Abstract-This paper describes the process of developing a quality assurance checklist for course designers and faculty members who are engaged in designing blended learning courses at a multi-campus private university. The purpose is to establish unified quality criteria for ensuring quality of the design of blended learning course content. Six categories were identified in the checklist to meet the purpose: 1) contact information, copyrights, 2) privacy and security of information, 3) nature of interactive online content, 4) usability, 5) multimedia, and 6) interface design and technical specifications. Four stages of the checklist development were followed during the process: initial discussion for item adaption, validity and reliability assessment, tool/checklist refinement and finalization. These stages were found to be useful in creating the quality checklist for designing the course content taught through blended learning approaches.Index Terms-Blended learning, course design, checklist development, quality assurance.

Critical thinking (CT) is a generic attribute that is greatly valued across academic disciplines in higher education, and around the globe. It is also defined as one of the graduate attributes of higher education for the sample private university where this research was conducted, as it is perceived that CT helps the graduate to become ‘engaged citizens’ in the twenty-first century. Despite the well-documented importance of CT, its assessment remains a challenge. This study addresses this challenge through the systematic development and field-testing of a rubric for assessing critical thinking in a multidisciplinary context in higher education. A multidisciplinary group of faculty (i.e. education, nursing, medicine) from the sample university partnered with a policy research group in Canada to translate this plan into action. The development of the assessment tool followed a multi-step process including: (i) identification of the main elements of CT; (ii) choice of a rubric format; (iii) adaptation of the currently available relevant rubrics; and, (iv) field testing and establishment of the reliability of the rubric. The process resulted in the development of a holistic template, the Assessment of Critical Thinking (ACT) rubric. Two versions of the rubric have been field tested on a sample (n=59) of students drawn from different entities of the sample university. The data collected was subjected to psychometric analysis which yielded satisfactory results. This was a modest attempt to develop an assessment tool to guide multidisciplinary faculty members in teaching and assessing CT by assisting them to make decisions about the level of their students’ CT skills through a combination of numerical scores and qualitative description. It may also empower them to make self-initiated, conscious efforts to improve their classroom practice with reference to CT. The ACT rubric provides an anchoring point to start working on the daunting yet doable task of developing and fine-tuning both the assessment measures of CT and interventions to promote CT based on the assessment findings. Future research may not only provide robust evidence of the reliability and validity of the ACT rubric for a larger and varied sample but also help in making informed decisions to enhance teaching and learning of CT across entities of the sample university.   How to cite this article:  BHUTTA, Sadia Muzaffar; CHAUHAN, Sahreen; ALI, Syeda Kausar; GUL, Raisa; CASSUM, Shanaz; KHAMIS, Tashmin. Developing a rubric to assess critical thinking in a multidisciplinary context in higher education. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in the South. v. 3, n. 1, p. 6-25, Apr. 2019. Available at: https://sotl-south-journal.net/?journal=sotls&page=article&op=view&path%5B%5D=69&path%5B%5D=34   This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

The Teaching and Learning Enhancement Workshop (TLEW) is an indigenous name for the Canadian-based Instructional Skills Workshop (ISW). TLEW is a teaching development workshop aimed at enhancing faculty members’ stances towards student-centred teaching and reflective practice at the higher education level. This short paper discusses the initiation, implementation and institutionalisation of the TLEW at Aga Khan University (AKU) across entities in Asia and Africa. In total, 77 faculty members drawn from different entities of AKU participated in the workshop in 2016-2017. Empirical evidence collected from TLEW graduates through a survey and interviews suggests that the intense episode of planning, teaching and receiving peer feedback during TLEW helped participants in sensitising them to effective planning for teaching in order to engage and enrich students’ learning. Furthermore, the repertoire of pedagogical strategies has permeated graduates’ classrooms. Nevertheless, for sustainability a mechanism needs to be in place for providing faculty with institutional support and recognition for their contribution in teaching and learning. A need is advocated for TLEW to evolve as a mandatory component for all teaching staff at the university to help serve as a fundamental base for initiating and sustaining change through ongoing professional development opportunities and establishing a community of practice.   How to cite this reflective piece: RODRIGUES, Sherwin; BHUTTA, Sadia Muzaffar; SALIM, Zeenar; CHAUHAN, Sahreen; RIZVI, Naghma. Implementing a Teaching and Learning Enhancement Workshop at Aga Khan University: reflections on the implementation and outcomes of an Instructional Skills Workshop in the context of Pakistan. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in the South. v. 3, n. 1, p. 100-110, Apr. 2019. Available at: https://sotl-south-journal.net/?journal=sotls&page=article&op=view&path%5B%5D=78&path%5B%5D=42   This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/