For Information
Senate Committee on University Teaching
&
Learning (SCUTL)
Report of Activities
2001-02 Academic Year
April 24, 2002
Background
S.02-30
The membership and Terms of Reference of SCUTL are available at
http://www.reg.sfu.ca!senate/SenateComms/SCUTL.html.This report
is being submitted
by Dr. Tom Grieve (Acting Chair), with assistance from Dr. David Kaufman (Director,
LIDC), on behalf
of Dr. Cheryl Amundsen (Chair), who is on short-term leave from SFU
at this time.
Meetings
This committee met for
90 minutes each month from September, 2001 to April, 2002,
and has meetings planned for May and June, 2002.
Guests
The committee welcomed several guests to its meetings for an exchange
of views,
including:
Discussion
of Report of the Ad Hoc Senate Committee to Review and Develop
the Undergraduate
Curricula
Dr. Dennis Krebs, Chair
Dr. Michael Wortis, Member
Discussion
of Report on Undergraduate Grading and Grading Practices at Simon
Fraser University
Ms. Laurine Harrison, Student
Ombudsperson, SFU (May, 2002 meeting)
Major Activities
1. Provided advice and guidance on program initiatives to the newly appointed
(July 1, 2001) Director of The Learning
&
Instructional Development Centre (LIDC).
2. Provided input into the naming of the new Centre (LIDC).
3. Provided input into the design
of the new (2001-02) Certificate Program in Teaching
&
Learning for SFU Graduate Students.
4. Two members
ofSCUTL (SFU Teaching Award Winners Tom Grieve and
Martin Laba) presented a 2.5-hour session on "Exemplary Teachers at
SFU" to the
Certificate Program students in April, 2002 (see 3 above).
5. Developed a questionnaire to survey faculty and sessional instructors about matters
related to teaching at
SFU.
It
is planned to administer this survey in collaboration
with the Director, Academic Relations (Sue Roppel) in the near future.
6. Agreed to serve as an Academic Review Group for LIDC academic programs leading
to university recognition, e.g., Certificate Programs.
Several new initiatives will be
reviewed and discussed at the May,
2002 meeting.
7. Discussed extensively the role and use of teaching evaluations at SFU, and agreed to
address issues in this area in the future.
Conclusions
Several factors have led to a revitalization of SCUTL, including:
1. A new Chair (Dr. Cheryl Amundsen) with expertise in higher education and prior
experience in the teaching and learning centre at McGill University.
2. Several new members appointed to the committee, each
of whom have a strong
commitment to and energy for enhancing teaching at
SFU.
3. Appointment of a dynamic new Director of the LIDC, who is making extensive use of
the expertise on the committee to help shape LIDe initiatives.
On behalf of its members, I am pleased to report that SCUTL is alive, thriving, and
increasing its influence on teaching and learning at
SFU.
Respectfully submitted on April 24, 2002
Dr. Tom Grieve, Acting Chair, SCUTL
English Department, SFU
~q
-