Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) is the systematic inquiry into student learning, pushing to advance teaching and learning practices in higher education (Hutchings and Shulman, 1999).

The field of SoTL aims to take teaching beyond a well-rehearsed practice into a scholarly activity, one that engages the instructor in careful planning, evaluation and dissemination. SoTL uses a range of methodologies and builds on disciplinary practices and epistemologies.

UBC SoTL Funding and Resources are managed through the Institute for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (ISoTL).

Funding

SoTL Seed Program
Provides those interested in exploring the impact of their pedagogical choices with graduate research specialists, collegial collaborations, and limited funding. Please consult with the ISoTL team prior to submission by contacting ctlt.isotl@ubc.ca

Investigator Department Project Title Year
Benjamin Ramirez Community, Culture, and Global Studies Mino-Bimaadiziwin in the Classroom: Challenging and Engaging Students Through Ojibwe Philosophy 2024
Bowen Hui Computer Science, Mathematics, Physics, and Statistics Visualization Techniques for Team Diagnosis 2024
Natalie Forssman Community, Culture, and Global Studies Connecting the Development of Interdisciplinary Skills and Perspectives on Power, Privilege, and Positionality in Sustainability Education 2023
Rishma Chooniedass Health and Social Development A curricular evaluation of the Foundations for Inclusive and Respectful Engagement (FIRE) modules 2023
Sally Stewart School of Health and Exercise Sciences/Nursing EMPHASize: developing, implementing and evaluating online curriculum modules for health professional programs 2023

SoTL Dissemination Fund
Supports the publication of research on teaching and learning in higher education with direct implications for UBC.

Events

Thompson-Okanagan Teaching and Learning Conference (TOTLC)

TRU Centre for Excellence in Learning and Teaching in collaboration with UBCO Centre for Teaching and Learning will be hosting the annual Thompson-Okanagan Teaching and Learning Conference (TOTLC) on May 13th and 14th, 2025 at TRU. The theme is Scholarly Teaching and the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning: Evidencing our Practice.

Keynote Speaker: Dr. Melanie Hamilton (University of Saskatchewan)

Call for Proposals is now open

For further information on the conference please visit our website or contact the conference co-chairs Alexis Brown or Wei Yan at 2025totlc@tru.ca.

Spotlight

Explore UBC Okanagan faculty members participating in the SoTL program.

Natalie Forssman

Dr. Natalie Forssman’s work in designing and delivering UBC Okanagan’s Bachelor of Sustainability program is a unique opportunity to integrate interdisciplinary concepts, methods, and applied examples from the arts, social sciences and humanities into my teaching. She’s committed to working across disciplines and with partners from outside the university, and asking SoTL research questions about collaboration, interdisciplinarity, and community impact.

 


Bowen Hui

Dr. Bowen Hui’s work focuses on technology-enhanced personalized learning. One of her SoTL projects is called Teamable Analytics, which is a Canvas-integrated software that helps instructors form teams strategically and automatically in larger classes.

 


Abdallah Mohamed

Dr. Abdallah Mohamed’s work involves several SoTL projects that aim to research and implement methods and technologies to foster inclusive, active, and diverse education. One example of his work, LearnCoding, allows students to customize the learning material to meet their preferences and accommodate their diverse backgrounds, abilities, and needs.

 


decorativeZoë Soon

Dr. Zoë Soon is inspired by the changing needs of her students to come up with fun, new and engaging learning tools and ways of teaching challenging concepts. One of her two major SoTL projects involves the testing of a new set of Anatomy, Physiology, and Pathophysiology Open Education Resources.

 


Photo of Sally StewartSally Stewart

Dr. Sally Stewart’s interest was sparked by her students’ excitement and understanding. Her SoTL projects include student wellbeing and learning: Increasing student access to the HEAL 100 course; training faculty to facilitate student wellbeing in their classroom environments; and developing and evaluating online curriculum modules on weight bias and eating disorders for health profession programs.

 


decorativePeyman Yousefi

Dr. Peyman Yousefi’s SoTL projects focus on developing an Integrated Dynamic Teaching approach which transcends traditional teaching aspects by integrating modern technological tools.

 

Contact riley.petillion@ubc.ca, Educational Consultant for TA & Student Development, for additional help with your SoTL project.