Welcome Dr. Conrad Van Dyk to his new role of Faculty Lead in the Office of Teaching & Learning
Posted on: Jun 29, 2022
Please join us in welcoming Dr. Conrad Van Dyk to his new role of Faculty Lead in the Office of Teaching & Learning as of July 1. The mandate for the Office of Teaching & Learning has evolved and I would like to share more on the renewed focus. As you know, teaching is a top priority for me and it is critical for me that we continue to support you in your teaching.
The Office of Teaching and Learning was developed at the start of the pandemic and was born out of an urgent need to support instructors to shift learning online. At that time, we needed the former Instructional Designer role to assist with this work. Although it was a very challenging time, I am proud of how everyone adapted to continue delivering exceptional education for our students.
Now that the pandemic is no longer central to our course delivery decisions, we have an opportunity to evolve the Office of Teaching & Learning to continuously enhance the education we offer students. Under Conrad’s leadership, the primary focus for this area will now be on pedagogy in all of its forms and we will soon be introducing an Educational Developer to directly support instructors.
We learned a significant amount about online delivery during the pandemic and there was recognition that some course components worked very well virtually. Many of our students told us they appreciated the flexibility blended learning offered. We need to build on these lessons and I strongly encourage everyone to continue to explore different delivery methods. Please note that the decision to offer flexible delivery will now be available for all courses, regardless of whether there is an in-person section offered in the same term. The Office of Teaching & Learning will continue to support you to help decide on the best delivery methods for the learning. Please contact Conrad to discuss opportunities for blended learning in your courses.
Thank you for your ongoing commitment to student success and wishing you each a wonderful summer.