Edmund Hansen, Emporia State University,From
Cognitive Dissonance to Self-Motivated Learning
Motivation is a multi-level change process we need to help students
embrace. It often starts with experiences of cognitive dissonance and culminates
in the definition of one's learning purpose.
Pat Hutchings, Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement
of Teaching, Reflections on the Scholarship
of Teaching and Learning
Drawing on work by The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching,
this essay explores emergent understandings of the scholarship of teaching
and learning, faculty responses, and likely impact.
Matthew Kaplan, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor,The
Multicultural Teaching Portfolio
This essay explores the rationale for building a multicultural portfolio
and offers strategies for documenting and reflecting on multicultural teaching
and learning.
Barbara Lounsberry , University of Northern Iowa,Diversity
Begins at Home: One Gateway to Multiculturalism
Diversity studies can begin in our backyards. State and regional
studies can connect faculty in new ways and reveal racial, ethnic,
religious, and cultural diversity - even in locales considered homogenous.
Hittendra Pillay and Bob Elliott, Queensland University
of Technology, Imperatives for Reforming Pedagogy
and Curriculum
Traditional models of pedagogy and curriculum assume the world is stable
and internally consistent and rational. A new pedagogy and curriculum
model are proposed, which challenge these assumptions.
Douglas Reimondo Robertson, Eastern
Kentucky University, Teaching as an Educational
Helping Relationship
This essay offers a conceptualization of college teaching as an educational
helping relationship that challenges faculty to integrate inherent conflicts
in the teacher (helper) role.
Charles M. Spuches, SUNY College of Environmental Sciences
and Forestry, Teachers and Scholars as Designers:Helping
people learn is central to our faculty work.
Instructional design theory and practice can help us meet increasing
challenges, employ new knowledge and resources, and create optimal learning
environments.
Richard Tiberius, University of Toronto,Teachers
are Diverse, too: Understanding Beliefs about Teaching and Learning
Teachers hold beliefs about teaching and learning that influence their
teaching strategies and their relationships with students. These
beliefs may limit what teachers do but they need not limit their success.
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page.
John B. Bennett, Quinnipiac College,
Teaching
with Hospitality
Fortunately, hospitality is practiced more than it is preached. A cardinal
academic virtue, hospitality is essential in the classroom as well as in
relationships with colleagues. This essay looks at why this is so.
Jeffrey Howard, University
of Michigan,
Academic Service-Learning: Myths, Challenges, and Recommendations
This essay reviews the essential elements
of curriculum-based service-learning - meaningful community service, enhanced
student learning, and preparation for democratic citizenship - as well
as myths, challenges, and recommendations associated with this pedagogy.
Christine Stanley, Texas
A & M University, Teaching in Action: Multicultural Education
as the Highest Form of Understanding
To enhance the multicultural understanding
of students, this essay offers conceptions and suggestions relating to
course and curricular change. We can indeed all practice multicultural
teaching!
Tom Angelo, DePaul University,
Classroom Assessment and Classroom Research: Guidelines for Success
This essay defines and gives examples
of Classroom Assessment and Classroom Research and provides guidelines
for faculty based upon 15 years of research and practice.
Eddie Vela, California
State University - Chico,
The Emotional Classroom
Theories of cognition give little attention
to the role of emotion. Nevertheless, affect is intimately involved in
learning. As educators we must understand emotional aspects of the learning
environment.
Janet Gail Donald, McGill
University, and James Wilkinson, Harvard University,
Exploring Student
Expectations
What do professors need to know about
students to empower them as learners? We explore the dimensions of understanding
students in terms of their goals, roles and the way they spend their time.
Terry Doyle, Ferris State
University,
Integrating "Learning how to Learn" Strategies into
your Content Teaching
Students often lack the strategies needed
to effectively learn course content. Integrating the teaching of "learning
how to learn" strategies into course content is the best way for students
to be successful.
Barbara J. Millis, United
States Air Force Academy, Cooperative Learning: May the Circle Be
Unbroken
Fueled by new discoveries in cognitive
development and the thrust toward active learning in general, cooperative
learning in higher education is now widely accepted and widely practiced.
