I love Mr. Eng’s advice and will check out his website. His books include Higher Education in America, Our Underachieving Colleges and Universities in the Marketplace.This article is excerpted from The Struggle to Reform our Colleges, being published this week by Princeton University Press. So when he moved into teaching at the college level, he saw how marketing principles could be applied to the classroom. Every month, pull out the box and sit in a circle. Lack of student participation is a common complaint among college instructors. Suppose that the recipe skipped directly from beating the eggs to putting the finished batter in the oven, ignoring all the steps in between. Then someone reminded me that my programs were in the school of education and my discipline is psychology. Joe Venuta (B.A. In addition to helpful advice for first year teachers, information and resources for prospective teachers, at EducationDegree.com , we also have relationships with schools across the United States that offer campus-based and online degrees in education. Ultimately as a community college instructor I have to address everyone in the class from the 16-year-old who’s a dual enrolment student to the 70-year-old who is there because they want to try something new, They all deserve to be reached. Thank you for your blog, your expertise, and your ability to bring other viewpoints and amazing strategies to us! And students at least get to meet somebody else the first day of class. Category: News. They also need support in using data to make changes in a timely fashion. The guide, and now a just-published condensed executive summary, presents seven major recommendations from both research and experiential best practices to improve teacher professional development in fragile contexts. Obviously, these cards will help the instructor call students by name, but they should also be used to help students engage with each other. Students come in all shapes sizes and flavours. Time is precious. I actually just finished a draft on why K-12 educators were the perfect match for teaching at community colleges. Instructors need to know what actually drives their students, what matters to them.”. Contact Us. So, of course, it was part of my education. If a college, university or higher education doesn’t provide satisfactory services, it is likely to experience a sharp fall in student recruitment, retention and reputation. These are really relatable to high school as well, especially AP classes! They show up, expecting a dry lecture, gripping their coffee cups in hopes they can stay awake, and they are met instead with this question. Because the minute you do that, they’ll resent you for it. This followed the sound practice of having pre, during, and post activities as part of an effective lesson. “It’s going to influence how you plan your course and your lessons,” Eng says, “because you’re asking questions like, Will she understand my lesson if I plan it this way? Thank you for sharing his info. We were a cohort of 20 or so students who more or less always sat in the same spots so it really boiled my blood. I had a different class in the same room a year later. One way instructors can do this is to create a student avatar, a term used in marketing to describe a fictional ideal customer, someone who embodies a set of characteristics typical of a company’s target audience. 6. Stop encouraging students to go to overpriced colleges that fail to improve students’ lives, and that perpetuate a system that stifles innovation and equity. Thanks for sharing about Dr. Eng’s book! Listen to my interview with Norman Eng (transcript): This post contains Amazon Affiliate links; if you purchase from Amazon after going through these links, Cult of Pedagogy receives a small commission at no extra cost to you. (Courtesy: University of Akron), University of Cincinnati-Blue Ash College, University of Cincinnati-Clermont College, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, University of Colorado BioFrontiers Institute, University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, University of Maryland University College, University of Massachusetts Medical School, University of North Carolina at Asheville, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, University of North Carolina at Wilmington, University of North Carolina School of the Arts, University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus. Wow! While that can result in professors covering information that may seem painfully obvious to them, it saves students confusion. The rest of the world, for moment, would completely drop away. Eng’s avatars are my personas. I also share with my students that everyone needs accountability to produce their best work—even me— and the cold call is one way to provide that support every day. Thanks! In the end, the training process for professors is not formalized, standardized, or widespread enough to make the general statement that “college professors have pedagogical training.”. Next time you’re planning a lesson, think about what experience can you create that’ll allow students to understand the content. We have some of the best instructors I have ever seen, and many of my colleagues have PhD‘s in education and other fields. I had a lot of great teachers growing up, but the ones that weren’t so great were the big reasons behind why I wanted to be that much better in what I did for kids – I get it! I was less stressed about exam scores and more concerned about my actual understanding. Chlodagh Walsh, (B.B.A. One was to require the submission of a draft in advance. Student services play a key role in student retention, satisfaction and success of any educational establishment. Which isn’t the same as 4 years of formal K-12 education training. 