NC-NET Academy
promoting quality teaching and learning in North Carolina
online professional development
for Career & Technical faculty
in the north carolina community college system
The NC-NET Academy offers both facilitated and self-paced courses to meet the needs of busy instructors.
Academy courses weave together readings, activities, and opportunities for participants to share stories from their classrooms and develop immediately-useful teaching resources. Enrollment is open at no charge to part-time or full-time community college instructors in North Carolina, with special emphasis on career and technical faculty. Completers of any course receive certificates and badges and for the longer facilitated courses, incentive compensation.
The tools you need
for inspired teaching
A treasure-trove of free courses and instructional resources
facilitated courses
Join colleagues from across the state in guided exploration of important teaching and learning topics. Reflect on your own teaching practices, try new strategies, and share your ideas! The asynchronous format includes scheduled weekly objectives and discussions. Course completers earn a badge and incentive compensation.
self-paced courses
Adjunct & New Faculty
New to teaching or teaching part-time with little time to think about professional development? We’re here to support you with essential tools for effective teaching.
contextual teaching
Bring the “a-ha!” moments to your students with resources for bridging the gap between classroom learning and workplace application. Learn how to develop your own contextual lessons using our template for scenario-based instructional design.
Real world math
Help students explore careers, think critically, and understand the relevance of math beyond the classroom using lessons created by North Carolina community college math and CTE faculty in partnership with local employers. Each industry-contextualized lesson includes an introductory video featuring employees explaining a problem at their job site for students to solve.
bite-sized resources
Brilliant insights, tiny edition. Delivering valuable content in small, easily digestible pieces.
registration required
Fall 2026 facilitated courses
August 7 - September 11
Start Teaching Today!
New-to-Teaching and Adjunct Instructors Cohort
Includes Facilitated Capstone Project
Designed for new and adjunct faculty with minimal background in education theory and application
Enrollment is closed.
September 4 – October 12
Best Practices for Active Learning and Critical Thinking
Increasing Student Engagement
Develop problem- and case-based lessons that build greater student participation, enjoyment, and understanding.
Enrollment is closed.
October 9 – November 16
Habits of Happy Teachers: Perspectives on Thriving in Education
Renewing Excitement for Teaching
Reflect and rejuvenate with exploration of intellectual, social, and occupational wellness strategies for educators
Open enrollment begins September 23.
registration required
Spring 2027 facilitated courses
January 15 - february 19
Start Teaching Today! New-to-Teaching and Adjunct Instructors Cohort
Includes Facilitated Capstone Project
Early enrollment opens December 14.
Open enrollment opens December 16.
march 13 - april 20
Creative Thinking in the College Classroom
Inspiring Innovation in Students and Faculty
Building greater engagement, enjoyment, and understanding through the development of creative and innovative thinking practices
Early enrollment opens February 22.
Open enrollment opens February 23.
april 17 - may 25
Habits of Happy Teachers II
Continuing the Educator Wellness Journey
Reflect and rejuvenate with exploration of intellectual, social, and occupational wellness strategies for educators
Early enrollment opens March 29.
Open enrollment opens March 31.
On-demand & self-enrolled
Self-Paced Courses
Critical Thinking in the 21st Century
Using AI is not very intellectually stimulating and the knowledge gained is not likely to stick in any meaningful way. What if we took a page from the healthcare, criminal justice, or automotive syllabus and challenged our students with problem- or case-based learning? In this course you will learn how to teach critical thinking processes such as analysis, application, synthesis, and reflection and develop activities for students to practice using it.
Employability: Teaching Necessary Skills Now!
Employers often say their biggest challenge is finding workers who have good communication skills, can show up on time, and can work effectively in teams. This course is designed to help instructors empower students by developing awareness of the importance of employability skills. The content emphasizes the value of developing good habits and behavior that shape an individual’s reputation as a skilled, competent, and responsible professional.
what do I need for the first day of class?
You’ve been hired for your professional experience and subject-matter expertise but have never taught. Now what? If you are unsure about where to begin, this is the course for you. You will have access to tips and tools that will help you launch your successful teaching career. The other courses in this strand will then help you take it to the next level.
how do I create a positive classroom environment to support adult learners?
Learning environments play a key role in establishing classroom climate. Both physical and online classrooms need to optimize positive student interaction with the content, each other, and the instructor. Consider how providing frequent communication, setting clear expectations, and practicing inclusivity can help you build a supportive, respectful climate. This course is designed to help you examine the total learning environment through your students’ eyes.
How Can I Enrich the Learning Experience? Making “A-ha!” Happen
Student engagement with the concepts they are learning provides more “a-ha!” moments (and content retention) than memorization plus testing or other low-engagement teaching methods. What you might not know is that it makes teaching more fun when you are the facilitator not just the content provider. Hands-on learning is a natural fit for career and technical education but hands-on is only part of the active learning toolbox. In this course you will learn more student engagement strategies and will select 1-2 to integrate into your teaching practice.