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Graham Gibbs, Open University,
United Kingdom,
Changing Student Behavior Outside of Class
Shifting focus from teaching to Learning
includes shifting attention from in-class to out-of-class learning activity.
This essay offers strategies for understanding and controlling students'
outside learning activity.
Steven M. Richardson,
Winona State University,
Living up to Expectations
"Poor preparation" is often a symptom
of mismatched expectations. By communicating expectations early and with
a plan for offering help as needed, we can minimize these problems.
Terrie Nolinske, Lincoln
Park Zoo,
Creating an Inclusive Learning Environment
Students bring differences relating to
life experiences, attitudes, age, religion, discipline, and learning styles
into the classroom. This essay offers strategies to promote diversity awareness
and an inclusive learning environment.
David Halliburton, Stanford
University,
Perspectives on Teaching and Learning: The Legacy of
John Dewey
John Dewey's educational legacy embraces
wide-ranging views on the relation of teaching to learning and to other
key issues in education.
Gail Goodyear Muir &
Sally S. Blake, University of Texas at El Paso,
Foundations of Collaboration
Specific ideologies are forwarded by learning,
socio-political, and religious theories using collaboration, consensus,
and cooperation. Examination of the foundations of these processes reveals
the values required of participants.
David L. Graf, Nova Southeastern
University,
Helping Students (Better) Evaluate and Validate WWW
Resources
Faculty need strategies to assure that
students can process information from the WWW responsibly. Such strategies
include developing web-savvy assignments and requiring demonstration of
critical review of the material.
Lion Gardiner, Rutgers
University,
Fostering Students' Moral Development
The development of students' ethical behavior
has been an aim of college faculty for centuries. This essay reviews research
and ways of fostering principled ethical reasoning.
Return to the Teaching Excellence main page.
****Descriptions for the 1998-1999 Essay Series are currently not available but will be added here soon.****
Return to the Teaching Excellence main
page.
1997-98 Essay Series
Virginia S. Lee, University of North Carolina-Chapel
Hill. "Relating Student Experience and the Curriculum."
This essay offers a rationale for incorporating students' personal
experience into the curriculum and techniques for doing so to facilitate
both cognitive and affective curricular objectives.
Ronald Teeples and Harvey Wichman, Claremont McKenna
College. "The Critical Match Between Motivation to Learn and Motivation
to Teach."
Student motives to learn cannot be effectively understood as something
independent of prevailing pedagogies, which are shaped by motives to teach.
The authors discuss bringing these two aspects of motivation into closer
congruence.
Nancy Van Note Chism, The Ohio State University.
"Developing
a Philosophy of Teaching Statement."
Suggestions are presented for preparing a statement about one's philosophy
of teaching in relationship to the preparation of a teaching portfolio.
Included are ideas on developing several common components of such statements.
Judith and Calvin Kalman, Concordia University.
"Writing
to Learn."
The authors explain a technique that discourages the viewing of material
as an agglomeration of disembodied facts and fosters students' awareness
of the concepts underlying the topics being discussed.
Barbara Duch, Deborah Allen, and Hal White, University
of Delaware. "Problem-based Learning: Preparing Students to Succeed
in the 21st Century."
College graduates who can think critically, solve complex problems,
communicate clearly, and work effectively in teams will be prepared for
the challenges of the 21st century. Problem-based learning (PBL) helps
students develop these crucial skills.
Nancy A. Diamond, University of Illinois. "Adding
On-line Computer Methods to Your Repertoire of Teaching Strategies."
On-line teaching methods offer interesting strategies for teaching
whatever you already want to teach. This essay describes a broad range
of on-line methods and details the elements necessary for their optimal
use.
Larry Michaelson, University of Oklahoma. "Keys
to Using Learning Groups Effectively."
Irrespective of such factors as subject matter and class size, small
group work can produce positive motivational and learning outcomes. The
key is appropriately managing the variables discussed in this essay.
Roger G. Baldwin, College of William and Mary.
"Academic
Civility Begins in the Classroom."