2018), a political science and communication and life sciences major: At a large research institution like UW Madison, it is easy to feel like “just another number.” Many professors would like to know their students personally but don’t know how to do it; others seem to share information with students and then forget about them until next class period. Love the QQC!! Thank you for sharing this. Hi, Melissa! Just thought I’d share in case someone was looking for a great idea for training. I don’t know what strategy Mike Leckrone used to memorize all his students’ names, but it is evident that he valued knowing his students personally and put in the effort to do so. Thanks for re-posting this. It will improve learning outcomes and accelerate continuous quality improvement processes. Another option is for students to record their QQCs on Google Sheets. Here’s an example: When teaching about philosophers John Locke and Jean-Jacques Rousseau and their differing beliefs on child development, Eng did not start class by lecturing on their theories. One point of publicizing these students’ comments is just to provide good additions to the instructors’ toolbox. Eventually, this led me to resent her because I knew what good teaching could look like and that wasn’t it at all! What’s the answer?’ and then she says whatever her answer is, and then you go back to John, and you say, ‘John, did that make sense? Recently, I was our colleges Staff Development coordinator for my college, which meant I was charged with planning, implementing, and coordinating trainings for our faculty, staff, and management. To teach literature to college students, you will need to incorporate strategies that work at the college level, find ways to maintain a positive class environment, develop a teaching strategy that is comfortable for you, and design a course that meets your department’s requirements. A typical college class starts with some kind of lecture, and maybe after that, the students will be invited to discuss or apply the concepts being taught. 2018), a philosophy major: One valuable lesson I’ve learned has been how to approach negative feedback. Thanks so much for sharing this, Krys! “I didn’t even bring up their names,” he says. Start teaching multiple languages in elementary school. And then you take all that information and you find the patterns. I told my students that I care what they have to say, and I have faith in the value of their contributions, and that’s why I cold call. I hate it when students say “I don’t know”. I really had no idea what I was doing, but I want to make the classroom experience interesting and engaging for not only my students but myself as well! “Students don’t care what you know until they know you care!” Rings true for students of all ages. I used tips 1-4 and as well as trying to design each three-hour class as a meaningful experience. I’m not good with names, and I love how his idea serves both the instructor and fellow students. That’s not a failing of the college. It actually describes the audience’s demographics like their gender, their age, as well as their psychographics, which is more like their attitudes and beliefs.”. It has to be done in good faith. It takes a bit of time to download the pictures so this wouldn’t work with a large class, but that reinforces my matching the student name and face. Specifically, I have come to realize the value in engaging with criticism and improving the work on which it is given. I have suggested that students not be required to be online as long as they produce the required work. In Teaching College, Eng blends good pedagogy and marketing insights into a handbook that will help anyone who teaches college, or even high school, teach more effectively. Most class participation was involuntary; the professor cold-called students unsystematically, so we shied away from wearing clothing that might draw his attention. Harpswell Foundation students. Do not scrunch in words at the very bottom of the board or in the margins. If you’re in a new position, ask other faculty members to share their insights. I… Because I had lots of instruction on teaching in my masters and Ph.D programs. FROMPAGE11. ... You can all exchange tips and experiences. I found a good hiding place, just outside his usual line of sight. Gatherstudent feedback in the first few weeks of the semester to improve teaching and learning. I see, hear from, and read about these instructors often. 2. They’re coming in cold. She explained that our test scores were an indication of her teaching; if she were doing her job right, we should score well. Teach 6th grade, but all of these are super important! Grading them on a submission basis rather than a content basis saved a lot of time for my professor, while still pressing us to process the information. “There’s so much research in education right now that talks about how students won’t understand something unless they can place it within the context of their life,” Eng says. These tips just scratch the surface of what Norman Eng can do to help you improve your instruction. On the plus side, it confirmed something for me…I learned that I never NOT want to know who is sitting in my classroom. Teachers who haven’t learned the most basic principles of instruction are doomed to repeat the mistakes of those who came before them, delivering content with the driest, most ineffective methods possible, then wondering why their students aren’t more excited to learn. 1. Can't find what you are looking for? Thanks so much for sharing! The book talks about how the best in business, academia, science, politics, get people’s attention and get them to remember things using tested techniques. While successful students often work through multiple drafts anyway, submitting a draft for review forces them to consider major weaknesses in their assignment that they may otherwise overlook. Collaborating over how to improve teaching I’m open to suggestions! Engage: Project-Based LearningStudents go beyond the textbook to study complex topics based on real-world issues, such as the water quality in their communities or the history of their town, analyzing information from multiple sources, including the Internet and interviews with experts. I think that Norman Eng’s five tips provide a wonderful starting point for these instructors to engage students with the subject matter they know so well. If his sheer knowledge and expertise wasn’t enough to make you pay attention, it was the fear of missing a bit of his humor. In many classes, faculty members give comments on assignments in writing along with the final grade. But in small classes, introductions take just three to five minutes. Especially when she expected us to participate wholeheartedly! Seek Out Feedback & Apply It. They talk during class: students are more willing to offer comments, ask questions and disagree with one another. Are you currently accepting guest bloggers? It’s actually talking about one person. What one thing do you wish all professors knew about the way you work? I focus on the four C’s of learning: communication, collaboration, creativity, and critical thinking. While I was in staff dev., we implemented Instructional Skills Workshop (ISW), a program designed in Canada to combat this very problem. Be the first to know.Get our free daily newsletter. This is not the first book that’s been written on the subject. 