The Teaching and Learning Enhancement Fund (TLEF) is financed by a portion of tuition fees paid by UBC Vancouver undergraduate and graduate students. When the Board of Governors approved tuition fee increases in the early 1990s, it was resolved that the TLEF would be established based on the following five principles:
- The proposals recommended for funding will significantly contribute to the enhancement of teaching and learning.
- The projects will result in sustainable benefits to students.
- Outcomes-based criteria will be used to evaluate project success.
- The proposed budget is reasonable and in line with the objectives of the project.
- Students have been/will be involved in development and/or implementation of the proposal.
We particularly welcome TLEF proposals that address one or more of the following areas:
Education Renewal
- Employ a mixture of in-person and online modalities, including hybrid, multi-access and fully online projects to enhance flexibility and accessibility for students.
- Develop approaches for the use of generative A.I. tools by instructors and students in any aspect of academic work (e.g. assessment, writing, academic integrity).
Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion
- Develop resources or activities that actively support equity, diversity, and inclusion to build capacity for inclusive teaching and learning in classroom and course contexts.
- Improve access and inclusive teaching practices with a focus on reducing barriers for students with disabilities (for instance by using Universal Design for Learning approaches).
- Create, adapt, or integrate open educational resources to make education more affordable and accessible to students.
Indigenous Engagement
- Strengthen and expand Indigenous-focused curricula in existing programs, and competence for instructors in working with Indigenous topics.
Practical Learning
- Enhance experiential and work-integrated learning opportunities.
TLEF proposals will be reviewed by a TLEF Adjudication committee based upon the following criteria:
Project Alignment
- The project advances UBC’s Strategic Plan.
- The project outcomes are aligned with one or more of the TLEF Fund priorities.
Project Reach
- The project enhances development of teaching and learning in a way that benefits students directly (e.g. enhancement of a course or curriculum, supports, and resources) and/or indirectly (e.g. training of faculty and staff in new pedagogies or learning technologies).
- The project actively supports equity, diversity, and inclusion, and the proposal outlines strategies to address equitable participation for all students in its implementation.
Project Feasibility, Scope, Budget, and Consultation
- The project is feasible: the objectives described in the proposal are achievable within the proposed timeline, budget, and with the identified project team.
- The budget is appropriate in relation to the project scope and anticipated impact, with a clear justification of all TLEF-related costs. Information relating to additional or in-kind funding or support is included in the budget.
- The proposal provides evidence of consultation with appropriate stakeholder communities: e.g., faculty and departmental leadership, students, community, and industry partners (where appropriate), as well as university and faculty support units that will support the project during its development and implementation (e.g., local faculty support units, CTLT, UBC Studios, Library, etc.).
Student Involvement
- The proposal describes how students were consulted in the preparation of the proposal and how students will be involved in the development and implementation of the project.
Sustainment
- The project will result in sustainable benefits to students. The proposal includes evidence of strategic support from the Faculty or Department and a sustainment plan for project outcomes beyond the period of TLEF funding.
Evaluation Plan
- The evaluation plan demonstrates how proposed methods and data sources will be used to determine whether project objectives and intended impacts are being achieved.
Large TLEF Transformation Projects
- Total possible funding over the life of the project: $200,000.
- Two-stage approval process: letter of intent and proposal
- Faculty approval of Letter of Intent and proposal (rank and rationale)
- Teaching Assistants covered by Faculty; Teaching and learning fellows and student Academic Assistants can be supported with TLEF funds
- Faculty course releases (50% from TLEF; 50% from Faculty) – up to $10,000 per course
- Consultation/check-in required with Senior Associate Director, CTLT
Small TLEF Innovation Projects
- Total possible funding over the life of the project: $50,000
- Single-stage approval process: proposal
- Faculty recommendation on proposal (with ranking and rationale)
- Teaching Assistants, student Academic Assistants, and Teaching and Learning Fellows can be supported with TLEF funds
- Faculty course releases cannot be funded through TLEF funding
- Consultation with the CTLT recommended
- UBC Vancouver faculty and staff are eligible to apply as Principal Applicants for Large TLEF Transformation Project funding.
- UBC Vancouver faculty, staff and students are eligible to apply as Principal Applicants for Small TLEF Innovation Project funding. If the Principal Applicant is a student, the application must be supported by a co-applicant who is a faculty member.
- Principal Applicants to the TLEF cannot hold more than one TLEF grant concurrently. Co-applicants can be involved in more than one active TLEF project at a time.
- Applied, experimental research on the implementation of teaching and learning enhancement in a UBC course can be supported by the TLEF. The TLEF does not, however, fund general research activities on teaching and learning topics.
- Teaching and Learning materials developed with the support of the TLEF must be made available for re-use within UBC. TLEF project teams are encouraged to license and share materials developed with TLEF funding under an appropriate Creative Commons license.
- Proposals targeting medical residents are ineligible for TLEF funding unless a significant number of UBC students would also directly benefit from the project. This follows the Senate resolution that medical residents are not classified as students.
- The TLEF does not fund student co-curricular activities, teams and competitions without a demonstrable classroom (pedagogical) component and a faculty member as a co-applicant.
- The TLEF primarily supports undergraduate program enhancement. Graduate programs may be eligible; however, cost-recovery programs that have elevated and non-standard fees to cover the full cost of instructional delivery are ineligible for TLEF funding. If you are unsure about the eligibility of your program, please contact tlef.info@ubc.ca before you apply for funding.
- For projects focused on enhancements to for-credit, cost-recovery programs, applicants should contact Andrea Han, Associate Director, Curriculum and Course Services at CTLT (andrea.han@ubc.ca) to discuss support outside the TLEF fund.
- For projects focused on non-degree non-credit (e.g. microcredentials) or supplemental education areas, applicants should consider submitting a proposal to the Continuous Learning Advancement Fund. Contact Anne-Rae Vasquez, Director, Academic Services, Extended Learning (annerae.vasquez@ubc.ca) for more details.
- Faculty or departments seeking support for new programs should contact the appropriate Dean's office as well as UBC's New Programs Hub (new.programs@ubc.ca).