Values and traditions supporting academic civility are learned in the
classroom. This essay discusses the role of the college professor in promoting
civil discourse and nurturing overall academic civility.
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1996-97 Essay Series
Edward Neal, University of North Carolina - Chapel
Hill. "Leading the Seminar: Graduate and Undergraduate."
This essay provides a framework for planning and leading effective
seminars and addresses the differences between graduate and undergraduate
seminar instruction.
G. Roger Sell, University of Northern Iowa. "Challenges
in Using Technology for the Improvement of Undergraduate Education."
We may believe that access to more information will improve undergraduate
education, but students conceptual foundations and critical thinking skills
are essential for using information technologies and constructing knowledge.
Susan Holton, Bridgewater State College. "Cracks
in the Ivory Tower: Conflict Management in the Classroom... and Beyond."
The very nature of the classroom with its power imbalance and differing
expectations can engender conflict. What are the warning signs, and what
might we do manage the inevitable conflict?
Mary Ann Bowman, Western Michigan University. "Metaphors
We Teach By: Understanding Ourselves as Teachers and Learners."
Our metaphors of teaching and learning express our views of the roles
of teachers and students. Becoming conscious of our own metaphors is an
important first step to self-awareness and positive change.
Kathleen McGrory, Society for Values in Higher
Education. "Teaching and Values: What Values Will We Take into the 21st
Century."
Our values drive our decision-making about a range of everyday concerns
as professionals. This essay identifies some current values being addressed
in scholarly inquiry and attempts to predict the role of values inquiry
in curriculum and teaching in the 21st century.
Frank Gillespie, The University of Georgia. "The
Phenomenon of Large Classes and Practical Suggestions for Teaching Them."
Large classes are a phenomenon of higher education today. However,
"large" does not preclude providing an effective teaching and learning
environment. The environment can be analyzed, good teaching can be modeled,
and practical strategies offered.
Laura L.B. Border, The University of Colorado at
Boulder. "Simulating, Experiencing, and Changing Biased Teaching Behaviors."
Increased awareness of biased teaching behaviors and effects on students
can motivate instructors to become conscious of and change their own biased
teaching patterns. Nonbiased teaching is subsequently reinforced and students
performance enhanced.
Ronald D. Simpson, The University of Georgia. "The
American Professoriate in Transition."
After a brief review of the history of the American professoriate,
major trends for the future, the lives and work of today's faculty members
will be discussed in terms of forces influencing the direction of higher
education in our society.
Return to the Teaching Excellence main page.
David J. Walsh & Mary Jo Maffei, Miami University.
"Never
in a Class by Themselves: An Examination of Behaviors Affecting the Student-Professor
Relationship."
The student-professor relationship is important not only for its own
sake, but also because it is closely linked to learning.
Laurie Richlin & Brenda Manning, University
of Pittsburgh. "Honoring the Process for Honoring Teaching."
Developing an evaluation-of-teaching system takes time and the willingness
to do private reflection prior to taking part in academic unit discussions.
Anne Bezuidenhout, University of South Carolina.
"Integrating
Research and the Teaching of Undergraduates."
Although successfully integrating teaching and research may require
drastically restructuring the undergraduate curriculum, there are some
activities that can help bring the introductory student closer to faculty's
research interests.
Anthony Grasha, University of Cincinnati. "Teaching
With Style."
The selection of styles as instructors should be embedded in a conceptual
context that includes principles of both teaching and learning.
Donna Glee Williams, Western Carolina University.
"Transactional
Analysis of the Creative Process."
TA provides an excellent paradigm for teaching college students about
the appropriate interaction of creativity, technique, and self-criticism
in creative endeavors such as writing.
Barbara Watters, SUNY Oswego.
"Attacking Ideas,
Not People: Using Structured Controversy in the College Classroom."
This technique helps students learn the material in a more enduring
manner while they learn to resolve their conflicts constructively.
Anthony L. Truog, University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.
"Students'
Reactions to Performance-Based vs. Traditional Objective Assessment."
