|
|
|
|
Message from the Vice-Provost
|
As we move into winter, I continue to be inspired by the creativity and dedication across our community in advancing teaching and learning. From celebrating excellence through our upcoming awards to exploring the future of education through initiatives like the AI Summit, this season highlights the innovation and collaboration that define U of T. Looking ahead, please save the date for the 2026 Teaching and Learning Symposium on May 13–14, where we will continue to share and celebrate this important work.
|
|
|
|
Teaching Awards & Grants
|
Teaching Awards: Call for Nominations and Upcoming Workshop
Supporting a teaching award nomination? Join our workshop, The Path to Recognition: Crafting a Compelling Teaching Award Nomination on November 27 from 10:00-11:30 a.m. via MS Teams. This session is intended for academic administrators and University staff involved in the nomination process.
|
|
|
|
TATP Teaching Excellence Awards
Deadline for nominations: Friday, February 13, 2026
|
Celebrate great teaching at U of T! Nominations are open for the Teaching Assistants' Training Program (TATP) Teaching Excellence Awards. Students and faculty can nominate candidates for the TA and BIPOC TA Teaching Excellence Awards, while departments can nominate a graduate student Course Instructor for the CI Teaching Excellence Award. Share information with students in your department on how they can nominate a TA making a difference in the classroom.
|
|
|
|
Teaching & Learning
|
Save the Date: 2026 Teaching & Learning Symposium
Wednesday, May 13 and Thursday, May 14, 2026
|
Mark your calendars for Signal to Noise: Tuning into What Matters in Teaching, the Centre for Teaching Support & Innovation's annual Teaching & Learning Symposium showcasing innovative and impactful teaching. Join colleagues from across the University for two days of insight, inspiration and connection as we explore what truly matters in teaching and learning.
|
The call for proposals opens December 15, stay tuned for details!
|
|
|
|
UDL Conversations
Thursday, December 4, 11:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m. via Zoom
|
The UDL Conversations Series highlights practices and considerations from U of T staff and instructors. Come chat with and learn from our community in fostering accessible and inclusive teaching and learning for all. The next session is with Will Heikoop, Coordinator, Digital Learning Innovation, Information Technology Services.
|
|
|
|
Student Success
|
Retention and Progression Initiatives: Call for Proposals
Deadline for applications: Wednesday, January 21, 2026
|
The Office of the Vice-Provost, Innovations in Undergraduate Education, invites proposals for retention and progression initiatives that focus on summer melt, successful first year completion, middle years transition and last mile to graduation. These funds are intended to support small pilot projects with first-entry undergraduate divisions in the 2026-2027 year. Projects should address one of the priority areas, identify a population of interest, have a thoughtful intervention, and a clear measurement strategy.
|
|
|
|
Experiential Learning
|
What We're Reading: Experiential Learning Reimagined
The Digital Education Council's recent report, Experiential Learning Reimagined: Designing Education for the Future of Work, reviews 137 experiential learning practices across 27 countries, identifying 16 emerging models of experiential learning. While this report is informed in part by evolving workforce contexts, it offers practical overviews of curriculum-level and course-level innovations, featuring concrete examples from institutions across the globe. This may be of interest to educators seeking to enhance student engagement and create opportunities for applied learning in academic settings.
|
|
|
|
Centre for Community Partnerships (CCP) Community-Engaged Learning (CEL) Course Fund
Winter deadline for applications: Friday, January 30, 2026
|
The Centre for Community Partnerships (CCP) offers small grants of up to $500 per course to support instructors teaching community-engaged learning (CEL) courses at the University of Toronto. This funding can be used for CEL courses to 1) recognize community partner engagement, 2) address barriers to student participation, and 3) support innovation in CEL.
|
|
|
|
What Kind of University Do We Want? Interrogating Community, Crisis and Hope through Community-Engaged Learning (CEL)
Wednesday, January 28, 2026, 12:00-1:30 p.m. via Zoom
|
This is the first conversation of our Critical Conversations in CEL: Bridging Theory and Practice series. Our invited speakers, Michael Classens (U of T), Kari Grain (UBC), and Am Johal (formerly SFU) bring deep expertise at the nexus of community engagement, climate crisis and critical pedagogy. As scholar-practitioners, they will collectively interrogate, reframe and mobilize three key concepts resonant for our community-engaged learning pedagogy and practice in this moment: “community,” “hope” and “crisis.”
|
|
|
|
Artificial Intelligence
|
|
AI Summit: Ontario Universities
On November 12th and 13th, more than 55 academic leaders from 20 universities across Ontario gathered at Hart House for the AI Summit: a two-day event dedicated to exploring how artificial intelligence is reshaping teaching, research and university life.
|
Hosted by the University of Toronto in partnership with McMaster University, Western University, and the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario (HEQCO), the Summit marked one of the final phases of a collaborative research project examining institutional responses to AI.
|
Throughout the two days, participants engaged in small-group discussions, interactive sessions, and panels that tackled pressing questions:
|
- How can Ontario universities share knowledge and resources to develop consistent, ethical approaches while supporting local innovation?
- How do we support our faculty and institutional offices who are rethinking assessment, curriculum, and faculty development in ways that prepare our students and ourselves for an AI-enabled world?
- What is the role of the university in the age of AI? What guiding values should anchor our AI policies?
|
Following the Summit, the project team is preparing a report summarizing the key insights, discussions and recommendations that emerged over the two days. The report will be shared with all participants and made publicly available to support ongoing collaboration across Ontario’s universities as we navigate the evolving role of AI in higher education. We will make sure to share the report in a future newsletter.
|
|
|
|
Register for the next AI Roundup - Emerging Trends
Wednesday, December 16, 12:00-1:00 p.m. via Microsoft Teams
|
Please note: If you usually register and will not be continuing in your appointment for the upcoming academic year, please advise our office of new administrators to be invited and share this link with colleagues in your unit who might be interested in attending on your behalf.
|
Each month, Vice-Provost Susan McCahan hosts a session intended to sort through the vast amount of information about AI advances, sharing a few key items of interest to the U of T community. The hope is that it will help people stay abreast of emerging changes that will potentially impact work at the institution. The recording and links from previous AI Roundups can be found on our SharePoint site. All U of T faculty, librarians and staff who would find this content helpful are welcome to attend.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
