Scholarship of Teaching 

& Learning:

About SoTL

What is SoTL?

The Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) is:  

Definitions of SoTL

While there is no single definitive definition of SoTL, we will work with the following definitions for now: 

Why is SoTL Important?

Engaging in SoTL has numerous benefits to contemporary college education, such as encouraging educators to:  

What are the Five Principles of SoTL?

Whether you are new or experienced with SoTL, we encourage you to use these five principles (Felten, 2013) as a framework or guide the development and focus of your SoTL inquiries.

SoTL isn’t just about how to best teach your discipline, it should be focused on the student experience and their learning.

SoTL inquiries should build on what is already known (i.e., requires a scholarly literature review), while also being sensitive to the context and dynamics of your classroom.

High-quality SoTL inquiries require the systematic use of research methods that connect questions from practice back to student learning.

Full partnership with students may not be practical or appropriate in all SoTL projects, but good practice often requires engaging students in the inquiry process.

Teaching should be ‘community property’. Your work doesn’t have to end in a scholarly journal, but SoTL work should be made public so that colleagues can critique and/or use your work.

Begin a SoTL Project

Embarking on a SoTL project can be a daunting but exciting journey! To scaffold your engagement with this process, we recommend the Hopscotch 4-SoTL resource designed by the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning at Kennesaw State University.  

HopSCotch 4-SoTL model

Hopscotch 4-SoTL outlines nine steps in developing a robust SoTL inquiry (Figure 1). These nine steps are summarized below:

Step 1: Who I am as a SoTL Researcher

Step 2: Problem/need I want to study in my class

Step 3: Evidence(s) supporting the problem/need I want to study

Step 4: How I will study the problem/need

Step 5: Questions that will drive the study of the problem/need

Step 6: Data I will be collecting

Step 7: How I will analyze the collected data

Step 8: How I will ensure the trustworthiness of the process

Step 9: Ethical principles that will be guiding the study


Have an idea about a SoTL Project or want to learn more about this service?

Connect with an Educational Developer: SoTL to explore topics, methodologies, and other ideas.