For most of their instructional days faculty at Thompson Rivers University perform the art of teaching as soloists. On Feb. 15th faculty at TRU will join together to learn from each other and share their teaching skills.

It’s the sixth time faculty have organized the TRU Teaching Practices Colloquium during the student’s annual reading break.  The one-day forum is a chance for colleagues to share best teaching practices in the post-secondary setting.

“The day is also our opportunity to learn how we teach and how our students learn differently, discipline-to-discipline, and to benefit from sharing and extending upon that understanding.” – Elizabeth Templeman, Chair of the colloquium organizing committee

Scholarly Teaching across the Disciplines is this year’s theme, an apt topic given that the subject matter taught at TRU is so comprehensive. “We will explore the core teaching values and practices we tend to share within our disciplines,” said Elizabeth Templeman, TRU ESL Faculty and chair of the colloquium organizing committee.  “The day is also our opportunity to learn how we teach and how our students learn differently, discipline-to-discipline, and to benefit from sharing and extending upon that understanding.

Templeman adds, “Every year this colloquium continues to grow, more faculty participate and more information about teaching is shared.” So far 180 have registered, approximately one third of TRU faculty. This year, some 44 TRU faculty, including one from Williams Lake, will be presenting sessions or taking part in panels. Nine others will be presenting posters  and five student presenters are featured in this year’s programme as well.

The public is invited to the keynote address by Eileen M. Herteis, of Mount Allison University, at 8:45 am in the Alumni Theatre of the Clock Tower. The morning’s  keynote focuses on encouraging faculty to share what they do in the classroom and the afternoon session (3:00 pm, same location, and also open to the public) focuses on asking faculty to question what it is they are teaching – does content drive the teaching, are there other ways for students to learn and are there other ways for teachers to conduct classes and teach.