Workshop: Best Practices in University Teaching

The Center for Teaching Excellence and Innovation is pleased to offer Best Practices in University Teaching (BPUT), a multi-day workshop for Johns Hopkins faculty. The workshop will present pedagogical best practices used at Johns Hopkins and peer institutions.

This is a great opportunity for new faculty who are interested in learning about evidence-based teaching practices, but is open to all Johns Hopkins faculty and lecturers from any discipline. External university colleagues are also welcome to attend.

Backward design The workshop is structured on the principle of backward design, which urges us "to begin with the end in mind": what we want learners to be able to know and do by the end of each class and the course as a whole. Participants start with the Course Design session, during which they learn about writing learning objectives—those statements that articulate what learners should know and be able to do by the end of a learning experience. The assessment session then talks about designing assessments assignments that help measure those objectives, and the Evidence-Based Teaching Practices session demonstrates active learning techniques that help prepare learners for the assessment. The Inclusive Teaching session will talk about how to make all this instruction inclusive and equitable for all students.

Finally, on the last day, different grading and evaluation strategies will be discussed, e.g., curving, "ungrading," contract grading, etc. The workshop will end with a session on effectively communicating all of this with your learners.

Dates/location The January session will be held in Bloomberg 478 at the Homewood campus on Wednesday, Jan. 8 and Thursday, Jan. 9.

Certificate of completion A Certificate of Completion can be earned by all participants who complete the workshop deliverable, a lesson plan for a new or existing course. While earning the certificate of completion is not required for participation in the workshop, it is encouraged to get the most of out of your time with us.

Schedule for BPUT Winter 2025:

Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 9 a.m.–4 p.m. EDT. Breakfast and lunch are provided. 

Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025 9 a.m.–4 p.m. EDT. Breakfast and lunch are provided. 

Program facilitators: The workshop will be facilitated by Johns Hopkins faculty known for teaching excellence.

Registration Click here to register.

Workshop fee For Johns Hopkins University faculty/staff, workshop fee: $850

Full-time, benefits eligible JHU employees may submit for 100% tuition remission, and this does not deduct from the annual $5,250 allotment for credit courses. You are eligible for tuition remission once you have completed 120 days of full-time employment as long as you are JHU faculty or staff and continue in a full-time position. You will need to fill out the Non-Credit Tuition Remission Benefit Application form in order to receive the tuition benefits. The Teaching Academy will provide instructions about filling out the form once you've registered.

Payment or tuition remission form must be received to secure your seat in the workshop. In order to accommodate those wait-listed for this workshop, failure to submit payment or a signed tuition remission form will result in the cancellation of your registration.

If you have any questions about the workshop fee or your eligibility for tuition remission, please contact Caroline Egan at Caroline.Egan@jhu.edu.

We welcome guest from other institutions, and invite you to contact Caroline Egan, Program Manager, CTEI, at Caroline.Egan@jhu.edu to find out more.

Questions? Contact Caroline Egan, Program Manager, CTEI, Teaching Academy at caroline.egan@jhu.edu.