Teaching Skills

The Graduate Division, in partnership with the Stearns Center for Teaching and Learning, offers a host of resources for professional development in teaching and instruction. 

This introductory training introduces appropriate and relevant instructional support and resources to include pragmatic considerations and tools for graduate teaching assistants, graduate lecturers, and post-doc scholars across Mason's campuses. This training is required for all Graduate students that hold a teaching position at George Mason University: Link to Training Version 2.0. in MasonLEAPS. 

The SkillCraft: Educating for Impact Community of Practice (SCEICoP) series encourages masters, doctoral and post-doctoral scholars from all disciplines to develop skills that are crucial to the creation of stimulating learning environments in and beyond the classroom. SkillCraft workshops provide opportunities for graduate students to document their growth and achievements through certifications at several levels. Workshops are repeated every semester, providing graduate students with the flexibility to achieve these certifications at their own pace. 

SkillCraft Level 1: Essentials of Student Engagement

This free workshop series consists of one-hour, online workshops that introduce students to the foundations of effective student engagement. To earn the Level 1 Essentials Student Engagement Credential, participants complete the Fundamentals of Student Engagement workshop plus three 1-hour workshops and submit the SkillCraft Level 1 Credential Form using the SkillCraft Credential Submission Portal. 

Register for SkillCraft workshops here: 

List of previously held Level 1 Workshops

• Fundamentals of Student Engagement: This workshop focuses on the characteristics of students that populate today’s classrooms. Participants will learn relevant learning theories and how to apply them to enhance student engagement. 

•  In-Class Activities: This workshop focuses on how to manage small and large student discussions and other hands-on learning activities during class. 

• Grading and Feedback: This workshop focuses on the application of grading rubrics and how to handle grading questions from students.  

• Classroom Climate: This workshop focuses on creating an engaging classroom environment and best practices around managing attendance, late work and AI policies. 

SkillCraft Level 2: Essentials of Student Engagement 

These free 10-hour hybrid bootcamps help graduate students design teaching materials for courses they teach or hope to teach. The bootcamps combine in-person sessions with asynchronous modules over two weeks and result in a teaching artifact that can be immediately used in a course. To earn the Level 2 Competencies Teaching Materials Credential, participants complete the 10-hour bootcamp and submit a teaching artifact and SkillCraft Level 2 Credential Form using the SkillCraft Credential Submission Portal.  

Virtual Summer Bootcamps 

• Syllabus Design – August 11 & 13, 2025. Register here. 

• Assignment Design - (Dates TBA) 

The Graduate Division and the Stearns Center for Teaching and Learning are proud to announce our first Digital Badge: Teaching and Instructional Development Level 1: Syllabus Construction. This publicly available badge is available to George Mason University graduate students at a discount! 

• Earning the badge, you will learn strategies and tips for student engagement, assignment planning, and instructional design. 

• The badge provides effective teaching strategies to deliver engaging lessons, to develop curriculum for designing cohesive course content targeting diverse learners, and to manage classroom environments.  

• Those who complete the digital badge will learn tips for designing meaningful assignments that promote critical thinking and assess student learning accurately. These skills will prepare them to excel as effective educators.   

Click here for more information: PEBD 0201 - Teaching and Instructional Development Level 1 

The Stearns Center for Teaching and Learning offers various free workshops and webinars throughout the year on teaching opportunities.  

• Knowledge Center: Hosts dozens of online resources to help enhance your teaching abilities. 

• Individual Consultations: The Stearns Center team provides one-on-one support regarding teaching and learning, including assignment and course design, successful group projects, syllabus design, classroom management, grading, and more.