CIRTL@UMB

In 2023, UMB was invited to join the Center for Integration, Research, Teaching, and Learning (CIRTL) Network. The CIRTL Network aims to advance the teaching of STEM disciplines in higher education. Founded in 2003, as the National Science Foundation Center for Learning and Teaching in Higher Education, CIRTL uses graduate education as the leverage point in developing a national faculty committed to implementing and advancing effective teaching practices. UMB graduate students, postdocs, faculty, and staff can gain from CIRTL's nationally recognized programs and certifications.

Getting Started

  1. Please register with CIRTL. The account is free and will offer many online courses, workshops, and seminars in the area of teaching and learning.
  2. Check out CIRTL's upcoming virtual workshops that are now available to UMB students and postdoctoral fellows as part of the CIRTL program.
  3. Sign up to be on our UMB CIRTL Newsletter so we can send you announcements about upcoming opportunities on our campus.

Core Ideas

Three ideas are at the foundation of the CIRTL Network:

  1. Learning-through-Diversity (LtD) capitalizes on the rich array of experiences, backgrounds, and skills among students and faculty to enhance the learning of all.
  2. Teaching-as-Research (TAR) is the deliberate, systematic, and reflective use of research methods by instructors to develop and implement teaching practices that advance the learning experiences and outcomes of both students and teachers.
  3. Learning Communities (LC) bring together groups of people from different disciplines for shared learning, discovery, and the generation of knowledge of effective teaching practices.

More information about CIRTL’s values, ideas, and history can be found on the CIRTL website.

Certifications

CIRTL Certificates are nationally recognized and showcase your dedication to evidence-based teaching and learner-centered support, with a focus on diversity. These certificates can enhance your CV. 

Associate

Badge with the word associate in between the CIRTL and UMB logos

Practitioner

Badge with the word practitioner in between the CIRTL and UMB logos

Scholar

Badge with the word scholar in between the CIRTL and UMB logos

Engagement Guide

CIRTL Events at UMB ▾
Students have the opportunity to register for and attend local CIRTL events hosted online at UMB, which qualify as certification-eligible activities.

Certification-eligible activities:

Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTA) Virtual Sessions 

All sessions are on Tuesdays from 12:00-1:00 pm EST

  • January 23, 2024: Backward Design, Learning Objectives, and Learning Taxonomies. Session Recording 
  • February 20, 2024: Foundations of Assessment: Alignment and Rubrics Session Recording
  • March 19, 2024: Effective Presentations for Learning Session Recording
  • April 23, 2024: Fostering Engagement: Active Learning in the College Classroom Session Recording

Online Teaching Community (OTC) Virtual Sessions

All sessions are on Fridays from 12:00-1:00 pm EST

  • January 5, 2024: Faculty’s Experience Using ChatGPT: A Panel Discussion
  • February 2, 2024:Open Stax: An Open Education Resource for Faculty and Students
  • March 1, 2024: Using Virtual Reality in Online Classrooms
  • April 5, 2024: Universal Design for Learning in Online Courses
  • May 3, 2024: Strategies for Inclusive Teaching in Online Spaces

Email facultycenter@umaryland.edu to register for the OTC events. 

Regional CIRTL Partners ▾
Students engaging in CIRTL certificates can avail themselves of the resources and CIRTL events provided by our regional CIRTL partners.

  • CIRTL@JHU, Johns Hopkins University, Center for Teaching Excellence and Innovation
  • CIRTL@UMD, University of Maryland, College Park, Graduate School
  • CIRTL@UMBC, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Graduate School
  • CIRTL@Howard, Howard University, Graduate School

CIRTL Network Offerings ▾
The CIRTL Network offers national events and introductory and advanced online courses that are openly available to support students interested in teaching and teaching as research.

