The Teaching and Learning Center (TLC) at UTHSC has launched a new program which aims to help UTHSC educators, including instructors and professors, master skills in areas related to teaching and learning while providing evidence of growth in each participant’s professional development.
“I’m very excited about the Medallion Program,” said Tom Laughner, PhD, director of the TLC. “It will be a great way for our instructors to continue to develop and showcase their teaching skills as we all strive to provide the best possible learning opportunities for our students,”
The Medallion Program currently has 13 medallion courses: The Craft of Teaching, Inclusive Learning, Teaching with Technology, Information Literacy, Pedagogy of the Social Determinants of Health, Simulation, Clinical Educator, Assessment, Course Design, Mentoring, Paradigms of Education, Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, and Teaching Online.
The program has received great support from Chancellor Steve Schwab, MD, and Lori Gonzalez, PhD, vice chancellor for Academic, Faculty, and Student Affairs. The TLC Advisory Committee and the TLC Faculty Development Committee were instrumental in shaping the program and collaborated with several units on campus on the program including SASSI, CHIPS, the QEP committee, and the Health Sciences Library.
Each medallion earned requires about 20 hours of work to complete and is crafted to function independently so that participants can gain new skills and grow within each medallion subject. There is no time limit to complete the requirement for each medallion.
Participants can complete the medallions in any order, however the TLC recommends participants complete the Craft of Teaching medallion before completing the other topics. Once a participant has completed nine medallions, they will receive the Expert Educator medallion, the highest level of achievement within the program, along with a one-time award of $3,000, and recognition at an annual awards ceremony.
Devin Scott, MA, TLC instructional consultant, and primary developer of the program said, “The TLC medallion program is a great opportunity for our educators because they can partner with the TLC to engage with topics relevant to them, at their own pace. Additionally, because program participants earn digital medallions they can share on LinkedIn and physical medallions they can display, the TLC medallion program is a great way to show evidence of an educator’s commitment to teaching excellence.”
Faculty interested in participating in the Medallion Program should inform the dean of their college or their departmental chair. Once leadership within the college contacts the TLC about interest in participation, the TLC will notify each participant.
For more detailed information about each medallion or for more information about the program, visit the Medallion Program website.