What is SoTL in the Context of TLI?
Drawing on principles articulated by the TLI community and the International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (ISSOTL), the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) can be understood as a systematic, reflective, and evidence-informed inquiry into student learning that is made public.
At its core, SoTL is an approach to investigating teaching and learning that is grounded in curiosity about how students learn, why particular pedagogical strategies succeed or fail, and how educational contexts shape those outcomes. This means that descriptions of teaching activities, however thoughtful or well intentioned, do not in themselves constitute SoTL unless they are accompanied by a clear inquiry process. That process includes asking meaningful questions about learning, engaging with relevant literature, gathering and analysing evidence, and situating findings within broader conversations about pedagogy.
To further clarify this distinction, the following table outlines key characteristics that differentiate SoTL from work that does not meet its criteria:
|
What SoTL Is |
What SoTL Is Not |
|---|---|
|
A systematic inquiry into student learning guided by clear questions (Hutchings 2000; Glassick et al. 1997) |
A descriptive account of teaching activities without an inquiry focus |
|
Grounded in context, with attention to the location of inquiry (Chng, Mårtensson, and Leibowitz 2020; Felten 2013; Huber and Hutchings 2005) and the researchers’ epistemological traditions (Hamilton and McCollum 2024) |
Inattentive to the classroom, institutional, disciplinary, and cultural constraints shaping teaching and learning |
|
In conversation with relevant scholarship (Chick, Felten, and Mårtensson 2025; Glassick et al. 1997; Martensson 2017), including SoTL publications from TLI and other SoTL venues |
Isolated from existing literature or scholarly conversations |
|
Evidence informed, drawing on appropriate and transparent methods (Felten 2013), including methods from diverse disciplines (Bass and Linkon 2008) |
Based primarily on anecdote, intuition, or unexamined experience |
|
Focused on understanding and improving student learning |
Focused solely on teaching performance or instructor perspective, without attention to how teaching and teachers influence student learning |
|
Focused on student learning in post-secondary/higher education |
Work related to secondary schools; or studies of pre-service teaching without a central focus on post-secondary students’ learning |
|
Conducted ethically and reviewed by |
Research that risks harming students or that is conducted without informing participants about their rights |
|
Shared publicly to build collective knowledge (Chick, Felten, and Mårtensson 2025; Bernstein and Bass 2005; Shulman 2004) |
Intended only for local use or personal reflection without dissemination |
|
Reflective and critical, including consideration of limitations and positionality |
Uncritical promotion of practices or claims of effectiveness |
The journal’s advancement of SoTL aligns with the mission statement guiding ISSOTL’s strategic plan:
"ISSOTL fosters an engaged, interconnected, and supported SoTL community. We recognize and advocate for diverse SoTL perspectives, inclusive SoTL practices, open knowledge dissemination, and empowered members."
Within the context of TLI, SoTL is understood as a form of scholarly work that is both rigorous and accessible across disciplines and contexts. Since its founding, TLI has valued “methodological pluralism” (Chick and Poole 2013, 1), recognising that inquiries into learning may draw on qualitative, quantitative, or mixed approaches, as well as reflective and theoretical analyses. What unites these approaches is a commitment to systematic investigation and to making claims that are supported by evidence–”traces of learning” (Manarin 2017)—rather than anecdote.
SoTL work is not conducted in isolation or solely for local improvement. It is shared in ways that invite dialogue, critique, and adaptation. To facilitate conversation, SoTL authors are explicit about context, epistemologies, methods, and limitations so that others can interpret and build upon the work. In this sense, SoTL contributes to a collective knowledge base about teaching and learning, with “every conversation, review, and publications… an act of creation that strengthens our shared field” (Abrahamson and Moore 2026).
In the context of TLI, SoTL also reflects a commitment to criticality and reflexivity. Authors are encouraged to examine not only what works, but also why it works and for whom. This includes acknowledging positionality, questioning dominant practices, and exploring the ethical dimensions of teaching and learning. Such an approach ensures that SoTL remains responsive to diverse educational settings and attentive to issues of power and representation.
By maintaining a clear and shared understanding of SoTL, TLI can continue to support work that advances both the practice and the study of learning in meaningful and impactful ways across diverse higher education contexts around the globe.
REFERENCES
Abrahamson, Earle, and Jessie L. Moore. 2026. “Born through Us: SoTL and the Changing Landscapes of Inquiry.” Teaching & Learning Inquiry 14.
Bass, Randy, and Sherry Lee Linkon. 2008. “On the Evidence of Theory: Close Reading as a Disciplinary Model for Writing about Teaching and Learning.” Arts & Humanities in Higher Education 7 (3): 245-261. https://doi.org/10.1177/1474022208094410
Bernstein, Dan, and Randy Bass. 2005. “The Scholarship of Teaching and Learning.” Academe 91 (4): 37-43.
Booth, Shirley, and Lorenzo C. Woollacott. 2018 "On the constitution of SoTL: Its domains and contexts." Higher Education 75 (3) : 537-551.
Chick, Nancy L., Peter Felten, and Katarina Mårtensson. 2025. The SoTL Guide: (Re)Orienting the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning. Elon University Center for Engaged Learning. https://doi.org/10.36284/celelon.oa10.
Chick, Nancy, and Gary Poole. 2013. “Launching TLI: SoTL’s Purposes, Processes, and People.” Teaching & Learning Inquiry 1 (1): 1-4. https://doi.org/10.20343/teachlearninqu.1.1.1
Chng, Huang Hoon, Katarina Mårtensson, and Brenda Leibowitz. 2020. “Leading Change from Different Shores: The Challenges of Contextualizing the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning.” Teaching & Learning Inquiry 8 (1): 24-41. https://doi.org/10.20343/teachlearninqu.8.1.3
Felten, Peter. 2013. “Principles of Good Practice in SoTL.” Teaching & Learning Inquiry 1 (1): 121-125.
Glassick, Charles E., Mary Taylor Huber, and Gene I. Maeroff. 1997. Scholarship Assessed: Evaluation of the Professoriate. Jossey-Bass.
Hamilton, Melanie, and Brett McCollum. 2024. “Moving from ‘Good’ to ‘Great’ SoTL: The Importance of Describing Your Research Epistemological and Ontological Traditions in Your SoTL Scholarship.” Teaching & Learning Inquiry 12. https://doi.org/10.20343/teachlearninqu.12.31
Huber, Mary Tayler, and Pat Hutchings. 2005. The Advancement of Learning: Building the Teaching Commons. Jossey-Bass.
Hutchings, Pat. 2000. Opening Lines: Approaches to the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning. Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.
Manarin, Karen. 2017. “Reading the Stories of Teaching and Learning—ISSOTL 2016 Opening Keynote.” Teaching & Learning Inquiry 5 (1): 164-71. https://doi.org/10.20343/teachlearninqu.5.1.13.
Mårtensson, Katarina. 2017 "What do we know about Sotl?." Teaching & Learning Inquiry 5, (1) 1-1.
McKinney, Kathleen. 2012. "Increasing the impact of SoTL: Two sometimes neglected opportunities." International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching & Learning 6 (1) : 3.
Shulman, Lee. 2004. Teaching as Community Property: Essays on Higher Education. Jossey-Bass.
