This program offers an extensive training and development opportunity focused on the advancement of teaching skills. For students interested in academic positions, this is a tremendous opportunity to develop meaningful teaching experience and to add an impressive credential. The program has been developed jointly by UVA's Office of Graduate and Postdoctoral Affairs, the Departments of Chemistry at UVA and UVA Wise, UVA's Center for Teaching Excellence, and UVA Wise's Center for Education Excellence and Innovation. One student from UVA Chemistry is selected as the Wise Teaching Fellow to participate in co-teaching of the General Chemistry course and laboratory (UVA Wise CHM 1010/1011) during the Spring semester at UVA Wise. The Fellow receives housing accommodations at UVA Wise as well as salary compensation. The position requires relocation to UVA Wise for the Spring semester.
Professional Development
The Wise Teaching Fellow will obtain training the semester prior to arriving at UVA Wise (Fall semester) as well as during their time in Wise. Pre-internship training will be required through the UVA CTE and UVA Wise CEEI to provide the intern with resources to ensure a mutually beneficial experience for interns, faculty, and students. The intern will participate in a mentoring program alongside first-year faculty, and community engagement activities as part of the undergraduate first-year program at Wise to assist in their development and provide a sense of belonging to the Wise community.While at Wise, interns will assist in a general chemistry lecture section and lab section alongside a UVA Wise faculty member. In accordance with SACS requirements, Interns will not be instructors of record or responsible for independently grading students. The intern and faculty mentor will work together to reflect on and develop the intern’s skills in preparing and presenting lecture materials, engaging undergraduate students in lecture courses, preparing exam materials, and other classroom responsibilities, using the UVA Wise Teacher Education Program “Teaching Internship Manual” as model for evaluation. Thus, this experience will go beyond the typical experience of a traditional TA position in the sciences as the intern will engage in lecture development, presentation of lectures, and preparation of assignments. Interns will also hold regular office hours to provide additional opportunities for students to obtain support in chemistry coursework.During the Fall semester, the Fellow will participate in a series of workshops, led by UVA's Center for Teaching Excellence and UVA Wise's Center for Education Excellence and Innovation, designed to prepare the Fellow for a successful teaching experience. The UVA Wise Chemistry faculty mentor will participate in this preparation and development period. An important aspect of this program is the co-teaching aspect. Thus, the Fellow will work closely with the UVA Wise fauclty member to develop and implement lectures, assess student learning, and manage other aspects of the course.T
A relevant note is that UVA Wise has research resources, and it could be feasible for the Fellow to continue some aspects of her/his research during the semester experience at UVA Wise. If there is interest, this could include working with an undergraduate from UVA Wise on research, but this is not a requirement. The details will depend on the research area.
A statement about UVA Wise's mission and history can be found at: https://www.uvawise.edu/about/our-mission-history