What makes some teachers more effective than others?
Throughout my teaching career, I have asked numerous colleagues, mentors, and associates for their advice regarding excellent teaching. Here is a sampling of the advice I have gleaned during the past 40 years from outstanding professors:
Open education resources (OER) are gathering more and more interest in higher education as the high cost of textbooks has led a significant percentage of students to simply forgo textbook purchases (Reddon, 2011). OER provide a free alternative to expensive textbooks. But the number of
Active learning approaches frequently promote student conversations about the content. As students try to explain things to each other, argue about answers, and ask questions, learning happens. We can hear it and see it. It’s why we teach.
Snapchat is probably the most popular social media app among those under 30. What distinguishes it from other such apps is that it allows users to add cartoon-like images and text to their photos and videos. While this playful interaction between users may seem like
Among teachers’ biggest worries about trying to incorporate humor into their classes are that no one understands their humor, that they might offend someone, and that they’re just not funny. As someone with a clear bias in favor of humor notwithstanding, I say balderdash. Incorporating
Like birthdays, anniversaries are occasions for reflection, and as I approach the fifth anniversary of my teaching career, I find that my thoughts are drawn to the things that I did badly. Here’s a list of five teaching mistakes I have made. I share them
Graham Broad’s piece reminded me of a short critique John Kenneth Galbraith did of his teaching: “How I Could Have Done Much Better.” The honesty of both is courageous and refreshing. Most of us were trained as content experts. We learned to teach by doing
Learning takes place when students solve problems beyond their current developmental level. Often peer support is needed for the student to get over the hurdles to accomplish a task (DePew & Holt, 2018; Schell, 2016; Vygotsky, 1978). Peer assessment is one means of support that
Have you ever struggled to get students to do required readings? Do your students treat them as optional? Perhaps they do the readings, but when you ask them to engage in critical discussion or think deeply about the material, they are unable to do so.
When students learn there will be group work in a course, they often let up a collective groan. Group work tends to leave a bad taste in students’ mouths due to their lack of understanding of group dynamics. If you plan to use group activities
