Each semester for the past two years, the Center for Language Education, in partnership with the SUSTech Provost Office, has hosted a TA Teaching Development Program for qualified Teaching Assistants at our university. Taught over the course of an intensive eight weeks, instruction ranges on topics from "Traits of a Good Teaching Assistant" to "Collaboration with Course Instructors". Addressing practical issues within the classroom, and highlighting innovative approaches to teaching pedagogy, the TAs are able to analyze, discuss and apply good practices to their own teaching methodology.
Course instructor, Matthew Jellick, has been training Teaching Assistants for the past two years, helping to develop their English instructional skills through classroom competency. Both the Provost Office and the CLE recognize "teaching as a language" and that the future of education at SUSTech will depend on the teaching development skills of TAs across different departments.
We look forward to another successful semester working together, as we continue to strive for teaching and learning excellence!
The SUSTech School of Medicine, in partnership with the Center for Language of Education recently held a Ceremony and Presentation for the Faculty Teaching Development Program. Throughout the evening, the hard work and dedication of the Medical School faculty was celebrated, with speeches and brief presentations.
Professor Xing Mingzhao, the Dean of the Medical School opened the evening with a speech highlighting the importance of this program and how it benefits everyone involved, from the doctors to the teachers to the students. Dr. Li Yuan, the Director of the Center for Language Education spoke to the importance of empowering teachers and students through constructive classroom teaching, and how we act as multipliers, affecting those who learn from our strong teaching practices. Dr. Zhang Wenyong, the Deputy Dean of the School of Medicine addressed the collaborative nature of the two departments, a partnership which has now spanned three years, and benefited not only the Medical School, but likewise, three SUSTech Affiliated Hospitals. Finally, Matthew Jellick, the instructor of the program, spoke about the objectives of the course, including everything from Syllabus Design to Being a Reflective Teacher, a cyclical endeavor which promotes continued growth on behalf of everyone involved.
Two doctors who took the course also gave inspired presentations, including Professor Dr. Qin Jianqiang and Associate Professor Dr. Du Changzheng. They both spoke about the benefits of the topics covered, and in turn, how they apply them to their classroom instruction, welcoming the challenges of being a constructive teacher who takes risks in how they approach teaching.
While this ceremony marks the conclusion of our third successful year of the program, as teachers, we understand that the teaching and learning opportunities we discussed are ongoing, and that good teaching practices never end, but rather, keep developing. Going forward, we understand our role as multipliers of quality education, and look forward to the challenges which lay ahead in our quest for continued growth...