How Do I Know What They Know? Incorporating Authentic Assessment Practices
Although our students take many assessments over their educational journey, they probably only remember the summative, high-stakes tests—like those for professional certification or licensure. But formative, low-stakes assessments provide useful snapshots that can tell us what students understand right now. In this course, you will learn how to develop assessments that create a natural feedback loop for your teaching practice, providing opportunities for concept clarification and student referral to additional resources.
roadmap for adjunct & new faculty
Whether you're stepping into the classroom for the first time or looking to strengthen your foundation, you've come to the right place.
This roadmap provides practical, easy-to-follow guidance on everything from crafting a clear syllabus and planning a successful first day, to understanding your students, managing your classroom with confidence, and designing fair assessments. The week-at-a-glance overview and active learning resources will help you feel organized and inspired from day one.
A Semester at a Glance
If you are new to the classroom, here’s a checklist of week-by-week suggestions for keeping your teaching on track.
Creating a Syllabus
A well-crafted syllabus communicates your expectations for the course. It should include an outline of the topics covered, course objectives and goals, assignments and due dates, grading criteria, attendance policies, expectations, and instructor contact information (office hours and location). You will want to include your college and course policies on AI use. At the first class meeting, give students a copy of the syllabus and review it carefully with them.
- Master Syllabus Checklist, Austin Community College
- Creating a Syllabus that College Students Will Read and Use, Sherri Singer, Alamance Community College
- Syllabus Builder Megaprompt – Fill in every bracket in the form, then paste the whole thing into your AI assistant in one message to generate a complete syllabus draft.
Knowing Your Students
Community colleges serve a wider range of students than other types of higher education institutions. Recognize that community college students’ prior educational experiences shapes how they approach higher education. Understanding that adult students often bring both rich knowledge and significant barriers (time, stress, competing responsibilities) to the classroom will help you communicate more effectively and build lasting trust in the classroom.
- Five Best Practices for Teaching Adult Learners: Lose the Lecture and Engage Learners, Teresa Byington
- Teaching for Tomorrow: Actionable Classroom Practices To Serve Returning Adult Learners, Jordan O’Connell
- Utilizing Adult Learning Principles and Universal Design for Learning to Advance Student Success, Peggy Rosario, EdD
- Adult Learning Guidebook: A Guide to Recruit and Retain Adult Learners at North Carolina Community Colleges, Belk Center, NC State University
A Successful First Day
The beginning of a course can be stressful for both students and instructors. Being well prepared will reduce anxiety and make the first day of class productive and successful. That first day sets the tone for the rest of the semester, so you’ll want to introduce the course, outline your expectations, and review the syllabus in detail. This can be done in a variety of ways to meet the needs of seated, online and hybrid course formats. Be sure to encourage student feedback and questions. Remember to talk about yourself as well as the course, so that students get to know you. They need to know that you are accessible and willing to help them succeed.
- Tips for Faculty Teaching for the First Time, Washington University
- Weimer-five-things-to-do-on-the-first-day-of-class, Maryellen Weimer, PhD
- The First Day of Class: Advice & Ideas, Community College of Rhode Island
Classroom Management
Classroom management is broadly defined as instructor expectations for student performance and behavior that shape the teaching environment and learning community (whether in seated, online, or hybrid courses). In the postsecondary environment, the term has shifted toward practices that are more supportive of adult learners, liked “shared norms,” “community-building,” and “instructor presence.” Regardless of the terminology, expectations should be clearly outlined in the syllabus. Other topics, like conflict resolution, are largely unspoken and addressed as needed. Plan your strategies for dealing with issues like this so that you are prepared. Also, because learning is a continuous and dynamic process occurring both in and out of the classroom, instructors should be flexible and respond to student feedback by adapting classroom management strategies when necessary.
- Community, Classroom, and Cake, David Wright, Faculty Focus
- Co-Creating the Classroom: Collaborative Ground Rules for Engaged Learning, Angela Rodriguez, Faculty Focus
- The Power of Instructor Presence, Center for Teaching & Assessment of Learning, University of Delaware
Active Learning Strategies
“In the traditional approach to college teaching, most class time is spent with the professor lecturing and the students watching and listening. The students work individually on assignments, and cooperation is discouraged. Such teacher-centered instructional methods have repeatedly been found inferior to instruction that involves active learning, in which students solve problems, answer questions, formulate questions of their own, discuss, explain, debate, or brainstorm during class, and cooperative learning, in which students work in teams on problems and projects under conditions that assure both positive interdependence and individual accountability. This conclusion applies whether the assessment measure is short-term mastery, long-term retention, or depth of understanding of course material, acquisition of critical thinking or creative problem-solving skills, formation of positive attitudes toward the subject being taught, or level of confidence in knowledge or skills.”