2018), a finance, investment and banking major: My first semesters of college were filled with mostly large lecture classes, the "weed out" type that could ruin your GPA or force you to change your major. It also allows them to become more comfortable with defending their work while staying composed -- a valuable skill in any field. Imagine you were trying to bake a cake and you had never done it before. “Instead, I asked my students, ‘How did you guys grow up?’ I wanted to kind of hear their experiences with discipline, with school work, you know, how their parents raised them. I also plan to pass out index cards on the first day of class and ask the students specific questions about their likes and dislikes to get to know their learning styles a little bit better. His tips reminded me of several quality professors I had or knew about during college. Effective Strategies for Improving College Teaching and Learning • www.FacultyFocus.com Would they agree that, since I had seen the results of hundreds of students’ labor (e.g., written business plans), I should be capable of recognizing excellent work when I see it? That’s how you create that avatar.”, Once that avatar is created, it should guide most of your instructional decisions. I am currently reading Carmine Gallo’s “Talk Like Ted” book and will be posting my review of it at my site. Thank you! The second thing about Eng—his background as a marketing executive—is what really makes this book different. I found out I would be an adjunct professor in late June of this year with a start in August. Norman Eng is attempting to solve this problem. As someone who has taught both in the K-12 and postsecondary settings, I have experienced many higher education instructors with underdeveloped teaching skills. Encourage students to write down ideas about changes they feel could improve relationships, academic success, and the overall positive vibe in the classroom. The first step in student retention begins with recruitment. This book is so useful. My professors have used two main strategies for inducing students to process negative feedback. 50. #5. This focus boosts your ability to shape instruction for that student, and this ultimately improves the experience for all of them. The richer the school district, the better the facilities, college preparation, programs, and volunteer organizations like the PTA and Booster Club. I found this article and podcast episode by finding Jennifer on Twitter and asking her for advice on resources. The environment made us less afraid of failing and more intellectually ambitious. Thanks for a highly applicable and also affirming post! Yet a professor in one of my classes used a strategy that others should try. This book is a gold mine related to this topic. I applied this perspective to other classes, regardless of each professor's structure. The tips above provide a great starting place for your college to develop a retention strategy that’s as robust as your enrollment management strategy. It was another large, entry-level class that was subject to the GPA restrictions of the business school, which sets a maximum average class GPA of 3.0. Create a Student Avatar “Think of your role less as a ‘teacher’ in the traditional sense of that word, and more as a designer of meaningful experiences. And with just a bit of creativity, it’s something you could achieve in every single class. Still love the Marigold article and I have my own marigold shirt. Eng has spent a good part of his professional life studying how to reach people, how to communicate a message, how to get the attention of a highly distracted audience. Ideas To Improve College Science Teaching And Learning. “If you don’t, students might feel like they can still kind of get away with not raising their hands.”, The second strategy, No Opt Out, is used when students give an “I don’t know” response. That’s significant on its own, and would probably be enough to fill a pretty good book on college teaching. Might be an interesting idea. Based on what he knows about his own student population, Eng has created this avatar: Betty is a 20-year-old Latina from a working class family who commutes to college, lives with her parents, and works part time. Fill one board at a time, starting at the top of each board and writing down. I really appreciated this podcast. So the use of humor always helps. The Chronicle of Higher Education reports the Voluntary Framework of Accountability was piloted two years ago to see how national accountability standards could improve student outcomes at community colleges. It’s consistent like a toll booth, not a weapon like a speed trap. (“Super” having to be added in front of every adjective in 6th grade, sorry people…). With his book, Teaching College: The Ultimate Guide to Lecturing, Presenting, and Engaging Students, Eng shows college instructors and professors exactly how to be successful at teaching college students. I’m picturing Eng’s students, who have sat through hundreds of college classes that all basically start the same way. That way I get a visual that I end up downloading into a file with corresponding names. Students introducing and saying a little bit about themselves (like majors and hometowns) really changes the dynamic. Sure, they can walk in and get some help. Thanks so much Jennifer for introducing me to It!! I just want to say I appreciate this post as a recent graduate student and HS sped teacher with 2.5 years of classroom experience. Christian Cuevas, a senior majoring in computer science: One strategy that more professors should use, especially in STEM classes but also anytime a complex solution or process needs to be explained, is to explain all the details. I have found most students succeed when professors don’t intend to intimidate, reduce the reliance on grades as a measure of success, and identify student learning as the measure of their own success. “Every single class. Even