Team-Teaching Opportunities
The College offers various team-teaching opportunities, and GEI can provide additional resources to encourage collaborative forms of teaching. We encourage faculty to apply for team-teaching at the time of curricular innovation grants (typically in February), but also to discuss ideas and plans with us at other times during the academic year.
Because team-teaching is relatively rare on campus, let us clarify how it works on campus. Here are some general guidelines:
- Team-teaching usually consists of two professors coming together from different departments to teach a shared course. Recent examples of GEI-sponsored courses include English 194, "The Great War and the Literary Imagination," co-taught by Tim Raylor (English) and Paul Petzschmann (European Studies); or the new methods course in cultural studies, soon to be co-taught by Sandra Rousseau (French & Francophone Studies) and Juliane Schicker (German). Usually both instructors are present at all or most classes.
- Other models are possible. For instance, some courses have been taught by three professors or by a rotation of professors. (We're happy to discuss options.)
- Because special funding is available for team-teaching, most team-taught courses do not need to draw twice the enrollment of usual courses. (Yes, team-teaching does cost more, but the College is willing to make this investment for selected projects.)
- Again, because of available funding, departments that allow a faculty member to team-teach a special course do not necessarily lose a course from their curriculum. With the Dean's approval, funding may be provided to "cover" the course that faculty member would ordinarily have taught.
What are the advantages of team-teaching? Those who have done it know how exhilarating it can be. Learn more by reading this account of the experience Tim Raylor and Paul Petzschmann had in English 194.