What happens when we move beyond the numerical indices generated by
objective testing to find the "real world" performance aspects of learning?
Return to the Teaching Excellence main page.
Richard Schoenwald, Carnegie-Mellon University.
"What
did I do right in one freshman seminar? What did I do wrong in another?
What will I do next time?"
Every instructor has had the experience of one really great class,
followed by one disaster. Somehow we manage to carry on in spite of it.
Rita Rodabaugh, Florida International University.
"In
the Name of the Student . . . What is fairness in college teaching?"
It is the one characteristic the lack of which our students refuse
to forgive. Rita Rodabaugh provides some common practice that might be
labeled "unfair."
Marilla Svinicki, University of Texas. "I'd
like to use essay tests, but . . ."
You can only go so far in improving your essay questions. Sooner or
later you have to get the students to improve their answers. This article
suggests three areas where they might start.
Harriet C. Edwards, CSU-Fullerton.
"Mistakes
and Other Classroom Techniques."
Taking advantage of mistakes in the classroom can promote student involvement
with the material. Techniques derived from social learning theory illuminate
the real, everyday experience of study and scholarship.
Milton D. Cox, Miami University.
"Emerging Trends
in College Teaching for the 21st Century."
Changes in communication practices highlight the growing realization
and acceptance by faculty of the complexity of college teaching and learning.
Looking forward to the new century, Cox highlights changes in communication
paths, levels, and methods between faculty and faculty, faculty and students,
and students and students.
Bette LeSere Erickson, University of Rhode Island.
"Helping
First-Year Students Study, Part I."
Understanding how freshman students spend their time is an important
guide to aiding their studying. Erickson provides two strategies: Diagnostic
Learning Logs and a Survey of Study Activities.
Bette LeSere Erickson, University of Rhode Island.
"Helping
First-Year Students Study, Part II."
Setting the stage for new study practices, teaching students how to
take notes, developing assignments to actively engage students in study
activities and helping to form study groups are important methods for getting
students to spend their study time more productively.
Return to the Teaching Excellence main page.
Anastasia Hagen, University of Texas. "Learning
a Lot vs. Looking Good: A Source of Anxiety for Students."
Sometimes the best students are the most anxious about their performance.
This article discusses current theory and research on what kinds of motivations
are affecting students and what faculty can do about them.
Robert Diamond, Syracuse University.
"Changing
Priorities in Higher Education: Promotion and Tenure."
This discussion summarizes a recent study about what constitutes an
effective reward system that can recognize all aspects of faculty work.
Marilla Svinicki, University of Texas. "What
they don't know can hurt them: The role of prior knowledge in learning."
Students don't come to the classroom as blank slates on which the instructor
writes. Their success at learning new information is dependent on the kind
of prior knowledge, good or bad, that they bring to the classroom.
David Hoekema, Calvin College.
"If you can fake
that . . . A reflection on the morality of teaching."
What are the traits of a professor who is genuinely open and honest
in the classroom and deserves the respect of students? David Hoekema offers
seven candidates.
Mary Norton, University of Delaware. "Of Gurus,
Gatekeepers and Guides: Metaphors of College Teaching."
How we name our roles can have an impact on how we carry them out.
This article describes some common ways we think about teaching and the
impact each might have.
Thomas Angelo, Boston College.
"Teaching Goals,
Assessment, Academic Freedom and Higher Learning."
Thomas Angelo attempts to convince the reader that a careful examination
of oneÕs teaching goals is the first step on the role to effectiveness
and even excellence in teaching.
Richard Tiberius, University of Toronto. "The
Why of Teacher/Student Relationships."
"Yeah, she has a good relationship with her students, but can she teach?"
Richard Tiberius makes a case for the educational value of and indivisible
nature of student/teacher relationships and learning.
Return to the Teaching Excellence main page.
Ron Smith, Concordia University.
"Competence:
What Does It Mean In Teaching and Learning?"
What does it mean to be competent in a field? Our definition of competence
influences the way we teach and what we expect from students.
Charles Bonwell, Southeast Missouri State University.
"Risky
Business: Making Active Learning a Reality."
