P.D. for Teaching
Professional Development in Teaching activities support all of McMaster’s educators (TAs, graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, instructors, faculty, and staff) as they strive to enhance their teaching and provide a positive student learning experience.
The MacPherson Institute designs and delivers a broad range of programming for educators throughout their careers from first-time teaching assistants to those preparing for teaching awards. Our goal is to provide flexible teaching development activities that are relevant to instructors at different career stages and with unique disciplinary contexts.
Key Statistics
Approximately 38% of all full-time faculty members reached from May 1, 2022 - April 30, 2023*
*372 of 975 total full-time faculty members engaged in meaningful pedagogical discussions or activities during this period (includes consultations, workshops, events, Avenue and IQAP support.) Please note: this number is an estimate based on current tracking capabilities.
94% of New Faculty (hired in summer and fall 2022) were contacted**
**31 individual new faculty members were contacted across all Faculties
Information Box Group
495 Consultations, Meetings and Workshops were delivered to educators across all Faculties, Arts & Science and Campus Partners***
***Educators is intended to include, but is not limited to, community partners, faculty, graduate students, librarians, post-doctoral fellows, sessional instructors, staff, teaching assistants, and undergraduate students who are involved in teaching in some capacity.
Curriculum Development
Digital Pedagogy
Digital Pedagogy initiatives at McMaster support educators in enhancing their teaching through digital tools, media, and methods—aiming to create accessible, engaging learning experiences for all students. The MacPherson Institute offers training, guidance, and expertise in online, blended, and open learning design, as well as in the effective integration of educational technologies. Instructors can also seek advice on the pedagogical use of institutionally supported educational technology tools, Open Educational Resources (OER), and tech-enabled teaching and learning grants.
Key Metrics
MacVideo Usage (May 2024 – April 2025)
The MacPherson Institute provides training and support for MacVideo, McMaster’s video portal, which allows users to make videos and other media available online to anyone they choose.
Open Educational Resources Grant Program
The OER Grant program, supported by the Office of the Provost, McMaster Libraries, McMaster Students Union and the MacPherson Insititute, provides successful applicants with funding to create or adapt and customize OERs, enabling new pedagogical approaches and cost savings for students.
- 21 faculty, instructional assistants and staff received grants to support 11 projects to foster the creation of free online textbooks and other openly licensed digital education materials in 2024-2025.
- Continued funding for the Open Educational Resources (OER) Grant program has pushed the cumulative student savings beyond $1 million by replacing commercial textbooks and course materials with openly licensed materials authored, adapted, or adopted by McMaster instructors.
Universal Design for Learning Workshop Series
Over the past year, 83 educators participated in two workshop series focused on Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and accessibility practices for course design and delivery. One workshop series was offered during Teaching and Learning Month (May 2024) and the other series was offered in connection to celebrations of the International Day of Persons with Disability (December 2024).
EdTech Stations & Studios
The MacPherson Institute continues to provide capacity building support for instructors interested in leveraging digital tools for course development and enhancement. The One Button Studio, Audio Studio and EdTech Stations are technology-enhanced spaces within the MacPherson Institute that provide educators access to experiment with developing learning modules, creating video and audio content and much more.
One Button Studio (Video Studio) Visits
Audio Studio Visits
EdTech Station Visits
Accomplishments
Digital Learning Strategic Framework
The MacPherson Institute continues to collaborate on the Digital Learning Strategic Framework (DLSF), which is situated under the Office of the Vice Provost – Teaching and Learning (OVPTL).
Dedicated DLSF Project Team
Several positions were appointed by the OVPTL in 2024–25 to coordinate, track and report on DLSF initiatives and to ensure alignment with McMaster’s broader institutional priorities, including the university’s Accessibility Roadmap and Generative AI Taskforce. Two members of the MacPherson Institute team were seconded to work on Digital Learning Strategic Framework initiatives.
- Joanne Kehoe, Lead Educational Developer – Digital Pedagogies from the MacPherson Institute, was appointed as the Manager, Digital Learning Strategic
- Lisa Dyce, Educational Developer at the MacPherson Institute, was appointed as an Educational Developer, Digital Learning Strategic Framework.
Additionally, the MacPherson Institute has supported several key initiatives that connect with DLSF priorities and projects.
Online Learning Course Development
The MacPherson Institute continues to support the Online Learning Fellows Program that is designed to assist educators with the creation of flexible and accessible online course development. In 2024-2025 a call for applications was circulated and the MacPherson Institute offered support for proposal reviews and delivered relevant programming to help fellows enhance their skills and expertise with online course considerations and design. Additionally, a new Online Course Design stream was added to the MacPherson Institute’s Students as Partners Program Call to pair faculty with students for co-creation and testing innovative digital course components.
