CATE Blog

Tea and Teaching: A Spring Semester Series for Graduate TAs

This spring, we’re offering monthly hybrid meetings for graduate students to connect with peers, enjoy refreshments, and discuss key aspects of teaching and life as a graduate teaching assistant (TA).

Join our New Large Courses Community of Practice

This spring we’re launching a new informal, discussion-based group because teaching large-enrollment courses presents unique challenges — and opportunities.

Teaching Partners: Real Reflections from Real Classrooms

Last spring, BIOS instructors Alex Daemicke Hanson and Michael Mills participated in a pilot of Teaching Partners, CATE’s peer observation program.

CATE’s Action Research Scholars Program

This year-long professional learning program is for UIC instructors who want to engage in data-driven, reflective teaching.

Inclusive Education Scholars Certificate Program: Stories from Instructors Putting Inclusion Into Practice

Discover how UIC instructors are putting inclusive teaching strategies into practice after completing the Inclusive Education Scholars Certificate Program.

Week Zero Workshops: Built for Instructors

What do instructors actually need in January? These sessions are deliberately created to give you the tools needed to manage the semester’s challenges.

Connect with Colleagues in Our New Pedagogy-Driven Tech Group

If you’re looking for a place to trade teaching strategies, crowdsource ideas, and learn how others are using tools like Canvas Studio or Perusall, our new Pedagogy-Driven Tech Teams Channels are for you.

Tea and Teaching: A Fall Semester Series for Graduate TAs

This fall, we’re offering monthly meetings for graduate students to connect with peers, sip warm (or cold) beverages, and discuss key aspects of teaching and life as a graduate teaching assistant (TA).

Fall Semester Teaching Courses for Graduate Students

There are several courses being offered through the Graduate College during Fall 2025 that are designed to support new and experienced graduate student teaching assistants (TAs) and instructors in developing their teaching knowledge and skills.

Join an Online Teaching and Learning Interest Group!

Are you interested in online learning at UIC? CATE is launching a Microsoft Teams channel that will connect faculty and staff interested in sharing ideas and providing support for online education.

CATE Action Research Scholars: Where are they now?

Read about where the Action Research Scholars have taken their classroom research projects since they completed the program, their accomplishments, and how they’ve continued to innovate and be leaders in teaching.

Spring Semester Teaching Courses for Graduate Students

Tea and Teaching: A Spring Semester Series for Graduate TAs

CATE Action Research Scholars: Leading the Way through Research-Based Teaching

TA Workshops and New Course

There are exciting opportunities this fall for new and returning graduate teaching assistants (TAs) to develop their teaching knowledge and skills through a TA workshop series and a new course, GC 591: Intro to College-Level Teaching for Grad TAs.

Meet the 2024-2025 Action Research Scholars

Congratulations to the new cohort of UIC instructors who have been accepted into CATE's Action Research Scholars program.

Dialogic and Other Tools for Teaching in Turbulent Times

A sampling of resources and tools that may be of use to instructors preparing for and engaging in teaching, and providing support for students during challenging times.

Foundations of College Instruction Courses

Develop your pedagogical knowledge and skills, prepare for the job market, and earn a certification you can add to your CV!

New Course for Graduate Teaching Assistants

Whether a first time TA or returning after a few semesters, this course will empower graduate students to teach with confidence, skill, and success at UIC.

Resources for Evaluating and Reflecting on Teaching

Determine the ways in which you are effective in your teaching, how to interpret student evaluations, and how to communicate your teaching effectiveness to others, with CATE's many resources.

TEACHx 2024 Conference: Attend with CATE and Hear from UIC Presenters

Join instructors at the 2024 TEACHx Conference at Northwestern University on May 15-16, 2024 to learn about innovative approaches to teaching and learning.

Opportunities and Resources available to Graduate Students and Postdoctoral Scholars

CATE offers a variety of short and long-term engagement opportunities for graduate student teaching assistants (TAs) and instructors, and postdoctoral scholars to develop as a teacher and further their professional development.

Spring into the Season with CATE!

Spring is a great time to reflect on your teaching and refresh your approach.

Call for applications for the 2024 Teaching Sustainability Initiative

Are you concerned about sustainability and wish you could integrate it into your teaching, but just don’t know where to start? The Teaching Sustainability Initiative provides funding and resources to redesign an existing course or design a new one.

Increase Belonging and Participation in the Classroom with Improv

Join CATE for this special Teaching Tidbits Workshop exploring how the tenets of improv theatre can increase belonging and participation in classrooms of all disciplines and the research-backed reasons why!

CIRTL Network Spring 2024 Offerings

Online programming and events with a focus on helping graduate students and postdoctoral scholars develop teaching skills and prepare for the academic job market.