Much has been said about the power of active learning as an instructional
model. But moving from theory to practice may need some careful thought
and timely advice.
Sheila Tobias, The Research Corporation, Tucson,
AZ.
"Disciplinary Cultures and General Education."
Is there an unspoken culture that pervades the teaching in a discipline?
How does an intelligent outsider recognize its assumptions and mores?
Carol A. Weiss, Philadelphia College of Pharmacy.
"But
How Do We Get Them To Think?"
We hear this question constantly from faculty these days. This article
will describe strategies for motivating and teaching students skills in
this area.
Suzanne Cherrin, University of Delaware. "Teaching
Controversial Issues."
There are many topics in our curriculum which are relevant to studentsÕ
lives, affect students personally, and frequently produce emotional responses
in the classroom. This article makes suggestions for managing controversy
and maximizing the opportunity for active learning.
Fred Hudson, The Hudson Institute of Santa Barbara.
"Ten
Qualities of Self-Renewing Faculty."
Keeping ourselves alive and motivated is a never-ending struggle for
faculty, who often feel overwhelmed. This author provides some insights
into specific ways to keep the creative spirit flourishing.
Bill Bergquist. "The Four Cultures of the Academy."
How do the cultures of the academy affect the teaching and learning
which is so central to its mission?
Return to the Teaching Excellence main page.
Peter Seldin, Pace University and Linda Annis,
Ball State University. "The Teaching Portfolio."
One of the best ideas about the evaluation of teaching to come along
in recent years is the teaching portfolio, which allows the individual
instructor to create a well-documented history of his or her own teaching
efforts and the thinking which undergirds them.
Parker J. Palmer, Independent Consultant, Madison,
WI. "Living the Mystery of Teaching."
Good teaching cannot be equated with technique. It comes from the integrity
of the teacher, from his or her relation to the subject or the student,
from the capricious chemistry of it all. The author muses about how to
give voice to the questions the students won't ask but which probably lie
on the cutting edge of their learning.
Blythe Clinchy, Wellesley College. "Tales Told
Out of School: Women's Reflections on Their Undergraduate Experiences."
Where does learning really occur? In the classroom? Or out of it? The
answer may be different for different learners and that has implications
for our ways of teaching.
Jack H. Schuster, The Claremont Graduate School.
"Whatever
Happened to 'THE' Faculty?"
Once assumed to be an enclave of like-minded scholars, the academy
is becoming more and more segmented. The demographics of the students are
changing as are those of the faculty. What will be the impact of those
changes on the face of the academy in the next decade and beyond?
Maurianne Adams, University of Massachusetts. "Academic
Culture: The Hidden Curriculum."
There is an unspoken, unacknowledged set of cultural norms which govern
the conduct of the players in the academy. When non-traditional students
enter the academy, they may inadvertently run afoul of those norms. By
recognizing them ourselves, we may be able to make the experience of these
students a better one.
Laurie Richlin, Visiting Scholar, Antioch College.
"The
Market for Teaching Scholars."
To what extent will the hiring institutions accept a candidate whose
devotion is to teaching? The answer depends greatly on the type of institution.
Karron G. Lewis, University of Texas. "Making
Sense (and use) of Written Student Comments."
Student evaluations of teaching are more and more common. Many include
a baffling array of student comments along with scaled items. To get the
most out of these rich data requires some planning and careful analysis.
.
Return to the Teaching Excellence main page.
Russell Edgerton, American Association for
Higher Education. "Forward to Aristotle: Teaching as the Highest Form
of Understanding."
There is more to teaching than a mere grasp of content. The act of
teaching itself is a complex and fascinating experience which goes beyond
simply knowing the subject and talking about it.
Robert Boice, SUNY-Stony Brook.
"Countering
Common Misbeliefs About Student Evaluation of Teaching."
In spite of all evidence to the contrary some people continue to believe
that student evaluation of teaching is "nothing but a popularity contest."
How much more useful it is to recognize what the students have to offer
in the way of feedback on teaching.
Jean MacGregor, The Evergreen State College. "Collaborative
Learning: Reframing the Classroom."
