Teaching to Support Well-Being

Research shows that academic achievement and student well-being go hand in hand. In recent years, students have faced increasing challenges with mental health, and have high expectations of support from faculty. DU’s 4D experience highlights well-being as one aspect of holistic student education, but faculty often feel under-prepared to support student well-being.

This half-day workshop, led by Dr. Kateri McRae (Professor of Psychology and DU’s 4D Faculty Fellow of Well-Being), will focus on actionable teaching practices which are likely to support student learning via student well-being. The session will include a brief review of the empirical literature on what contributes to student well-being, resilience, and thriving, an introduction to best practices for supporting aspects of student well-being in the classroom, and time to brainstorm and workshop ideas about how to apply this knowledge to an upcoming class. We will also acknowledge the boundaries of the instructor’s role in supporting student well-being, ​and provide resources for how instructors can support student well-being without sacrificing their own.