While faculty development benefits from a large literature, including peer-reviewed papers, books, and edited volumes, the question of whether the design process of a faculty development unit affects its acceptance and use remains open. This is a prospectively important question, as what is known about professional learning suggests that it is effective when project work, personalized interest of the learner, collaboration, multiple perspectives and a focus on important problems are emphasized.
But most CTLs are designed differently - top-down or centre-out, rather than end-user up. Does that process affect the willingness of faculty to participate? Do existing CTL offerings really match underlying faculty needs? Is there a better process of design that could yield a suite of services which more beneficially serve genuine faculty needs?
This session explores whether using a design methodology for services could improve the faculty learning and development experience. Service design is a technique used often in commercial settings as well as the public sector. It relies upon creating meaning from the surveyed preferences of end users, and using that meaning as input into the generation of alternative ideas. Such ideas are winnowed, prototyped, refined, tested, and if successful, ultimately implemented.
In this session, participants will learn about the major elements of the service design process, and discover how it was implemented at a Canadian university. Ample reference materials will be provided, so that participants will be able to consider using this method at their own institutions based on the material delivered and referenced in this session.