Three Keys of SoTL

A response to the Three Keys of SoTL Activity
created by Holly Ashbourne (@hashbourne)

Number of views: 325

Holly Ashbourne
April 9, 2021

I found it easier to copy and paste my post from the Keys to SoTL shared document.

 My 3 Keys of SoTL 

  • Reflection. SoTL leads to reflection. It requires reflection on one’s on teaching practice. It can also lead to reflections on teaching at broader levels, like existing policies or procedures at your institution, for example.
    • Quoting Kim Carter here as her point resonated with me and I think speaks very well to this key “Constant reinvention through reflective practice gives faculty confidence as educators in addition to subject matter expertise.”
  • Ask your questions. Value your own questions, even if they’ve been asked before. Maybe you will come up with a different answer, a different context, etc. Teaching and learning are areas where we can ask intelligent, consequential questions.
  • Do something with the outcomes of your research. Reboot your entire course, or start a bit smaller. Address challenges in your own teaching or something that more broadly impacts higher education. Don’t forget to share! Go public! Have discussions with your peers, share taxi rides with administrators, present at conferences.

 

Motivations

There are many motivations to engage in SoTL, and as a new-ish “teacher”. (I use quotes as I am library staff, not FT faculty). I am still exploring and learning about many of them. Here are a few that resonated with me from the video and others’ posts:

  • Renewed faculty excitement about teaching and greater self-awareness.
    • I really like this one. I find that, even after teaching (in a library role, not faculty), it is easy to get in a rut and do “what works for me”. SoTL can help break one out of that rut and help them re-engage with their passion and continuously improve.
  • Better student engagement, outcomes, and overall student learning
  • Promotion of new networks among faculty members and re-establishing old connections.
    • I’m going to quote Lisa Koster here: “SoTL can bring faculty together to make the learning environment better for students which translates into student success.” Her point really resonated with me. It also speaks to my third key: do something with your research findings. Go public. Connect with others. Get opinions on it. See what other people are doing.