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Values and Principles Framework for Teaching and Learning

The Values and Principles Framework for Teaching and Learning is intended as a guide for professors, students, senior management and program administrators. It serves as a tool for thinking about the dimensions of the teaching and learning experience, how these dimensions can be understood in context, and what can be done to create excellent teaching and learning environments at the University.

Framework structure

The framework is formed of two major components: core principles and perspectives. Please read the full framework for more information on each of those components.
Read the full framework (PDF, 561KB)

Five core principles

Purpose
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Thrive

We thrive in teaching and learning when we realize our potential as specialists, community members, change-makers and thoughtful citizens in a complex world.

Context
Student with a world map

Engage with the world

Teaching and learning must adapt to a wide variety of meeting places (virtual, multimodal and face-to-face classrooms, teaching labs, design labs, large-scale lectures, research teams, one-to-one meetings, off-campus internships, etc.).

Community
Two students holding a ball between them with no hands

Build relationships

Roles and responsibilities in teaching and learning are rooted in interpersonal relationships that require reciprocity and respect.

Agency
Two students working at a booth

Act with purpose

Acting with intention is essential to making a significant contribution to teaching and learning practices.

Growth
Two students walking and chatting

Reflect on experience

By facing up to problems, pooling our ideas and viewpoints, devising solutions and thinking together about change, we create the conditions for learning, evolving and building community.

Perspectives on values and principles

A student helping another

Relational perspective

The learning environments: living in relevance, belonging, empowerment and responsibility
Students working by themselves along a window

Individual perspective

The learner: growing and engaging with courage, empathy, autonomy and resilience
Students in a study area

Academic perspective

The educator: sharing with purpose, inclusion, collaboration and accountability
Students at a concert

Community perspective

The University: serving with impact, responsiveness, connection and recognition
Students in classroom

Teaching and Learning Support Service

This framework provides a common ground for exploring, planning, evaluating and analyzing the teaching and learning strategies developed at the University. The Teaching and Learning Support Service (TLSS) can however help faculty members integrate the core values and principles into their own strategies.
Find out more about their services