our learning communities which highlighted their successes and challenges. The session was also useful to those wishing to learn more about the benefits of initiating or joining learning communities in MTU."

"Learning communities serve many functions in education. They allow for the sharing of ideas, the standardisation of practices and the presentation of new solutions and insights. They can also enhance teamwork and collaboration, as well as reduce individual workloads within and across departments and schools. In the last 2 years the TLU have supported the creation and development of over 20 Learning Communities across MTU Cork. This session allowed them to share their experiences and gave those interested in developing their own LC an understanding of how the TLU can help support and fund their ideas."

"Learning communities serve many functions in education. They allow for the sharing of ideas, the standardisation of practices and the presentation of new solutions and insights. They can also enhance teamwork and collaboration, as well as reduce individual workloads within and across departments and schools. In the last 2 years the TLU have supported the creation and development of over 20 Learning Communities across MTU Cork. This session allowed them to share their experiences and gave those interested in developing their own LC an understanding of how the TLU can help support and fund their ideas."

"CIT’s Teaching & Learning Unit (TLU) launched an inaugural call in 2018 to develop and support a number of Learning Communities (LCs) across the institute and is currently working with 13 emerging LCs from across the institute as a direct result of this call. LCs facilitate the exchange of good teaching and learning ideas amongst its members and provide a platform for professional discussions and sharing of practices. The main purpose of this session was to support our current cohort of (LCs) but was also useful to those who would like to learn more about the benefits of initiating and sustaining an active LC."

"Vygotsky’s (1978) theory of social constructivism highlighted the importance of the contribution of others to every individual’s learning. With the increasing use of ICT and the internet, learning communities can expand beyond geographical limitations leading to new and exciting educational dimensions and learning opportunities across schools, colleges, communities and cultures. The term ‘learning community’ has become increasingly common in education usage and can mean many different things, from bringing members of the local community in to the college to collaborative learning among students or lecturers. Colleges today are complex, interwoven, interactive environments where learning flourishes when there is a spirit of openness and transparency and where lecturers are more likely to adopt a collegial approach incorporating shared leadership and authority thereby facilitating the work of the students. In colleges that are learning communities, everyone is a learner, and everyone is a teacher. This seminar explored how a coaching skill set can be used to enable learning institutions to develop the skills of enquiry, collaboration, sharing of practice and critically evaluate beliefs about teaching and learning. The overall aim of the seminar was to enhance the quality of professional communication and dialogue one of the four domains underpinned by the National Professional Development framework’s values. The seminar employed a blended learning approach involving experiential learning techniques complimented by facilitated debriefs, group discussions and short presentations. The main objectives of this seminar were that participants would have: Deepened their understanding of the nature and benefits of peer coaching. Gained a heightened awareness of how coaching skills can be used to enhance individual and group learning. Gained insight into how a departmental wide peer mentoring model is evolving in CIT. Increased their knowledge and expertise in the use of coaching skills in their professional roles. Have practiced their coaching skills in challenging situations. Constructed an action plan to utilise the workshop content to improve their peer coaching skills so they can better support their peers and engage in purposeful conversations regarding professional development, development of learning communities and communities of practice."

CIT’s Teaching & Learning Unit (TLU) launched an inaugural call in 2018 to develop and support a number of Learning Communities (LCs) across the institute and is currently working with 13 emerging LCs from across the institute as a direct result of this call. LCs facilitate the exchange of good teaching and learning ideas amongst its members and provide a platform for professional discussions and sharing of practices. This workshop enabled these emerging LCs to: Showcase their vision and ideas for both their short- and long-term ambitions Show how their activities are influencing teaching and learning in their respective disciplines. An open invitation was extended to all CIT staff to attend what turned out to be a lively and thought-provoking session where they heard more about our LCs and found out how to: Develop a new LC or Create partnerships with existing ones

Cork Institute of Technology and Griffith College Cork came together to organise this seminar to examine digital teaching tools for Mathematics in Higher Education. The focus of this seminar was to explore and champion effective digital tools and technologies in the teaching of Mathematics in Higher Education in Ireland and to create an opportunity for networking and initiation of collaborative relationships in this area. It provided hands on experience of educational technology in Mathematics for participants and provided a forum for exploring challenges, exchanging ideas and disseminating practices. Talks/workshops included: Dr Maria Meehan, UCD, who discussed her experience of the use of technology in teaching Mathematics. CIT’s Technology Enhanced Learning Department who discussed Teaching Mathematics using virtual and augmented reality. Lightning Talks from participants who use education technology in their Higher Education Maths classroom/lecture who shared their experience with others Parallel Workshops on Mathematics e-assessment using Numbas catering for beginners and more advanced users.