The method of collaborative learning goes far beyond a change in teaching
methodology. It is a change in the whole relationship between learners
and the environment.
Barbara Solomon, USC-Los Angles. "Impediments
to Teaching a Culturally Diverse Undergraduate Population."
There are many societal factors within and outside the academy with
which we must contend to help each student reach his or her potential.
Most of all we must learn to recognize when the differences we see arise
from the student, his cultural background, or the fact that he is, after
all, a human being with much in common with all human beings.
Ohmer Milton, University of Tennessee. "Course
Tests: Integral Features of Instruction."
The tests we give in class are one powerful means of communicating
our intentions to the students. They should be recognized and respected
as such.
Robert Menges, Northwestern University. "Teaching:
Beliefs and Behaviors."
Our beliefs about learning shape the behaviors of our teaching. We
need to be aware of what they are and how they influence our actions.
John Boehrer, Harvard University.
"Spectators
and Gladiators: Reconnecting the Students with the Problem."
Learning does not take place when the instructor does all the work.
It is necessary for the students to get back into the game and do some
of the grappling as they do in the case method of teaching.
Marilla Svinicki, University of Texas. "So Much
Content; So Little Time."
The universal complaint of faculty is that there is too much content
to cover in the time allotted. Rather than complaining, perhaps we should
re- examine how we go about choosing the content to include in a course.
We might find we have more than we really need.
Return to the Teaching Excellence main page.
K. Patricia Cross, University of California-Berkeley.
"Reforming
Undergraduate Education One Class at a Time."
The purpose of classroom research is to help teachers evaluate their
effectiveness and to foster professional renewal through reflection on
their instruction.
Gene Rice, Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement
of Teaching. "Rethinking What It Means to Be a Scholar."
A broader and more accurate definition of scholarship also includes
the integration of knowledge, the application of knowledge, and the representation
and dissemination of knowledge-teaching.
Joanne Kurfiss, Santa Clara University. "Critical
Thinking by Design."
This essay offers guidelines for increasing the critical thinking potential
of courses in the disciplines.
Marilla Svinicki, University of Texas-Austin. "If
Learning Involves Risk-taking, Teaching Involves Trust-building."
Learning will flourish in an atmosphere in which the learner is willing
to take risks, and it is the task of the instructor to create such an atmosphere.
James Eison, SE Missouri State University. "The
Meaning of College Grades."
The often confusing and inconsistent character of academic grades can
be greatly reduced by suggestions offered in this essay.
Delivee Wright, University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
"The
Challenge of Teaching the Introductory-level Course."
Introductory-level courses usually offer many more and greater challenges
than do advanced courses, and it is appropriate that they be delivered
by the most effective instructors.
Ronald Smith, Concordia University and Fred Schwartz,
Vanier College. "Teaching in Action: Criteria for Effective Practice."
This essay describes ways through which teachers enhance their teaching
art within the process of teaching itself.
Loren Ekroth, University of Hawaii at Manoa. "Why
Professors Don't Change."
Even if professors wanted to change their teaching methods, the ways
they define themselves and stabilizing aspects of their academic situations
often resist their attempts to change.
Return to the Teaching Excellence main
page.
Packet #1: Alternatives to Traditional Teaching Methods and Learning Strategies (7 essays)
Packet #2: Cooperative/Collaborative Learning, Small Groups (4 essays)
Packet #3: Critical Thinking (6 essays)
Packet #4: Defining and Characterizing Teaching (9 essays)
Packet #5: Diversity Issues (7 essays)
Packet #6: Grading, Testing, and Assessment (5 essays)
Packet #7: Introductory Courses/General Education (6 essays)
Packet #8: Motivating Students (7 essays)
Packet #9: The Student/Teacher Relationship (6 essays)
Packet #10: Change, Renewal, and the Professoriate (3 essays)
Packet #11: Thoughts on the Future (3 essays)
Packet #12: Technology and Related Issues (4 essays)
For ordering information contact grafd@nova.edu.
Return to the Teaching Excellence main
page.
Last updated September, 2000