As many as 500 or more university teachers will descend upon the University between June 16 and 19, when the Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education (STLHE) holds its annual conference on campus. The four-day gathering marks the 20th anniversary of this event, which is held in a different part of the country each year.
The participants will choose from dozens of different seminars being presented each day, covering the many different aspects of improving life in the classroom for both instructors and students. The issues being broached range from well-known challenges like handling large class situations to more specialized discussions such as how to help adult aboriginal students get the most out of their education.
A highlight of the conference is expected to be the announcement of this year’s 3M Teaching Fellowships. These prestigious awards honour outstanding educational leaders among the country’s post-secondary instructors.
This year’s conference theme is “From Diversity to Individuality: Enriching the University Mosaic,” which complements a three-day meeting of the International Consortium for Educational Development (ICED) that takes place immediately afterwards, from June 21 to 23. More than 200 people from around the world, including presenters from six continents, will attend this event.
“When we think about diversity, we don’t only think about diversity of cultures,” says Aline Germain-Rutherford, director of the University’s Centre for University Teaching and program chair for both conferences. “We also think about diversity of styles — teaching styles, learning styles, diversity of materials, diversity of perspectives and approaches.”
That distinction, she adds, includes the diversity between francophone and anglophone teaching practices. With the aim of helping people learn more about both of these styles, this year’s STLHE conference has made a specific appeal to the organization’s francophone members. Almost one-third of the planned presentations will be held in French or will be fully bilingual. Plenary sessions will also offer simultaneous translation, and any overhead slides will be displayed in both languages.