Video Platform Review
The MacPherson Institute, in collaboration with University Technology Services and Campus Classroom Technologies, contributed to the Video Capture and Content Management System RFI/RFP process, supporting the development of a business case and vendor evaluation. The team assessed multiple platforms and outlined several options to meet McMaster’s video capture and content management needs. While we are waiting for a final decision to be communicated, this collaborative process advanced institutional conversations and clarified cost and feature comparisons. The MacPherson Institute continues to support the RFP process, ensuring alignment with accessibility requirements, feature integration, and ongoing support for teaching and learning needs.
Accessibility Fellowship Program
As part of the Accessible Teaching and Learning Roadmap STEER/R, the Accessibility Fellowship Program was designed to support and connect McMaster educators in contributing to accessibility work at the institution.
- Two Educational Developers from the MacPherson Institute were part of a cohort of McMaster faculty, instructors and staff that were awarded the Fellowship. As part of their Fellowship project, a number of impactful UDL narratives from McMaster student perspectives were collected. Interviews were completed with undergraduate and graduate students that identify as a student with a D/disability or a D/disabled student and some who do not identify as such but benefited from a UDL practice. At the request of the interviewees the stories were not published publicly or broadly.
- The MacPherson Institute delivered several workshops on UDL to provide training and support to fellowship participants.
STEER/R Project Support
The MacPherson Institute supported and co-facilitated the final few Journey Mapping Sessions in early Summer 2024. In response to the STEER/R final report and future recommendations, the MacPherson Institute has been working collaboratively with Kate Brown and Student Accessibility Services to develop a Faculty Support Model for an Accessible Course (Re)-Design pilot project. The first phase, focused on time-based accommodations in primarily large enrollment undergrad courses, is scheduled to launch in Summer 2025.
Learning Technology Systems
The MacPherson Institute supports, administers, and offers training for a range of learning technologies, including McMaster’s Learning Management System, Avenue to Learn. As instructors navigate hybrid teaching and integrate media into both in-person and online classrooms, these technologies play an increasingly vital role in shaping the student learning experience.
Key Metrics
The MacPherson Institute provides pedagogical training on a variety of educational technology tools that are institutionally supported.
Avenue to Learn Support
Avenue to Learn is McMaster’s Learning Management System and supports teaching and learning activities for undergraduate, graduate and continuing education classes. The MacPherson Institute provides administrative, technical and training support for the platform (powered by D2L). Avenue provides a secure online space where instructors can share their content, learning resources, link to tools, administer assessments, conduct online discussions, distribute interim grades, collect assignment submissions, and serves as the online hub for their course.
Course Outline Library
The Course Outline Library provides a central repository of McMaster’s course outlines. The MacPherson Institute provides system support and administration as well as training and assistance in developing templates for individual faculties and programs.
Course Outlines Generated
Support Ticket Responses
Participants in 3 Virtual Training Sessions
Accomplishments
Hybrid and Flexible Classrooms
The MacPherson Institute participated in the development of an accessible hybrid classroom pilot project. As a result of this cross-functional work, McMaster will continue to plan for purpose-built classrooms that allow for flexibility when teaching to ensure that in-person locations can be adapted to hybrid, remote or in-person teaching modalities. One of the key learnings from participating in the pilot was that the technology is best served when choice and agency is given to students and faculty. The teaching and learning experience is enhanced when the modality suits the practice of the instructor and the needs of the students.
Avenue to Learn Enhancements
Over the past year, the Learning Technology Systems team has been preparing for a major Avenue to Learn upgrade scheduled for August 2025 that is intended to improve both functionality and user experience while maintaining familiarity with many core aspects of Avenue. The update will introduce a refreshed user interface, streamlined navigation, and new tools to better support teaching and learning. A cleaner interface and integration with the Course Outline Library will enhance course organization and allow easy access to course outlines. Additionally, the Learning Outcomes Tool will replace the Competencies tool, which will allow better alignment of course activities with learning goals.
McMaster’s current contract with D2L expires in October 2026. A contract renewal through an Ontario Education Collaborative Marketplace (OECM) buying agreement is being developed in close collaboration with University Technology Services, Procurement, and the Vice-Provost – Teaching and Learning.
Scholarly Teaching activities enhance teaching and learning by supporting, generating, disseminating, promoting and recognizing research that has the capacity to inform educational initiatives and student learning.
The MacPherson Institute’s research successes over the past five years are attributed to the rapid uptake of the Student Partners Program; successful support for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) capacity through grant funding, workshops, communities of practice, conferences and individual consultations; development of research programs focused on key areas of teaching and learning practice including equity and inclusion in higher education and student-faculty partnership; contributions to educational development in international contexts; and, the establishment of research collaborations and networks that support local and international research and practice more broadly.
