Professional development for the sake of personal career growth alone is important and powerful. But when it comes to professional development for educators, the benefits extend far beyond the individual. Professional development plays a vital role in improving student success. Especially in higher education settings, educators' pedagogical knowledge and practices directly impact students' ability to navigate their educational journey and prepare for career challenges. Here are some key benefits of professional development for educators, which were also foundational to the establishment of the Institute at Macmillan Learning. Impact on Instructional Strategies Professional development serves as a cornerstone for introducing educators to new instructional strategies and facilitating the integration of best practices and evidence-based strategies into our classrooms. By refining instructional techniques, we cultivate more engaging and effective learning environments, helping to ensure our students are well-prepared to succeed academically. Keeping Up with Trends  With the educational landscape in constant flux—driven by technological innovation and changing societal needs—it's imperative for educators to stay in the know. Even if you don’t plan to make changes to your course or teaching, it helps to know what students may be doing differently when it comes to their study behaviors, other courses, or personal lives. Improved Student Outcomes  Investing in our learning and growth as educators is synonymous with investing in our students. Research-backed pedagogical practices translate to improved learning environments, which can, in turn, boost student engagement, understanding, and application of knowledge—hallmarks of student success. Better Support of Student Diversity  Our classrooms are vibrant mosaics of diverse thoughts, cultures, and learning styles. Carefully selected, intentionally designed professional development can arm educators with the necessary tools to embrace and nurture this diversity, fostering a classroom atmosphere where every student feels valued and supported in their educational journey. Personal Growth and Renewal  The enthusiasm and passion for teaching we share can bring meaning to our lives. Engaging in professional development experiences that bring educators from different walks of life together can not only reignite this passion but also nurture personal growth. Think about the last time you had a great conversation or exchanged ideas about teaching with another instructor, chances are it was invigorating.  Career Advancement  Professional development often opens doors to career advancement, offering educators opportunities to enhance their expertise, take on leadership roles, or gain recognition within the academic community and beyond. Such progression creates avenues for educators to impact student success on a broader scale. For example, facilitating workshops and training sessions for your department to share your newfound knowledge and skills can, in turn, support more students. Building Community and Professional Networks The relationships forged through professional development activities extend beyond individual learning, enriching the entire educational ecosystem. These networks become invaluable assets for exchanging ideas, tackling common challenges, and building partnerships that elevate the quality of education for all students. About “Teaching with Generative AI: A Course for Educators” The Institute at Macmillan Learning was recently launched to provide instructors with a unique professional development opportunity and equip educators with practical knowledge to embolden them to tackle modern teaching challenges with confidence. In the inaugural course, "Teaching With Generative AI: A Course for Educators," educators will refine their teaching methods, stay on top of cutting-edge technology, expand their professional network, explore ways to leverage artificial intelligence, and more. The course features a mix of asynchronous and synchronous learning, providing hands-on experience in developing course policies around AI, creating assignments with AI in mind, and navigating discussions with students about AI use. Upon course completion, participants will attain a digital certification to share with their institutions and peers via platforms like LinkedIn. Learn more about the course ... View more

During the course, you will access content and assignments via Macmillan Learning courseware platform, Achieve.  ⚠ You may already have an Achieve account, either because you are an adopter or because you have been sampled access to a course to review it as an instructor. You can use this same account to enroll in Teaching with Generative AI as a student. In order to complete course enrollment using these instructions, make sure you are logged out of your Achieve account.   Step 1. Go to achieve.macmillanlearning.com. Step 2. Click “I Need to Enroll in a Course” on the left side of your screen. If you have an existing Achieve account, please ensure you are not logged in.      Step 3. The course enrollment dialog will ask you to enter a CourseID to find the correct course for your enrollment. The CourseID for Teaching with Generative AI is uq39pr. Select Enter once you have entered in the CourseID.     Step 4. The dialog will display the name of the course you are enrolling in. Once you are ready to enroll, select Purchase Achieve Access to be taken to our student storefront to purchase access to the course.    Step 5. Complete your purchase in our Student Store. This video walkthrough will help you. (Please note: this video covers some options that do not apply to the Teaching with Generative AI course, e.g. enrolling via your campus LMS).  Need additional help? You can email Institute course TAs at institute@macmillan.com for help troubleshooting access to the course. You may also contact our support team by clicking the question mark icon in the lower-left corner of the Achieve screen. When contacting tech support, please identify yourself as a student (your role in the Teaching with Generative AI course) rather than as an instructor; this will ensure our team can help you more effectively. Once you’ve completed your Achieve course enrollment, it’s time to get access to your cohort’s dedicated Community site, where you will submit assignments and participate in peer feedback and discussion! Please only complete this process after you’ve successfully enrolled in your Achieve course.    Step 1. Visit https://community.macmillanlearning.com/  Step 2. Sign in using your Achieve account credentials. If you have previously registered for our Community site, skip to Step 5. Step 3. If this is your first time accessing our Community platform, you will be prompted to create a user name. This is the name that will display next to your posts.  Step 4. If this is your first time accessing our Community platform, you will be asked to identify your role. Select Instructor and complete the form requesting information about your role and institution. You will then see a note that we are verifying your account. This process may take up to 48 hours. If you have not received verification of your Community access, please email institute@macmillan.com.  Once your access has been verified, proceed to Step 5.  Step 5. To join the private community for Teaching with Generative AI, go to https://community.macmillanlearning.com/t5/teaching-with-generative-ai-a/gh-p/group01 and send a request to join this Group Hub. Someone from the Institute will add you to this Community!   ... View more

We are excited to share a new professional development course for educators looking to carefully consider and prepare their courses for a world with widely available generative AI. Whether you've not used AI or have started to implement changes to your course, this experience is for you. Watch this video to find out why. Below are a few things to know about the course. Course Duration: 8 weeks Course Environment: Virtual  Course Timing: Asynchronous modules and synchronous virtual meetings Time Commitment: Fewer than 5 hours per week Course Cost: $299 Cohort Size: 100 participants Credential: Digital certificate Learn more and enroll at macmillanlearning.com/institute.  ... View more