Learning center created for faculty use

By Samuel Moreno

At UH-Clear Lake, students are not the the only ones who can receive extra help in their area of need, such as studying habits, learning habits etc. Now, the faculty has a program created especially for them that will help them improve their teaching skills. The Teaching Learning Enhancement Center, more commonly referred to as T-LEC, is a tool many of the UH-Clear Lake faculty take advantage of to "inspire and improve" their teaching skills. It started in 1995 when a group of faculty members "began meeting voluntarily at lunch time to talk about ways to improve student learning," said Margaret Snooks, lecturer in fitness and human performance and a pioneer in the development of T-LEC. "We called ourselves ‘Learning Innovators' because our purpose was to share new ideas and encourage more powerful student learning." Snooks, along with many other faculty members, believes that T-LEC has indeed become a great instrument for inspiring new ways to teach. "This program has helped me find new ideas to tackle teaching hurdles," said Sharon Hall, associated professor in psychology. Hall said that with this program's aid, she was able to overcome a problem with students not participating enough in the classroom. "After conversing with other professors, I discovered that I could overcome this obstacle by having students leave their comfort zone and participate in small groups," Hall said. "With the small group, students felt more vindicated about their beliefs." Even though it is a volunteer program, faculty from all four schools at UH-Clear Lake currently take advantage of the center. "We have about 75 faculty members participating in this program in one way or another," Snooks said. "All the feedback that I have heard has been positive." Often times instructors will meet once or twice a month to discuss the newest trends and ideas about their discipline and share what curricula has worked best for them. Each meeting is usually hosted by one of the professors, but other faculty are encouraged to speak up and be a part of each meeting. "We always begin with a ‘check in' during which we introduce ourselves and talk about how our classes are going," Snooks said. "This is a time to describe classroom innovations that have succeeded or failed. We are a support group as well as a professional learning community." The program is funded through the Provost's office, which provides teaching supplies, books and other material, which are available for faculty in the T-LEC room. This material provides faculty with another tool to "tackle teaching hurdles" they may face. Because having better teachers provides a better learning environment, students also believe that it will benefit them as well. "It is a great idea because I have a lot of instructors who could definitely use the help," said Lindsay Niemann, communication major. "It also shows me that some teachers are willing to improve themselves." Another student echoed her response. "It really makes sense," said Alex Ortiz, business major. "It is a great idea and should make the classroom more interactive."