Academy of Teaching Scholars

The IU School of Medicine Academy of Teaching Scholars is a program designed to help faculty build and share their skills as educators. The program encourages faculty to develop the skills needed to become educational leaders and facilitators of positive change.

Why join the Academy?

• Gain applicable education skills, whether you teach in the clinic, lab or classroom
• Complete the program at your own pace
• Attend both online and face-to-face sessions
• Collaborate with a new community of professionals at IU School of Medicine
• Receive a certificate of completion, a letter of support signed by the dean and a book from IU School of Medicine’s list of educational favorites
• Open to Indiana University School of Medicine faculty, residents, fellows and graduate students

The mission of the IU School of Medicine Academy of Teaching Scholars is to enhance the development of faculty as educators and facilitators of reform. The Academy accomplishes this mission through a three-tiered model.

• Tier One: Foundations of Teaching Excellence (non-credit bearing certificate)
• Tier Two: Graduate Courses in Education (credit-bearing courses)
• Tier Three: Master Educators Fellowship

Tier One: Foundations of Teaching Excellence

Tier One is open to all IU School of Medicine faculty and educators and provides participants with expertise in the fundamentals of teaching and learning. Teaching is a core mission of the school and the majority of faculty are involved in one or more aspects of this mission. Although teaching is required for promotion, the personal rewards that come from teaching can equal or exceed professional contributions.

Faculty and educators who complete Tier One will receive a certificate of completion, a letter of support signed by the dean, and can choose a book from our list of educational favorites. In addition to all of these perks, members of the Academy receive special invitations to education programs throughout the IU system.

Faculty participate in Tier One at their own pace and on a schedule that makes sense given their own time demands.

The Tier One program consists of three parts:

1. A philosophy of teaching statement (submitted at enrollment and revised at the completion of the program).
2. Participation in teaching development workshops in a variety of competency areas.
3. A peer review of teaching.

Register for Tier One

1. To enroll, please email fapdd@iu.edu and express your desire to join. Please include your name and title in your email.
2. Within 30 days of your initial enrollment, submit your Pre-Philosophy of Teaching Statement to fapdd@iu.edu.
3. Sign up for your workshops! Complete seven workshops, with at least one workshop in each of the following six competencies. Workshops are available via live webinars, face-to-face meetings and online modules.
   • Assessment Methods and the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (A)
   • Curriculum and Course Design (C)
   • Instructional Strategies (IS)
   • Instructional Technology (IT)
   • Learning Theory (L)
   • Inclusive Teaching (IN)
4. As you near completion of your workshops, schedule a peer review of teaching.
5. Based on what you have learned in Tier One, revise and resubmit your philosophy of teaching statement and request your educational book. We will then send your book, certificate and letter from the dean.

Check your progress in Tier One

Academy members can email us at fapdd@iu.edu to add request a status update or submit documentation.

Tier Two: Graduate Courses in Education

The goal of Tier Two of the Academy of Teaching Scholars is to increase knowledge of educational theories and practices. Tier Two is designed for educators, course, clerkship, or competency directors, rotation directors, residency directors, fellowship directors, center leaders, and others who play a pivotal role in the educational enterprise, as well as faculty who will be promoted and/or tenured on the basis of excellence in teaching.

Participants in Tier Two of the Academy of Teaching Scholars complete two courses as a graduate non-degree seeking student with Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI), pursue two, credit-bearing courses at their own pace and complete a scholarly project.  Courses are offered face-to-face, fully online or using a hybrid of the two.

Register for Tier Two

1. Email fapdd@iu.edu to schedule an appointment with the program director to set goals for this part of the program.
2. Enroll as a graduate non-degree seeking student at IUPUI. The process is very simple; only a short online form is required. Choose “Education Non-Degree” as your intended program.
3. While you’re waiting for your application approval, you can choose courses from the lists below. Participants can enroll in both courses at the same time, or spread them out over multiple semesters. You can browse current course dates, times, and locations are available on the IUPUI Registrar’s website.
   
   Select your first course from the following (3 credits):
   • EDUC-Y 510 Action research
   • EDUC-C 750 Teaching and Learning in the College Classroom
   • EDUC-D 500 Introduction to Adult Educational Theory
   
   Select your second course from the following (3 credits):
   • EDUC-C 750 Curriculum in Higher Education
   • EDUC-U 548 Student Development Theory
   • EDUC-P 530 Instructional Psychology
   • EDUC-P 540 Learning & Cognition in Education
   • EDUC-P 544 Applied Cognition & Learning Strategies
   • EDUC-P 545 Educational Motivation
   • EDUC-D 525 Introduction to Distance Education
   • EDUC-D 600 Teacher-Learner Transaction in Adult Education
4. Once you receive permission to enroll, visit One.IU to enroll in your course(s). You’ll receive instructions with your acceptance email. Faculty employed by IU can use their tuition benefit to defray the cost.
5. Complete your courses. Ensure that one of your courses includes a scholarly project related to your work in medicine or health professions education. If you’d like to pursue a project outside of your coursework, email fapdd@iu.edu to discuss your options with the program director.
6. To complete Tier Two, submit your transcript, project and a short reflection on your experience in the program to fapdd@iu.edu. You will receive a certificate of completion and a letter from the dean. Also, if you choose to go on to pursue a master’s degree in education, your credit hours will likely transfer into that program.

Tier Three: Senior Fellows in the Academy of Teaching Scholars

A cohort of up to four faculty members will be selected each year to participate in the Master Educators Fellowship Program. These individuals are designated Senior Fellows in the Academy. To begin their work together, the fellows meet for a one and a half day intensive session. Thereafter, the fellows convene monthly. The fellows will organize public talks on teaching, several of which they would present. Further, the fellows will organize a meeting on medical education to be convened at IU School of Medicine. One of the principle goals of the fellows' work is to raise the profile of medical education and generate enthusiasm for the pursuit of teaching excellence.

The Master Educators Fellowship Program, as suggested by its name, moves beyond fundamentals of teaching and places emphasis on the art of teaching.