What makes a good college teacher? This book provides an evidence- based answer to that question by presenting a set of "model teaching characteristics" that define what makes a good college teacher. Based on six fundamental areas of teaching competency known as Model Teaching Characteristics outlined by The Society for the Teaching of Psychology (STP), this book describes how college faculty from all disciplines and at all levels of experience can use these characteristics to evaluate, guide, and improve their teaching. Evidence based research supports the inclusion of each characteristic, each of which is illustrated through example, to help readers master the skills. Readers learn to evaluate their teaching abilities by providing guidance on what to document and how to accumulate and organize the evidence. Two introductory chapters outline the model teaching characteristics followed by six chapters, each devoted to one of the characteristics: training, instructional methods, course content, assessment, syllabus construction, and student evaluations.
The book:
-Features in each chapter self-evaluation surveys that help readers identify gaps between the model characteristics and their own teaching, case studies that illustrate common teaching problems, discussion questions that encourage critical thinking, and additional readings for further exploration.
-Discusses the need to master teaching skills such as collaborative learning, listening, and using technology as well as discipline-specific knowledge.
-Advocates for the use of student-learning outcomes to help teachers better evaluate student performance based on their achievement of specific learning goals.
-Argues for the development of learning objectives that reflect the core of the discipline's theories and applications, strengthen basic liberal arts skills, and infuse ethical and diversity issues.
-Discusses how to solicit student feedback and utilize these evaluations to improve teaching.
Intended for professional development or teacher training courses offered in masters and doctoral programs in colleges and universities, this book is also an invaluable resource for faculty development centers, college and university administrators, and college teachers of all levels and disciplines, from novice to the most experienced, interested in becoming more effective teachers.
"The book identifies excellent teachers in terms of their impact on students, shows how to use various methods to see one's impact, focuses on how students go about successful learning, highlights how to construct assessment to provide feedback to teachers about their impact, and demonstrates how to become an excellent teacher. The rare beauty of this book is that it is based on evidence, not anecdotes." -John Hattie, the University of Melbourne, Australia
"What an incredibly interesting and thorough account of what it means to be a model teacher. The book masterfully integrates the literature on university teaching into a highly readable and useful guide. This book is one that all graduate students and faculty who aspire to improve their teaching should read again-and again!" - William Buskist, Auburn University, USA
"We all want to be better teachers but often don't know how.? The present book provides a solid base of evidence-based practices from experts in learning and teaching to help postsecondary teachers reach that goal." - Marilla D. Svinicki, The University of Texas at Austin, USA
"This book is the perfect resource for professors who care about their craft.? It is scholastically sound and comprehensive in scope. The engaging and humorous style, coupled with its no-nonsense assessment focus, make it a must-read even for the most seasoned professor."- Jane Halonen, University of West Florida, USA
"The authors are renowned scholars in the field. ... Both novice and experienced teachers will benefit from this book. ... I ... would definitely add this book to my collection and recommend it to colleagues.? ... I find it especially appealing the book rests on the work of a task force of one of the leading society's in the field of teaching of psychology. ... It will add substantially to the literature." - Birgit Spinath, Heidelberg University, Germany
"The content is interesting and very relevant. ... I would seriously consider purchasing the text ... and would also recommend it to colleagues and our Dean for widespread dissemination in our College. ... [It] will resonate with faculty, administrators, and students." - Gaynell Green, Texas A&M University, USA
"The book will significantly contribute to the ? literature on teaching. ? [There are a] limited number of empirically based resources currently available on how to teach ? [and] even ? fewer ? that can be easily digested by both new and experienced faculty. ?? The writing style ? is engaging. ?. The authors' personal ? experiences ? will be an asset in connecting with both novice and experienced teachers. ? I would use [this book] in a course on teaching for graduate students." - Bibhuti K. Sar, University of Louisville, USA
