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Faculty Development

Veterinary Educator Teaching and Scholarship (VETS)

Goals/Objective of the program:

The overarching goal of the VETS pilot program was to improve teaching practices to support student learning.

To address this, modules were designed to introduce, demonstrate, and model best practices and effective methods in teaching for participants in both clinical and preclinical curricula.

Specific objectives for the VETS program include the following:

  • Gain knowledge of educational concepts and effective teaching skills for both the clinical and didactic setting.
  • Understand their perspectives on teaching and learning and know how these influence their teaching.
  • Be able to recognize and apply the diverse methods of instruction.
  • Be able to apply the concepts of giving and receiving feedback to improve teaching and learning.
  • Understand and apply the concepts of a Community of Practice (CoP) to advance their ongoing professional development as an educator.

VETS Program Content

  • Education and Learning Theories – Participants are immersed in the concepts of constructivism and experiential learning by participating in the session. Participants engage with the content through construction of a flying apparatus and then deconstruct the activity to understand the principals of flight. Thus, participant experience the concepts or constructivism and experiential learning and reflex on the experience during the session.
  • Teaching Perspectives Inventory® – Participants explore their perspectives on teaching and learning using the Teaching Perspectives Inventory® (TPI) (www.teachingperspectives.com). The instrument aids participants in exploring and reflecting on their intentions, beliefs, and actions on teaching and learning.
  • Curriculum Design – Participants are introduced to backwards design as a tool to inform course and curricular design. Participants engage in alignment of learning goals, objectives, and activities.
  • Giving and Receiving Feedback – Participants explore the process and premise behind feedback, expanding their understanding of giving and receiving feedback in veterinary education, in the classroom, clinic, the workplace.
  • Reflective Practice – Participants experience aspects of reflective practice and documentation of this as a form of scholarly teaching. This included the process of reflecting in practice and reflecting on practice.
  • Communities of Practice (CoP) – Participants are immersed in a community of practice while participating in the program. The use of CoPs as a forum for reinforcing and building on concepts presented are explored.
  • Documenting Your Teaching – Participants are exposed to the process of documenting their growth and achievements in teaching. The representative from the EPRWG presents the format developed and ties various aspects of the VETS program back to the needed documentation.

VETS Program

Picture Application Process
Picture What to Expect
Picture Previous Participants

Previous VETS Program
July 10-12,2017, Fort Collins, CO

June 22-24, 2019, Davis, CA

What to Expect (Coming soon)
Previous Participants (Coming soon)