Announcement! We want to give YOU money!

Did that title grab your attention? Good! Because it’s the truth! The Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning (CITL) sponsors several grants, many of which have application deadlines in late February. While we’ll be thrilled if you apply for any of our grants, today I want to tell you about the Active Learning Grant.

Some folks can hear “active learning” and almost take the approach for granted (see what I did there?), because there is such robust research to support it. Active Learning encapsulates many strategies, such as group-work, project-based-learning, community engaged learning, et cetera. But the support behind active learning didn’t pop up from thin air. A lot of amazing researchers demonstrated that active learning is better for the student learning process. And guess what – that research is still being done! Many of these researchers are our colleagues at Indiana University Bloomington! For example, just look at our Scholarship of Teaching and Learning database to get a peek into what research is being done on our campus.

Now, it’s not any fun just watching everyone else make moves in the active learning world, is it? We want you to explore your ideas for enhancing student learning! Each year, we distribute Active Learning Grants of $1,500 to full-time faculty for courses taught in the coming academic year. We’re looking to support instructors who want to get their students more actively engaged in learning.

Spark Some Ideas and Learn What Other Folks Have Done

Not sure where to start? Think of a recent class you taught… what didn’t go so well? Was there a topic that students struggled with? Is there a type of thinking in which they need further support? Start brainstorming – how could you create an instructional opportunity to create active learning to address this problem? For example, Beatrix Burghardt, a 2024 awardee, teaches Academic Speaking for Multilingual Students and noticed students did not always think through the benefits and constraints of digital tools. To address this, she designed a semester-long assignment to get students to explore digital tools more in-depth. Erik Wennstrom and Nicholas LaRacuente, a 2024 awardee team, teach in the Computer Science department. They noticed students were struggling to address proofs and they used an Active Learning Grant to restructure their discussion sections, so that Associate Instructors spend more time facilitating group activities on proof techniques.

Next Steps

You’re ready to take the next step in your teaching greatness. Wanting some more inspiration? Visit our Active Learning Grant webpage to see past successful applications or read a blog post about 2024 recipients. Want to talk with someone about your ideas and get application advice? Reach out to citl@indiana.edu and request a consultation. Ready to apply? Submit a completed application form, a current course syllabus (unless designing a new course), a 100-word project abstract, and a letter of support from your department chair or dean to the citl@indiana.edu by Monday, February 24th, 11:59 PM.