Professional Development Sessions

Professional development is a critical piece of the instructional process. New and experienced faculty will benefit from opportunities to keep up with current and emerging trends in teaching online, higher education, best practices and the development of new skills.

The following sessions are sponsored by the University of the Incarnate Word School of Professional Studies Academic Affairs in collaboration with other partners. These sessions are designed to meet your unique instructional needs. Sessions are open to all University of the Incarnate Word faculty and staff.

Note: If you attend a scheduled session, you will receive a Certificate of Completion for that session. To request a Certificate of Completion for a previously recorded session, visit the Archives section listed on the left of this page and complete this form.

February

Navigating AI in Higher Education

Date/Time: Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025 | 12 - 1 p.m. (CT)

Featured Speaker: Dr. Bianca Reyes, CV (pdf)

Do you know how AI is currently being used in your classroom? During our session, we will explore the ways students may be using AI, how as professors we can utilize AI, and review the ethical implications for use in both ways. We will discuss providing a consistent message from our Common Course Outline, to announcements in Canvas, to grading.  Join our presentation and then Q&A session to discuss ideas from others.

This session will cover:

  • The current AI environment in the classroom
  • How to incorporate first-level AI technology and practices
  • An analysis of the ethical implications of AI use

March

Hot Topics & Cool Minds: Best Practices for Encouraging Critical Thinking and Deeper Engagement

Date/Time: Wednesday, March 19, 2025 | 12 - 1 p.m. (CT)

Featured Speaker: Dr. Joseph Rogers, CV (pdf)

This presentation will focus on how to engage students as we navigate them through some potentially controversial issues. We will examine best practices in creating a classroom environment where students feel empowered to explore deeper intellectual questions through critical thinking while at the same time reflecting on how these issues relate to their own lived experience.

This session will cover:

  • Real-life scenarios experienced in the classroom that were potentially challenging
  • How to move students to be critical thinkers
  • Holding space for a variety of students from different backgrounds
  • We will allow time for us as faculty to engage in conversation about our experience with this topic.

April

Introduction to AI Prompt Engineering

Date/Time: Thursday, April 3, 2025 | 12 - 1 p.m. (CT)

Featured Speaker: Dr. Chera Cole, CV (pdf)

 

When it comes to using Generative AI tools, the quality of our results depends upon the quality of the prompts we use. This presentation provides an introduction to “prompt engineering,” or the ability to write prompts that yield more effective results. During this presentation, we will identify key strategies for writing prompts, practice writing and improving prompts, and compare results between ChatGPT and CoPilot. This presentation will also provide links to resources that participants can use to continue refining their prompt engineering skills.

This session will cover:

  • Understanding the importance of prompt engineering
  • Learning key strategies for writing effective prompts
  • Gaining experience in writing sample prompts

Grading Time = Rubric Time

Date/Time: Tuesday, April 22, 2025 | 12 - 1 p.m. (CT)

Featured Speaker: Jessica Martinez-Palacios, M.Ed., CV (pdf)

Grading with rubrics is a handy way to evaluate student work. It involves using a scoring tool that outlines what to look for and the different levels of achievement associated with each criterion, such as exemplary, proficient, and needs improvement. By using rubrics, faculty can ensure that their grading is consistent and objective, which helps students understand what is expected of them. This method not only enhances the grading process but also promotes transparency, allowing students to see how their work is assessed, and where they can improve.

This session will cover:

  • Best Practices Using Rubrics
  • Creating Rubrics
  • Linking Rubrics

Consistency and Coherence in Course Design

Date/Time: Wednesday, April 23, 2025 | 12 - 1 p.m. (CT)

Featured Speaker: Dr. Jonathan Schultz, CV (pdf)

 

The professional development training session on consistency and coherence in course design will help you as an instructor understand your course more fully and engage your students more effectively. The training session will begin with an orientation of course content sections that will be beneficial for new faculty members as well as seasoned faculty. Then the training will look at consistency in course design theme and consistency in interactions with students. Finally, coherence will be explored in areas of discussion forums in your course and overall coherence in learning objectives and content.

This session will cover:

  • Course content
  • Course design
  • Course interaction
  • Discussions
  • Learning objectives