Introducing the CATE Spring 2024 Workshop Series

Two highlight workshop series for the 2024 spring semester: Teaching and Learning with AI and Reframing and Reflecting on Evaluations of Teaching

Trauma-Informed Teaching in Times of Crisis

Events outside the classroom can impact students and instructors. While each student has unique learning needs, instructors can employ a number of strategies to support students and promote student success during times of crisis or challenge.

Consider joining the CATE Action Research Scholars program in Fall 2024

In this year-long cohort-based program, scholars will learn and explore variety of approaches to investigate how instructional strategies and curricular design impact the learning experiences of UIC students in their discipline and course context.

CATE Action Research Scholars Program: A Bridge Between Teaching and Research

Learn about the impact the CATE Janet Riddle Action Research Scholars program has had on the Fall 2022 cohort of the program

Explore Teaching Tidbits Workshops Fall 2023

Check out the Teaching Tidbits Workshops! This Fall CATE and our campus partner the Instructional Design and Media Production Studio offer workshops where you can explore many teaching strategies including generative AI in your classroom.

CATE Seminar Series Fall 2023

Check out the CATE Seminar Series, featuring research projects conducted by UIC instructors who are enhancing their teaching with research. Learn about classroom-based research and new teaching strategies and innovations.

Teaching Recognition Program 2022-2023 Award Winners and Call for Applications

The TRP is UIC's self-nominated, faculty-administered teaching award program. These instructors have a documented history of teaching excellence and have shown a long-term commitment to teaching at UIC.

Conversations for Creating Inclusive and Accessible Practices

A collaboration between UIC United Faculty (UICUF), the Center for Advancement of Teaching Excellence (CATE), the Disability Resource Center (DRC), and the Disability Cultural Center (DCC)

Register for CIRTL@UIC Fall Offerings

Programming and events for graduate students and postdoctoral scholars to develop teaching skills and prepare for the job market

Thanks for joining us at the CATE Open House!

It was great to see so many new and familiar faces join us during the CATE Open House event on August 16. We are excited to continue growing and building a community for teaching and learning at UIC and welcome you back to another great semester!

Register for the Inclusive Education Scholars Certificate Program

Inclusive Education Scholars Certificate Program is an exciting new professional learning program on inclusive teaching co-developed by CATE and the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Engagement and funded by the National Science Foundation.

Congratulations to First Cohort of Inclusive Education Scholars!

Learn more about the inaugural cohort of Inclusive Education Scholars who have demonstrated a commitment to student success and equity, diversity, and inclusion at UIC.

Call to Action: UIC Instructors' Teaching Needs

Take a 2-minute survey on what you would like to see next to advance your teaching. You can also learn more about CATE's needs assessment results and how we are using that data to inform our resources and programming.

Legislative Suppression of Critical Race Theory in Higher Education

Critical Race Theory has become a legislative scapegoat for the discussion of what versions of America we will teach and what versions we will resist. As educators, we must stay informed and assure students of an inclusive educational experience.

Designing & Teaching an Online Course

The CATE team has developed an online asynchronous course, Designing & Teaching an Online Course, to share best practices, resources, templates, and technologies to create a quality online course.

ChatGPT: Perspectives and Strategies for Prohibiting, Reducing, or Embracing it in Your Curriculum

Educators are divided on whether they want to prohibit, reduce, or embrace AI generative tool usage in their classrooms. CATE offers some guidelines and tips to approach ChatGPT usage in your current classroom.

Beyond workshops

Want to expand your digital teaching toolkit while building your Blackboard skills? Register now for the Blackboard Digital Teaching and Learning Series

Action Research Scholars: Project Spotlight

Meet the scholars from the very first cohort of the Janet Riddle Action Research Scholars program: Martina Bode and Shavila Devi, and learn more about their project.

Teaching Recognition Program: 2022-2023 Award Winners

Congratulations to the recipients of the 2022-2023 Teaching Recognition Program Award!

Join the Inclusive Education Scholars Certificate Program

Register now for the spring 2023 cohort of UIC instructors earning their Inclusive Education Scholars Certificate

Register for CIRTL Network Spring 2023 Programming

Programming and events for graduate students and postdoctoral scholars to develop teaching skills and prepare for the academic job market.

Instructional Design Consultations

As an instructor, how do you know if what you’re doing in the classroom is working?

Explore CATE's Teaching Guides for Instructors

CATE is excited to introduce two new Inclusive Teaching Guides for instructors: Pronoun Usage, and Navigating Social Identity in the classroom!

Podcast: Teaching for Student Success

Dr. Tessa Andrews (University of Georgia) discusses how expert instructors think about, prepare and implement active learning in their generative classrooms versus how novices think about, prepare and implement active learning.