The National CIRTL Network

CIRTL Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs):

  • An Introduction to Evidence-Based Undergraduate STEM Teaching is an open, online course designed to provide future STEM faculty, graduate students, and post-doctoral fellows with an introduction to effective teaching strategies and the research that supports them. The eight-week course aims to equip the next generation of STEM faculty to be effective teachers, thus improving the learning experience for the thousands of students they will teach.
  • Advancing Learning through Evidence-Based STEM Teaching will provide graduate students and post-doctoral fellows in the STEM disciplines (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) who are planning college and university faculty careers with an introduction to “teaching as research”—the deliberate, systematic, and reflective use of research methods to develop and implement teaching practices that advance the learning experiences and outcomes of both students and teachers. Participants will learn about effective teaching strategies, the research that supports them, and how to collect, analyze, and act upon their evidence of student learning.

Summer 2024

Subscribe to the CIRTL Newsletter to receive programming updates

Programming on Evidence-Based Teaching Fundamentals:

  1. Introduction to Evidence-Based Undergraduate STEM Teaching
    • Overview: 8-week MOOC providing effective college teaching strategies and supporting research.
    • Capacity: Unlimited
  2. First-Year Faculty Teaching Academy
    • Overview: 3-week online course for early career faculty focusing on best teaching practices.
    • Capacity: 65 participants
  3. Johns Hopkins Teaching Institute
    • In-Person Version
      • Overview: Helps doctoral students and post-docs become confident classroom teachers.
      • Location: Baltimore, MD
      • Capacity: 10 CIRTL participants
    • Online Version
      • Overview: Multi-day online teaching institute for doctoral students and post-docs.
      • Capacity: 25 CIRTL participants
  4. Moving Forward Together: The Interdependence of Instructor and Student Motivation
    • Overview: Two-part online workshop exploring trauma-informed teaching strategies.
    • Capacity: Unlimited
  5. Quick Take: How to Plan a Single Class Session
    • Overview: One-part online workshop covering key lesson-planning topics for grad students and postdocs.
    • Capacity: 50 participants

Programming on Academic Professional Development:

  1. Change Leadership for Inclusive Teaching and Learning
    • Overview: 10-week online course preparing graduate students and early-career faculty as change agents.
    • Capacity: 40 participants
  2. Preparing Your Teaching Demo for a Job Interview
    • Overview: One-session workshop providing guidance for teaching demos in faculty job interviews.
    • Capacity: 50 participants
  3. Supporting Graduate Students and Postdocs as Research Mentors
    • Overview: One-part online workshop enhancing mentorship and technical communication skills.
    • Capacity: 40 participants

How to Self-Enroll in CIRTL Course Site on Blackboard ▾
To document your progress and submit evidence of completion of the various certification requirements, you must self-enroll in the CIRTL Course Site on Blackboard. 

To enroll in this course:

  • Log into Blackboard at https://blackboard.umaryland.edu/webapps/login/
    • *You will need your UMID and password to login to Blackboard and self-enroll in this course. 
  • Click on the Courses link in the left-hand navigation menu on the Blackboard dashboard. 

Courses Bb Dashboard

  • Click Course Catalog in the top right-hand corner of the screen. 

Course Catalog Bb Dashboard

  • In the Search Catalog browser bar enter "CIRTL" and click Go. 

Search Catalog Bb Dashboard

  • Hover over the FCTL.CIRTL.site name in the Course ID column and click on the down arrow button that appears.FCTL CIRTL Site dropdown
  • Click Enroll.

FCTL CIRTL Site Enroll

  • Click Submit on the resulting page, then OK.

FCTL CIRTL Site Submit

  • Click OK.

The course will then appear under your Current Courses list on the Blackboard dashboard when you log in.

CIRTL Initiative Leadership and Advisory Board ▾
CIRTL institutions adopt a leadership structure featuring a two-person team comprising an Institutional Leader and an Administrative Co-Leader, supported by an institutional advisory board.

CIRTL Leadership

CIRTL Advisory Board