University Center
for Teaching and Learning
2022-23 Annual Report
Greetings from Michael Bridges, Executive Director, University Center for Teaching and Learning
Over the past several years, the University Center for Teaching and Learning has responded rapidly to changing circumstances and unpredictable teaching and learning environments. Many of the pandemic-related challenges have subsided but some still loom across Pitt and the higher education industry as a whole. Despite these challenges, the Teaching Center has steadfastly supported faculty, staff, and students in resilient ways that continue to amaze me. Our team members are creative and innovative in their efforts to support the University, and as a result, we’re seeing our impact across campus in many ways.
While this report highlights some of our key accomplishments, it only scratches the surface as to how the Teaching Center supports, facilitates, and contributes to the success of the University of Pittsburgh.
Highlights from 2022-23
- The sudden emergence of generative AI, with its large language models and deep learning possibilities, challenged us to experiment and quickly understand how to make this technology more effective, more personalized, and more cost effective. Our ChatGPT resources drew some of our largest audiences, with over 150 faculty and staff colleagues joining us to begin understanding and meeting those challenges.
- Similarly, this year’s theme for the Provost’s Diversity Institute for Faculty Development: Queering the Classroom, offered focused and reflective discussion in the context of the broader national debate around LGBTQIA+ issues and the very existence of diversity, equity, and inclusion offices and programming in higher education. Nearly 200 faculty joined us for opportunities to discuss the troubling anti-LGBTQ+ legislative trends, faculty strategies for supporting transgender and non-binary students, and queer joy and belonging in the classroom.
- This year, a new physical location was unveiled in Hillman Library for our Open Lab. The Open Lab’s new space has already transformed its business, with nearly two-third’s of all annual visits occurring after the opening of this new location.
- Following a 2018 seed grant-funded pilot project, Pitt Professional transitioned to an enterprise professional and continuing education platform.
Teaching Support
Assessment of Teaching
- Ten academic units submitted assessment of teaching updates in 2022. All units received formative feedback highlighting strengths, areas for improvement, considerations, and resources.
- We again supported the annual Assessment and Teaching Conference. This year’s conference was held on Jan. 27, 2023 with 149 Faculty in attendance.
- The Assessment of Teaching Initiative and Office of Measurement and Evaluation of Teaching (OMET) published resources on bias in student opinion of teaching surveys and best practices for interpreting and using survey data. The Assessment of Teaching Initiative also cataloged and documented each units updated assessment of teaching plan.
Equitable and Inclusive Teaching
- We facilitated 20 diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) focused workshops and events this academic year, with over 338 attendees.
- Highlights from this year include workshops on anti-racist pedagogy and creating gender inclusive classrooms.
Teaching Surveys
- Student teaching survey responses reached their highest levels since the 2020 covid-19 pandemic, with 57% response rates in the fall 2022 term, and 54% in the spring 2023 term.
- We continue to offer a midterm survey option, and nearly 1,400 surveys were administered on behalf of nearly 1,700 faculty this academic year. Faculty members who use the OMET midterm teaching surveys are experiencing above average response rates on their end of term surveys.
High-Quality Service
Canvas and Educational Software Support
- The Educational Software Consulting (ESC) team completed 2,155 support requests while helping 1,032 clients. The team also assisted in transitioning all Canvas support to the Pitt IT Help Desk.
- We launched a “Canvas Tips” video series, comprising 22 one-minute videos teaching faculty how to do one specific task in Canvas. These videos generated approximately 2,000 views.
- In May, ESC and collaborators across the Teaching Center hosted the first of three Ed Tech Days, a new offering this academic year. Thirty-two attendees joined the first session in May 2023.
Classroom Technology and Learning Space Design
- A total of 51 classroom technology upgrades were completed, or are currently in progress. Most of the work was centered in the Cathedral of Learning.
- More than 550 classroom technology problem requests were processed and resolved.
- Our Classroom Services team completed:
- ~75 lecture captures.
- Nearly 40 video conference requests.
- 165 media conversion requests.
- Approximately 700 classroom technology equipment loans for instructors.
- More than 300 walk-in or phone classroom technology inquiries.
- Nearly 100 technology training consultations or demonstrations.
Digital Media
- Academic Digital Media supported more than 200 events this academic year.
- Our team also produced 75 unique video projects, totaling 700 individual videos.
Online Programs
- Pitt Online Services provided quality assurance review and routine maintenance for approximately 90 courses per term. These online courses were offered for the following schools and departments:
- School of Education
- School of Nursing
- School of Law
- Graduate School of Public and International Affairs
- The University Center for Social & Urban Research (UCSUR).
- Recent online programs from the School of Education, School of Law, and School of Computing and Information have been added to the Pitt Online Services development portfolio.
Testing Services
- The Testing Center administered nearly 8,000 exams for Pitt, an increase of 20% from the previous academic year and nearly double the number of exams from the 2014-2015 academic year.
- More than 90% of the exams administered, and the source of this consistent annual growth, is for students requesting accommodations through our collaboration with Disability Resources and Services (DRS). In 2015, DRS accommodations accounted for just 30% of exams administered.
- The Testing Center also scans and scores a large volume of classroom exams and processed nearly 900 such requests this academic year.
Community Engagement
Faculty Learning Opportunities
- Teaching consultations with faculty, administrators, and departments continue to be a major operational service provided by Teaching Support, with more than 650 consultation hours devoted to Pitt faculty.
- A total of 49 teaching and pedagogy focused workshop and event offerings were held, with nearly 1,000 attendees.
- Some of our most popular workshop topics were:
- ChatGPT and other Generative AI tools.
- Assessment of Teaching.
- Diversity, Equity and Belonging in STEM.
- Alternative Grading.
Outreach & Events
- The Teaching Center’s website continues to be a widely accessed resource for faculty at Pitt, as well as across the world, with more than 289,000 page views.
- We sent more than 600,000 individual emails to our distribution list of around 11,000 faculty.
- More than 40,000 impressions spanning Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
- Our center held more than 100 workshops or events, with greater than 1,600 attendees.
