ThunderWater Adjunct Faculty Certificate Program
The Adjunct Faculty Certificate Program establishes a core curriculum of professional development activities for Adjunct Faculty at Richland College. In addition to promoting community and professional growth, the program provides an easy-to-understand measure of accomplishment to program coordinators and deans, as well as to other prospective employers. Successful completion of LENs, Cooperative Learning, ThunderBbolt eCampus, and other professional development is a significant consideration when determining continuation of adjunct faculty employment and preferred class schedule offerings, loads, and times.
To complete the core curriculum, Adjunct Faculty participate in the following professional development offerings:
- 18 hours, LENs
LENs (Learning Exchange Networks) workshops provide an opportunity for faculty to exchange ideas with other faculty about teaching and learning. The workshops are based on a series of modules covering many aspects of helping students learn. The topics for the fall workshops are "Creating a Positive Learning Environment," "Selecting Teaching and Learning Strategies," and "Enhancing Teaching and Learning Using Educational Technologies." The two spring workshops are devoted to formative and summative assessment.
- 12 hours, Cooperative Learning
Cooperative Learning workshops are a four-part series devoted to equipping faculty to facilitate small-group work and discussions in class.
- 18 hours, Intercultural Competence
Intercultural Competence workshops equip faculty to appreciate and rise to the opportunities of working with students and colleagues in all their rich diversity, including but not limited to ethnicity, age, gender, and sexual orientation.
- 6 hours, ThunderBolt eCampus workshops
ThunderBbolt workshops equip faculty to teach online classes or to have an online component to their on-campus classes. The topics for Levels 1 and 2 are "Getting Started" and "Communication." The topics for Levels 3 and 4 are "Tasks" and "Soft Skills." All four levels are required before faculty teach online.
- 6 hours, Socratic Pedagogy
The Socratic Pedagogy workshops show faculty how to use a highly interactive, discovery-based method of teaching and provide opportunities to practice this methodology with their peers.
- 6 hours, Learning Styles
Learning Styles workshops help faculty understand the different ways in which students learn and provide faculty with ideas on how to vary their instruction to accommodate the needs of their students.
- 3 hours, Media Cart/PowerPoint
The Media Cart/PowerPoint workshop provides an introduction to the use of media carts and PowerPoint. Upon completion of this workshop, faculty will receive a key to the media carts.
- 3 hours, Conversation-Based Teaching and Learning
The Conversation-Based Teaching and Learning workshop equips faculty from all disciplines to facilitate large and small-group conversations using dialogue stimulated by controversy, primary sources, and other "third things" to learn through conversation.
Adjunct Faculty completing the core will earn three certificates from the Thunderwater Organizational Learning Institute:
- Basic Certificate (24 hours)
» LENs (18)
» Intercultural Competence Level 1A (3 hours)
» Intercultural Competence Level 1B (3 hours)
- Intermediate Certificate (an additional 24 hours)
» All requirements of Basic certificate
» Cooperative Learning (12 hours)
» Intercultural Competence Level 2A (3 hours)
» Intercultural Competence Level 2B (3 hours)
» Socratic Pedagogy (6 hours)
- Advanced Certificate (an additional 24 hours)
» All requirements of Basic and Intermediate certificates
» ThunderBbolt eCampus Levels 1-2 (3 hours)
» ThunderBbolt eCampus Levels 3-4 (3 hours)
» Learning Styles (6 hours)
» Media Cart plus PowerPoint (3 hours)
» Intercultural Competence Level 3A (3 hours)
» Intercultural Competence Level 3B (3 hours)
» Discussion-Based Teaching and Learning (3 hours)
» Participants who complete the advanced certificate will also receive a certificate for completing ThunderBbolt eCampus.