Enrollment is now open! Beginning in October, the LINCS Professional Development Center is offering the four new Teaching Excellence in Adult Literacy (TEAL) courses outlined below. Each course lasts three weeks, is freely available, entirely online, and facilitated by a highly experienced LINCS Trainer.
Effective Lesson Planning (Oct. 8 – Oct. 29)
In this course, participants will learn techniques to make the most of planning time and maximize collaboration with peers. Planning is critical in identifying appropriate action steps to help one effectively reach a goal. Lesson plans help instructors set learning objectives and they provide a road map by which instructors can organize content, materials, time, instructional strategies and assistance in the classroom. They also represent a way to communicate to learners what they will learn and how they will be assessed. Math Trainer: Brooke Istas | Writing Trainer: Cindy Heimbach
Register Here!
Deeper Learning Through Questioning (Oct. 15 – Nov. 5)
This course focuses on teacher questioning and student self-questioning, exploring questioning as a powerful teaching approach. When teachers ask higher-order questions and give students opportunities to think critically and to develop deep explanations, learning is enhanced. Equally important as teacher questions are student self-questions. Self-questioning can guide learning and help students monitor their progress. Math Trainer: Donna Parrish | Writing Trainer: Eric Morrison
Register Here!
Formative Assessment (Oct. 22 – Nov. 12)
This course explores formative assessments, the formal and informal processes that teachers and students use collaboratively to gather evidence of student learning for the purpose of improving learning. Formative assessment is an assessment for learning which occurs while the learning is taking place, as opposed to a summative assessment which is an assessment of learning that typically occurs at the end of a learning unit or course. Participants will explore strategies for conducting informal and ongoing assessments of adult education students’ progress and use that information to adjust teaching to ensure that all students learn. Math Trainer: Donna Parrish | Writing Trainer: Peggy McGuire
Register Here!
Student-Centered Learning: Keys to Motivation and Persistence (Oct. 29 – Nov. 19)
This course provides an overview of student-centered learning as well as strategies for moving toward student-centeredness in adult classrooms. Student-centered learning is an instructional approach that focuses on student needs, allowing students to influence the content, activities, materials, and pace of learning according to their interests and needs. In student-centered instruction, the student is placed at the center of the teaching–learning dynamic so that information transmission is secondary to students’ needs, abilities, interests, and learning preferences. In this way, the teacher in a student-centered math classroom becomes a facilitator of learning rather than a transmitter of knowledge. Math Trainer: Heidi Schuler-Jones | Writing Trainer: Kathy St. John
Register Here!
There are two cohorts for each course—one in math, and one in writing. Please use the registration links to register for either the math or writing cohort. Users should expect to spend two hours per week engaging with the course.
Happy Learning!