Yale’s postdoctoral community is a critical partner in the university’s research efforts. The Poorvu Center offers tailored resources and consultations to support your professional growth and development as an instructor. We look forward to working with you to prepare for a career in teaching.
Certificate of College Teaching Preparation
The Certificate of College Teaching Preparation (CCTP) is an opportunity for Yale Graduate Students, Professional Students, and Postdoctoral Scholars to complete a comprehensive training program in effective college teaching. The goal of this certificate program is to equip Graduate Students and Postdoctoral Fellows with transferable skills that are valuable both on the academic job market and in a wide range of careers involving teaching and mentoring. The experience culminates in the production of a portfolio showcasing their teaching development.
Intermediate and Advanced Teaching Workshops
Programs to help postdoctoral and teaching fellows gain critical skills to transition into a faculty position.
If you are teaching regularly as an instructor-of-record, you may also find our faculty events series to be relevant and supportive of your teaching here at Yale.
Postdoctoral Scholars Teaching Communities
Structured space to share experiences, reflect on teaching practices, and refine ideas with peers and colleagues.
If you are teaching regularly as an instructor-of-record, you may also find our faculty teaching communities to be relevant and supportive of your teaching here at Yale.
Teaching Consultations and Observations
Confidential, individual consultations for you and a member of the Poorvu Center team to discuss course goals, semester plans, teaching practices, and course issues or concerns.
Teaching Programs
Specialized programs to support your teaching development with a focus on community-building and reflection.
Programs for You
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Writing Workshops and Panels
Workshops, information sessions, and panel events to help you grow your writing practice and expand your writing and presentation skills.
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Writing Resources for Graduate Students
A range of online writing resources, handouts, model texts, and writing exercises to help you grow as a writer.
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Academic Job Search Workshops
Explore essential strategies for navigating the academic job market, from showcasing your teaching experience in an application to preparing for interviews with confidence.
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Spring Teaching Forum
Designed to encourage interdisciplinary conversation and community, these events address timely topics about teaching at Yale, ranging from AI to grading.
Resources for Postdoctoral Scholars
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- Teaching
A Guiding Framework for Teaching: Resource Page
Instructors can use the framework to guide their teaching choices about assignments, assessments, and classroom facilitation.
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- AI
- Teaching
AI Guidance for Teachers
A guide and list of Yale-related AI resources for faculty instructors interested in using or discussing AI in the classroom.
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- Teaching
Reflective Teaching
Reflective Teaching invites instructors to examine their pedagogy, articulate reasons and strengths for their strategies
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Upcoming Events
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Fundamentals of Equitable Teaching (In-Person)
Do you want to support and facilitate the success of students with wide-ranging experiences, identities, and learning styles? Are you interested in learning about the ‘hidden curriculum’ and how structural inequity in university settings impacts student engagement both in and outside of the classroom? In this four-week workshop, we will work together to recognize and address possible sources of… -
LC: Disability Justice as Pedagogy (Online)
This online learning community invites instructors from across disciplines to explore how the principles of disability justice can shape our teaching. We will start by introducing principles and vocabulary of disability justice, drawing on readings from both the scholarly disciplines of critical pedagogy and disability studies, and from grassroots disability justice organizers and culture worke… -
ITW: Teaching First-Generation Low-Income Students
First generation and low income (FGLI) students form a diverse and rapidly growing student population. Like many non-traditional student groups, FGLI students face challenges and barriers in college settings not necessarily designed for them. In this workshop, we will analyze first generation and low income students’ experiences and the strengths they bring to learning. We will examine first-pe… -
ITW: Leading Effective Discussions (online)
How can we promote thoughtful and productive discussions in the classroom? What strategies can we use to encourage equitable student engagement across disciplinary settings? In this workshop, we will identify the components of an effective discussion and introduce strategies for facilitating dynamic and constructive conversations. You will gain a foundational toolkit for starting and shaping a … -
ITW: Teaching Quantitative Reasoning
How do you develop the next generation of scientists, mathematicians, or engineers? This workshop will provide guidance on applying equitable and effective teaching strategies in Quantitative Reasoning (QR) courses, and more broadly, STEM subjects. These disciplines require teaching students logic and analytical skills through the lens of course content. We will define quantitative reasoning an… -
LC: Empathy and Vulnerability in the Classroom
How can we manage tense moments when facilitating discussions in the classroom? How can we show up for our students emotionally when discussing intellectually challenging topics? In this learning community, we will explore how we as instructors can center empathy and vulnerability in the classroom. We invite instructors from all disciplines to explore these topics through reading and discussing… -
ITW: Grading and Rubrics
Have you encountered any issues regarding grading? Have you ever felt uncertain when designing a rubric? Consider joining our workshop, where we will address questions like: How can we grade fairly, transparently, and in a way that motivates students? What grading tools and techniques foster student engagement? In this workshop, we will analyze best practices for grading, study common types of … -
ITW: AI in the Classroom
Generative AI tools like ChatGPT are becoming fixtures in classrooms, but how do we thoughtfully integrate them into our teaching? In this interactive workshop, we’ll explore how generative AI is shaping student learning, assignment design, and classroom engagement across disciplines. Together, we’ll examine sample use cases, discuss how to set clear expectations around AI use, and surface stra… -
ITW: Univeral Design for Learning—Higher Expectations, Lower Barriers
Does creating a rigorous classroom come at the cost of accessibility and equity? In this Intermediate Teaching Workshop (ITW), we’ll explore the meaning of Universal Design for Learning, use this framework to identify the barriers present in the traditional classroom model, and discover how to incorporate rigor without sacrificing access. If you have any questions, please contact Taylor Dover (… -
ITW: Online Teaching (online)
Although many classes are conducted through in-person instruction, online teaching remains an important and valuable medium for reaching students. We will consider best practices for remote teaching and both the challenges and benefits of teaching online. We will discuss ways to incorporate equity and accessibility into online teaching and how to build community in the online classroom. Please … -
ITW: Participation and Equity (Online)
Beyond just being an indicator of students’ progress, class participation can serve as a crucial facilitator of understanding through building classroom environments that encourage meaningful student engagement. This workshop explores the meaning of “participation” and the diverse ways in which it can appear in the classroom, the stakes of why participation is important to student learning, and… -
Assessment, Grading, and AI
No one wants to grade AI-generated text, and students do not want to outsource their learning to AI. How do we return to our assessments—essays, group projects, presentations, reading responses and beyond—in light of AI? This workshop is premised on the belief that unpermitted AI use will be less appealing and accessible when assessments align with learning goals and when we are explicit about …
We’re here to help!
Reach out to the Poorvu Center team if you have any questions or to learn more about our programs.