Faculty Learning Communities
2006 Institute and Conference
2006 Institute and Conference Home
New Developer's Institute
FLC Conference
2006 Institute and Conference Home
New Developer's Institute
FLC Conference
FLC developers and facilitators have been identified as the most important keys to FLC success. New Developers/Facilitators can learn successful strategies and methods for designing, implementing, and facilitating FLCs and FLC programs at the 7th annual FLC Summer Institute. Experienced FLC Developers / Facilitators are invited to participate in the first Experienced FLC Developers/Facilitators Institute. And everyone is invited to participate in the third FLC Conference. A call for proposals at the FLC Conference is on the sidebar as well as information such as cost, location, meals, lodging, and registration.
Institute participants will develop plans for their own FLCs. The 2006 Institute will be conducted by Milton D. Cox, Miami University and Leslie Ortquist-Ahrens, Otterbein College. The Institute has been cited as the most efficient way to prepare to facilitate an FLC. The FLC Conference registration fee is included in the registration fee for the Institute for New Developers / Facilitators.
Share your experiences with others who have developed, facilitated, and participated in FLCs. What worked and what didn't? With respect to challenges, what solutions did you find and which ones are you still looking for? The FLC Conference registration fee is included in the registration fee for the Institute for Experienced Developers / Facilitators.
Share your FLC's outcomes, impact, and results with others who have developed and participated in FLCs. A call for proposals link is on the sidebar. This will be a full day of plenary and 45 minute sessions. Andrea Beach will be our keynote presenter.
A faculty learning community (FLC) is a cross-disciplinary group of faculty and professional staff of size 6-15 (8 to 12 is the recommended size) engaging in an active, collaborative, yearlong program with a curriculum about enhancing teaching and learning and with frequent seminars and activities that provide learning, development, interdisciplinarity, the scholarship of teaching and learning, and community. A participant in a faculty learning community may select a focus course or project to try out innovations, assess resulting student learning, and prepare a course or project mini-portfolio; engage in biweekly seminars and some retreats; work with student associates; and present project results to the campus and at national conferences. Evidence shows that FLCs increase faculty interest in teaching and learning and provide safety and support for faculty to investigate, attempt, assess, and adopt new (to them) methods.
FLCs have been implemented successfully at over 100 institutions - a full listing (in Microsoft Excel format) is available.
The single most important element in their success has been the preparation of developers and facilitators. The FLC New Developers' and Facilitators' Institute has been a primary source of preparation and support for FLC development. Although not required, we recommend you register in teams of 3 for maximum impact. There are a limited number of places available and individuals/teams will be accepted on a first-come, first-registered basis.
Links to information about cost, location, meals, lodging, and registration for the Institutes and Conference is on the sidebar.
More information on creating and facilitating FLCs is available in Cox, M.D. & Richlin, L. (2004). Building Faculty Learning Communities. New Directions for Teaching and Learning, No. 97. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass or at the international FLC website.
This project has been supported in part by a grants from the US Department of Education Fund for the Improvement of Post-Secondary Education (FIPSE) and the Ohio Board of Regents.