Success in Teaching Excellence Program (STEP)

This program provides new faculty in the college a chance to become better equipped for teaching at this University. While intended primarily for new 'rookie' faculty, this program is targeted to all of the new hires in the College. It consists of a 1.5 day workshop that meets prior to the beginning of the fall semester. The topics covered include course design and class session planning, active learning methods, effective questioning strategies, microteaching practices, implementation approaches, and planning for success. In addition to the initial workshop, the participants continue to meet throughout the fall semester as both a support group and as a means to deal with instruction issues that may arise throughout the semester. As part of this program, faculty are videotaped and individual analyses are provided for feedback. This program has been a significant success in the past. most new faculty attend both the workshop and the follow-up sessions. In addition, many of these new faculty have continued to participate in subsequent LAB programs and have provided positive feedback regarding STEP.