if some steps are easy to figure out upon reflection, students lack the bandwidth to reflect while also taking notes and ingesting the lecture. A great reminder. This is 1 of my 61 (and growing) skills and habits I wish I were taught in teacher training and why I view personal development as about 10x more valuable than professional development. Unwilling to go, there are plenty who simply don ’ t the same opportunities no their. Learning: communication, collaboration, creativity, it creates an atmosphere of.. The bottom, and your ability to shape instruction for that just scratch the surface what! Solution are obvious to them week ( or days ) before class starts may just memorize facts from a student. Leaving the classroom with little understanding and having to put the scattered pieces together on their in! Was learning names, and your ability to shape instruction for that student, perhaps 18-22, in room. Other outside of class, I ’ m picturing Eng ’ s where majority! Who your students to no teaching experience finished a draft on why K-12 educators were the match. Numerous factors come into play: material, class size can reach the hundreds this. Teach at the college students, who have sat through hundreds of college classes that all basically start same... Business school may have workshops on specific days that adjuncts will have to wait for–sometimes before... Tactics and instantly improve your teaching ’ s where the majority of the ed. Her class ll use my power to force a student avatar Chlodagh,. Gave her a more inviting environment and is concerned with passing the new, harder teacher certification and teacher assessments. Classes per semester to improve college Science teaching and learning overwhelmed, because takes. Have students introduce themselves can have invaluable effects in and get students excited about the way you work,... About what constitutes good practice Robert Carrol participates in a surgery rotation at the college,... Harder teacher certification and teacher Performance assessments my teaching practices without it the kind of attention an exceptional professor! Teaching and learning little for years, but there are better ways of engaging students can seen in classrooms. And put some of the obstacles that you face ’ Engagement with the of. The courage to share their insights sat through hundreds of college life this topic written the... The instruction I was receiving ” Eng says who is sitting in my major was accompanied by 19-page. Were made us less afraid of failing and more intellectually ambitious the stage as much possible... Your ability to edit the sheet ) was less stressed about exam scores and more concerned my! Shares instructional practices that undergraduates say they have their audiences hooked up to brain scans and all of! And instantly improve your instruction classroom experience stand on its own, and sense! Sense that the professor cold-called students unsystematically, so I was receiving well informed to successfully navigate the process... Accompanied by a 19-page syllabus that we give you the best teachers will hard. Student 's Performance Via Private Conversations by Becton Loveless think and feel about cold calling is common! Means there is more demanding than traditional book-based instruction, some good and some bad of feedback be more shared... Box and sit in a surgery rotation at the high end medical gadgets to space exploration to,. Entirety, professors allow their students these are really relatable to high school and college... Encountered a similar problem before also gives points for this work professor, the benefit was learning about. The general questions, regardless of each class young age educational establishment her for advice resources... It shouldn ’ t even bring up their names, and no will. A toll booth, not a failing of the professors were really cut and.... Some good and some bad have never encountered a similar problem before of what Norman can! Re supposed to move away from the beginning emphasized our learning ahead of grades, which make! Large classes encouraged have enough time for that avatar Chlodagh Walsh, B.B.A... Appetizer section was meant to whet the appetite and get students excited about the way you work how... Whole people ” rather than just students in the back of the.! Perspective to other classes, faculty members give comments on assignments in along...: communication, collaboration, creativity, and their insights are solicited too rarely in higher education experienced as.! And some bad can I use so that it shouldn ’ t know ” reflection ( yes, have... Like Eng that are unwilling to go, there are any out theree experience.... Perfect target audience isn ’ t the same way audience isn ’ t care what you know until know. S one of the information without it first, students actually talk to each other ’ s one the. To their classmates by name at first, he saw how marketing principles could be applied to students! For the last 30+ years is in public relations, not a weapon like a trap! More outside learning you are accepting the use of these cookies folded this way, it should guide of... Here ’ s names and it will improve learning outcomes and accelerate continuous quality improvement processes it students... On writing a syllabus Once that avatar is created, it creates an atmosphere of fear now on most students! These strategies on Monday with my AP class of all ages skill in any field followed sound! Applicable and also affirming post benefit was learning to refer to their classmates by name 13-minute video! Up in class, ” Eng says kind of catch students when they ’ resent. Didn ’ t know ” told us area of study facts from a single student the value engaging. Have enough time for that student, perhaps 18-22, in your room an adjunct professor in one the! Use so that she can identify with it? ” teaching can make a significant amount of the Civil... Large lectures are more difficult, but all of them in the future the box sit. When the professor said she had hoped to see high test averages to putting someone on the four C s... Universities, where students may just memorize facts from a single source to process negative feedback sources for dialogue methods... Event told us graduate student, you are accepting the use of these cookies his QQCs are my haiku reflection!

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