Students as Partners Community Forum
In 2024, the MacPherson Institute planned and executed the Students as Partners Community Forum pilot event. The initiative brought together students and educators who have created, planned to create or have participated in student partnership programs within and beyond McMaster. The pilot events ran on May 28 and June 26, 2024.
International Journal for Students as Partners
The International Journal for Students as Partners (IJSaP) is a journal about learning and teaching together in higher education. IJSaP explores new perspectives, practices, and policies regarding how students and staff are working in partnership to enhance learning and teaching in higher education. Shared responsibility for teaching and learning is the underlying premise of students as partners, and IJSaP is produced using a student-staff partnership approach.
Manuscripts Published
Faculty Reviewers
Student Reviewers
Information Box Group
Downloads
Abstract Views
Accomplishments
- Grants and Awards criteria and processes were revised to include more specific considerations for EDIA
- Expanded support programming for grant recipients including invitations to participate in Monthly Writing Days, Summer Writing Retreat, and the Innovations in Education Conference.
- Launched the first Students as Partners Community Forum in May and June 2024 to share knowledge and expand networks of those interested or participating in student partnership.
In order to cultivate an environment where learning deeply matters and teaching is valued and recognized by the collective McMaster community, it is important for us to celebrate teaching and learning at McMaster through a variety of forms. Over the past year, the MacPherson Institute has led and contributed to a number of activities to enhance the appreciation for teaching at McMaster.
Innovations in Education Conference
In 2022 the MacPherson Institute hosted the Innovations in Education Conference at McMaster University on December 8 and 9. Programming for the conference explored the Past, Present and Future of Teaching and Learning. Attendees participated in a variety of hybrid sessions to unpack how teaching has changed in the last 50 years, how it has stayed the same, and what we have lost and gained in the process. Two conference streams were available: Learning Technology and Research on Teaching and Learning.
Information Box Group
Total Presentations
Paper Presentations
Poster Presentations
Workshops
Information Box Group
Panel Discussions
Innovations in Education Website Views
Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Sandbox Sessions
Teaching and Learning Month
Educators, faculty members, instructors and staff from across McMaster University have the opportunity to participate in professional development and celebrations of teaching as a professional practice. Teaching and Learning Month is an opportunity for many campus contributors to share teaching and learning events and programming during the month of May. The MacPherson Institute supports this initiative by coordinating and promoting these many events across different units into a month-long event series.
Information Box Group
Total Events in May 2022
Events Offered by the MacPherson Institute
Events Offered by Campus Partners
Information Box Group
Attendees
Teaching and Learning Month Website Views
Grant & Award Recipients
The MacPherson Institute recognizes and celebrates teaching and learning through a variety of awards and grant opportunities.
In partnership with the President’s Office, the MacPherson Institute supports the President’s Award for Outstanding Contributions to Teaching and Learning.
Award Winners 2022
- Sheila Harms, Faculty of Health Sciences
- Krista Howarth, Faculty of Science
- Amin Reza Rajabzadeh, Faculty of Engineering
- Sarah Symons, Faculty of Science
- Vanessa Watts, Faculty of Social Sciences
The MacPherson Institute awards Leadership in Teaching and Learning Fellowships each year to faculty champions who act as leaders and mentors to advance improvement in teaching and learning and to enhance student learning experiences. The award for fellows is up to $15,000 over two years.
Fellows 2022
- Sharonna Greenberg, Faculty of Science
- Chad Harvey, Faculty of Science
- Seshasai Srinvasan, Faculty of Engineering
- Sandra VanderKaay, Faculty of Health Sciences
Fellows 2021
- Rashid Abu-Ghazalah, Faculty of Engineering
- Sarah Wojkowski, Faculty of Health Sciences
- Jennifer Nash, Faculty of Health Sciences
- Chris Sinding, Faculty of Social Sciences
The MacPherson Institute supports the Petro-Canada-McMaster Young Innovator Award each year. This award builds on the connection between research and teaching by engaging undergraduate students in research to enhance the learning environment and recognizes an innovative scholar within the first eight years of their research career.
Award Winner 2022
- Selina Mudavanhu, Faculty of Humanities
In partnership with the University Library, the MacPherson Institute supports the Open Education Resources Grant program.
Grant Recipients 2021-2022*
- Konstantinos Apostolou and Amin Rajabzadeh, Faculty of Engineering
- Mirna Carranza, Faculty of Social Sciences
- David Feinberg, Faculty of Science
- Chad Harvey, Faculty of Science
- Ali Hashemi, Faculty of Science
- Anne Holbrook, Faculty of Health Sciences
- Miroslav Lovric, Faculty of Science
- Antonio Paez, Faculty of Science
*Time period July 1, 2021 – June 30, 2022
In partnership with the Office of the Vice Provost (Teaching and Learning), the MacPherson Institute contributes funding and support for the implementation of the Partnered in Teaching and Learning Strategy.
