Faculty Study Groups

Faculty Study Groups (FSG) pursue collective, sustained inquiry into specific issues and questions about teaching and learning in higher education. Each FSG develops its own topic of inquiry and devotes an academic year to its study. FSGs are driven by their members' curiosity and commitments to understanding. Through meaningful collective inquiry, the FSG program seeks to foster a collegial environment that values pedagogical exploration, experimentation and renewal, and promotes learning together.

Faculty study groups also represent an excellent opportunity for faculty members to engage in interdisciplinary inquiry and investigation. Often it is difficult for faculty members to carve out the time necessary to dialogue with peers from other disciplines; an interdisciplinary FSG may provide the necessary motivation and resources to engage in that interdisciplinary dialogue. Thus, FSGs that are interdisciplinary are highly encouraged.

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FSGs Topics & Inquiry

The topics that FSGs choose to investigate are virtually unlimited, constrained only by the requirement that the topic/inquiry reflects a specific aspect of higher education pedagogy. Here's a short list of FSGs that have been supported in the past:

• Active Learning in Large Classes
• Assessing Critical Thinking
• Creative Arts Across the Curriculum
• ePortfolios and Assessment
• Exploring Indicators of Teaching Excellence
• Innovative Teaching in Culture and History
• Global Diversity
• International Faculty Study Group
• Making Inquiry Relevant Through Reflection
• Music and Society
• Professional and Ethical Diversity
• Scholarship of Civic Engagement
• Service Learning and Ethics of Care
• Teaching Engineering Design
• Teaching Film Across the Disciplines
• Teaching Social Justice: Theory and Practice
• Universal Design

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FSG Support

CIDER fosters FSG research through the provision of personnel, resource and financial support.

• Personnel Support: A CIDER liaison will attend most FSG meetings in order to support the group's inquiry. This support may include providing relevant contacts, helping to find resources, or forging connections among groups with similar research topics. Your liaison is also your source for information on available monies as well as forms and deadlines.
• Resource Support: CIDER will provide FSGs with material support as requested and if possible, given CIDER's material and financial resources. For example, requests for multiple of copies of a book to be read and discussed in an FSG is likely to be supported as is minimal GA support; however, requests for laptop computers and full-time graduate assistant support are not likely to be supported. Requests for Resource Support should be discussed with the FSG liaison.
• Financial Support: CIDER will provide FSGs with $300 for professional development per participant for a maximum of $2,100 per FSG. FSG professional development grant money is transferred to participants' departments, not individuals, on or about February 1, upon completion of the FSG Professional Development Grant form. Completed FSG Professional Development Grant forms must be submitted to CIDER (mail code 0453) by December 1st in order to be funded.

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FSG Proposals

CIDER accepts proposals for FSGs at any time during the academic year; however, financial support for FSGs is only provided for FSGs whose proposals are accepted prior to September 15th.

Proposal Content & Format

FSG proposals should each include the seven sections delineated below and not exceed 4 pages in length. Incomplete FSG proposals will not be considered.

1. Title: Provide a pithy, descriptive group title that captures the nature of your collective inquiry.
2. Group Members: A listing of the FSG members including name, email address, VT postal address, and department; one member should be identified as the group "chair."
3. Group Description and Purpose: Provide a brief narrative that contextualizes the proposed FSG for a reader that may not be familiar with the group's discipline or interdisciplinary perspective, including the purpose and significance of the group.
4. Goals & Objectives: Provide general goals and specific objectives for the proposed group. What does the group hope to accomplish?
5. Implementation: Provide a description of the activities in which the group is likely to engage in order to meet the stated goals and objectives.
6. Assessment & Evaluation: Provide a description of how the group's objectives will be assessed and evaluated.
7. Evidence of Scholarship: Each FSG is responsible for creating one "piece" of scholarship related to teaching and learning (e.g., article submission, conference presentation, grant proposal, instructional materials) based on the proposed inquiry. Provide a description of what type of scholarship is anticipated, included details necessary to assess the nature of the scholarship (e.g., potential journals or funding agencies to which to submit, method of making instructional resources publicly available).

FSG proposals should be emailed in pdf format to the CIDER Assistant Director, Laura Dulaney (LJDulaney@vt.edu).

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Review Criteria for FSGs

Proposal Review Criteria

Each submitted complete proposal will be evaluated based on the following five criteria:

1. Significance of the proposed group: Does the proposed group address a significant need?
2. Appropriateness of the proposed group: Does the proposed group represent an appropriate response to the described need?
3. Potential influence on student learning or teacher effectiveness: Does the proposal identify specific ways in which the group objectives will directly influence student learning and/or teacher effectiveness?
4. Adequacy of the assessment and evaluation plan: Does the proposal provide an evaluation plan that is aligned with the stated goals and objectives?
5. Feasibility/appropriateness of the evidence of scholarship: Does the proposal identify appropriate and feasible scholarly outlets for the results of the group inquiry?

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Mid-Year Report for FSGs

By December 15th, FSGs should submit an informal report of their progress during the first semester. Mid-year reports should address how FSGs have explored the group's desired outcomes and intended processes (as stated in their proposals), as well as their plans for the coming semester and work remaining to be completed. The mid-year report should be no more than a page in length.

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Final Report for FSGs

FSGs must submit a three-page report delineating the group's (a) activities, (b) results, and (c) scholarly product to CIDER no later than May 15th. The evidence of scholarship should also be submitted at this time.

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