Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, but what if it’s also the best first step to faculty teaching excellence? When it comes to pedagogy, we often focus on tips and techniques. Perhaps we have a handful of prescribed practices that we recommend or
After 35 years in higher education, I continue to embrace the summer as a prime opportunity to strengthen my professional identity by creating a professional growth plan. Taking at least one week after the semester concludes, I have learned, is essential. This time allows me
If you’ve ever hesitated to offer feedback to a colleague for fear of creating tension or hurting a relationship, you’re not alone. Even in academic settings, where critique is part of the culture, giving candid feedback, especially to fellow professionals, can feel risky. Yet our
I don’t usually gasp while reading how-to books for new professors. But then, I don’t often encounter revelations in them as jaw-dropping as Marybeth Gasman’s: “When I was a tenure-track faculty member,” she states in Candid Advice for New Faculty Members (2021), “I wrote in
Although I have been teaching for nearly 20 years, the memory of the first day I stepped into a classroom and faced students as a graduate teaching fellow is still sharp in my mind. I stood at the front of the room as students trickled
When educators talk about AI, they seem to fall into one of two camps: one that is vehemently against the use of it in education and another that acknowledges its growing influence and agrees that the way we teach must change. I pondered my own
Need some advice about getting along with coworkers? Try your children’s bookshelves. Here’s what I learned from my kid’s favorites.
Hey, you. Yes, you. When was the last time you told your students, colleagues, or (gulp) administrators how thankful you were for them? Or jotted down a gratitude list as you went about your workday?
Many years ago my wife sat in on one of my face-to-face classes to observe my teaching. I was surprised to hear about things I did not know I was doing, such as saying OK every couple of minutes and making puzzled expressions. This showed
I have a brown wicker chair on my back porch. It is nestled in a little nook, shaded by the overhang of my roof and the foliage of Douglas firs and oaks. My neighbor’s water features, two little fountains and streams, gently murmur. One
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