— Richard Felder, Professor Emeritus of Chemical Engineering, North Carolina State University
- Active & Collaborative Learning, Cornell University Center for Teaching Innovation
- Active Learning, DePaul University Teaching Commons
- Generative AI Meets Active Learning, Gloria Washington, Pedagogy Before Technology article
- Generative AI Meets Active Learning, (video with examples)
Fair Assessment Practices
Fair assessments measure the intended student learning outcomes and students know in advance what will be assessed and how it will be graded. Instructors provide timely, constructive feedback and offer students opportunities to demonstrate growth. A variety of assessment and aims to evaluate students’ abilities in ‘real-world’ contexts. In other words, students learn how to apply their skills to authentic tasks and projects. Authentic assessment does not encourage rote learning and passive test-taking. Instead, it focuses on students’ analytical skills; ability to integrate what they learn; creativity; ability to work collaboratively; and written and oral expression skills. It values the learning process as much as the finished product.
- Concrete Strategies for Frequent, Low-Stakes Assessments/Practice, Eberly Center, Carnegie Mellon University
- Beyond the Quiz: Rethinking Classroom Assessment, S.J. Morris
- Feedback Opportunities in Online Learning, Surrey Assessment & Learning Lab
- Designing Authentic Assessment, Center for Teaching, Learning, & Assessment, Ohio University
- 75 Digital Tools to Support Formative Assessment, Kathy Dyer, and Monica Rodríguez, NWEA
Bite-sized Resources
Community college students differ widely in age, background, prior education, and life experience and this shapes how they learn and what they need to succeed. These are resources to help you understand your students and plan instruction.
- Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is an instructional design framework developed by CAST to promote learning environments that reduce barriers. The UDL approach acknowledges student strengths rather than perceived deficits while supporting their agency as learners. The UDL Guidelines can be implemented in any level course. (Universal design for learning guidelines version 3.0, CAST, 2024).
- Canvas Accessibility Checker checks for common issues in online courses created in Canvas. This feature must be enabled by the account administrator at the college. A button for this feature will be displayed in the navigation course panel. After running the checker, review the list of flagged items and click “Fix” to resolve issues.
Moodle’s plugin, Brickfield Enable, is an accessibility toolkit for identifying and correcting accessibility issues in Moodle online courses. This plugin will need to be enabled by the campus Moodle administrator. - In Powerpoint, you will find the Check Accessibility feature under the Review tab. Best Practices for Making PowerPoint Presentations Accessible provides a helpful table of best practices for creating accessible slides.
- Stairway to STEM provides resources for autistic students and those on the autism spectrum transitioning from high school to college, particularly in STEM fields. Start with this article Autism 101: Autism Cultural Responsiveness for Improved Interactions by Sara Sanders Gardner, Neurodiversity Navigators Director, Bellevue College (WA). And don’t miss the extensive list of related content links at the end!
- Accessibility tools
- For reading support – Microsoft Immersive Reader
- To find tools for checking any aspect of instructional materials or websites – WebAIM Resources
Love it, hate it, or somewhere in the middle, AI is here. You may feel pressure to use it and pressure not to use it at the same time. A starting point is to find out about the guidelines and recommendations in place at your institution. Here are some resources to help you navigate AI adoption.
- Faculty AI Tools – free tools supporting the most common faculty tasks: planning courses, writing lesson plans, creating instructional materials, generating assessments, designing presentations, and improving accessibility
- Prompt Library for Faculty from the Center for Excellence in Teaching & Learning at Southern Arkansas University
- Teaching with Technology – thoughtful articles about AI from Faculty Focus
- Goblin Tools – little AI tools to make large tasks simpler and make learning fun
- AI presentation videos from the NC State Teaching & Learning Hubs
- Introduction to the TrAIT Framework – How to Embrace AI in the Classroom, Dr. Lane Freeman, Online Learning Consortium
Employability skills, also called soft skills, work readiness skills, durable skills or other similar terms, are highly valued by employers. These resources will help you integrate these critical skills for career success into your courses.
- The NC-NET Employability Skills Resource Toolkit supports instruction with modules addressing high-demand employability skills: Interpersonal Skills and Teamwork • Communication • Integrity and Professionalism • Problem Solving and Decision Making • Initiative and Dependability • Adaptability and Lifelong Learning • Entrepreneurship
- The Stacking the Deck cards created by mechanical engineering faculty at Ohio University provide quick ways for students to practice employability skills as part of class activities or independently.
- Personal Effectiveness – Interpersonal Skills • Integrity • Professionalism • Initiative • Adaptability & Flexibility • Dependability & Reliability • Lifelong Learning
- Workplace Effectiveness – Teamwork • Client/Stakeholder Focus • Planning & Organizing • Creative Thinking • Problem Solving, Prevention & Decision Making • Seeking and Developing Opportunities • Working with Tools & Technology • Scheduling & Coordinating • Checking, Examining & Recording • Business Fundamentals
- The NSF Necessary Skills Now project partnered with advanced manufacturing faculty at Forsyth Technical Community College and their employer partners to develop employability skills resources based on the US Department of Labor competency model in advanced manufacturing. Eight “bite-sized” modules provide classroom discussion guides and employer videos. A plugin course module is also available in Canvas Commons. Use “Necessary Skills Now” as your search term.
Discussion Guides: Interpersonal • Integrity • Professionalism • Dependability and Reliability • Teamwork • Problem-Solving • Personal Safety and Health • Communication