I will try to incorporate different active learning techniques. Before this series, it was not obvious to me whether this helps the audience, but now from my experience with CSSS, I could see for myself that it does. The typical research presentation that I participate in does not encourage this type of teaching/presentation.
- Scientist presenter
Presenting in the CSSS really helped emphasize to me the different ways that teaching can be made inquiry-based. I would not have thought a lecture could be made very inquiry based and that you would have needed a lab setup. But even just by asking questions of the audience and starting from a very big picture, I felt like the audience was able to generate their own questions and become more engaged.
- Scientist presenter
Through these talks, UCSF early-career scientists (advanced graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, staff-research associates, and junior faculty) learn active teaching strategies based in the research about how people learn. Effective use of these strategies in your teaching can increase audience engagement and learning.
Scientists interested in presenting in the series are asked to attend a Speaker’s Workshop in September. At the workshop, scientists learn about the expectations for seminar speakers, experience active teaching techniques, and practice describing the main ideas behind their research in non-jargon laden language.
Scientists then submit an application to be considered to present a seminar. The selection of speakers is based on topic (to ensure a broad representation of the research conducted at UCSF in the series), application quality, and prior experiences. Speakers selected for the series receive coaching from SEP Academic Coordinators so that they may successfully prepare a seminar that incorporates active teaching techniques. This coaching takes place both informally by phone and email and formally through practice talk(s) with SEP Academic Coordinators.
In addition, scientist presenters receive written feedback on their seminars from the teaching experts who attend their seminars as well as a DVD of the seminar itself.
Presentation at CSSS can lead to additional speaking invitations. In the past, some presenters have been invited to present their seminar at science education conferences as well as in teacher’s classrooms.