teaching college

by Ama McKinley I’m a first semester instructor this fall, guiding 106 students as they learn Human Communication and Graphic Design. Sometimes, this job still feels like i’m being punked. When I was in college, I was…

I’d like to pose some questions to my colleagues: have you ever been sick, had an emergency, missed your train, had a death in the family, been in a car accident, or simply needed a mental health day? Have you ever had to cancel a class,…

As a faculty member, I can't fathom being the last person to walk into class nor can I  imagine being the first to leave the lecture hall. After class there are always  students who want to discuss the material. It's my job to provide an…

Given this trend, teachers, students, parents and policymakers might assume that students’ familiarity and preference for technology translates into better learning outcomes. But we’ve found that’s not necessarily true. This…

by Julie Candio Do you remember what happened last Wednesday? No? Sometimes our students don't either. And I don't blame them. While students can refer to the course syllabus, there may have been announcements mentioned during class…

It doesn't take extensive research to realize that facilitating productive discussions in the college classroom is not something that should be done by the seat of one's pants or on the fly. Yet, faculty member evaluations from students on…

The most important time-saver that I have is the agenda; it's similar to a lesson plan. Some of my classes meet once per week, some twice, or three times per week. Thanks to my use of agendas, I have a 4-hour course, plus grading and…

The Professor Is In first focuses on the ways in which landing a full-time job at a college or university have changed over the years. One of the most useful parts of the book, and one for which you’ll want your highlighter, are the steps…

The reason I’m sharing this is not because I want sympathy – far from it. I’m sharing this because I know that there are at least 1.3 million professors across the United States working on contingent contracts, many who may well be…

My Word! is written in  a scholarly style. Blum also uses personal examples from her teaching background. Chapters are best read individually, with time spent between them to ponder the concepts or look at some of her references. The book…