3 Tactics to Improve Your Teaching

October 14, 2015

Teaching has a similar reputation as parenting: “People have been doing this for a long time, so everyone knows what they’re doing.” There’s a sense that no training is involved, but when graduate school includes a teaching context, it could be your first exposure to teaching. That can be intimidating. The October edition of the Graduate Training Series featured Effective Tactics to Improve Your Teaching and asked graduate students to compare teaching to parenting (or being parented).

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Questions to Ask Yourself

What is your job?

A general definition of teaching is to inform, educate, inspire and motivate others to pursue their individual goals and make content relevant and applicable in helping them achieve those goals. Isn’t the job description similar to that of a parent? Some days, a parent’s job is to make sure their kid is alive and well — do you have days like that in your classroom?

Dr. Bates shared an interesting perspective: Imagine that the introductory, or “1010” course you teach has 300 undergraduate students. Of those students, 150 will graduate with a degree from USU. Of that 150, 3 of those students will graduate in the major associated to that course (psychology, English, statistics). One student will go to graduate school in that area; the national average suggests that a small percentage of that one student will complete graduate school.

Statistically, this means when you’re standing in front of a class on the first day of a semester, only one student shares your experience. Your strategies likely don’t click with the majority of your students. Your job is not to make your students like you; it’s to provide them with the content and experiences they need to be successful. Keep that in mind when planning a lesson, class or lecture.

What does success look like to you?

For a parent, success looks like their child graduating, getting a good job, finding their passion, meeting the love of their life, etc. These major life accomplishments require short-term parenting accomplishments, the daily interactions. It’s the same in a classroom; there’s immediate and long-term success, but often those goals are at odds. Perhaps a teacher’s short-term goal is to have students read the syllabus or engage in class material, but some students refuse to meet you there.

Dr. Fran Titchener shared an experience: One day, the students in Fran’s intro to Latin course seemed uninterested and preoccupied. After evaluating her actions, she began thinking about external factors that could cause the distraction. A major industry in Cache Valley at the time was producing space shuttle parts; many USU students had parents and relatives working for a major company producing those parts. As it turned out, there was a space shuttle launch happening that day, the first one since the Challenger explosion. If the launch wasn’t successful, the Cache Valley industry could be in trouble. Once Titchener recognized the issue, she took the class down to the student center lounge to watch the news broadcast. While some of her colleagues saw this as “caving,” Titchener built a reservoir of goodwill with her students that day by taking an interest in external pressures; the class was more willing to take on additional work and studying because they trusted her.

It’s not up to you to decide what students are getting out of your course; meet students where they are in the classroom and get them as far as you can in the important content.

What are the biggest challenges you face?

Every class is different, but some share similar challenges. One shared before GrTS via email said a challenge is when a student in the classroom says something challenging or inappropriate in the context of the class. Bates said teachers have to make decisions as to where to intervene, or picking your battles. It’s similar to parenting: you don’t want to spend the majority of your time correcting. For example, a student in a multicultural psychology class says something racially insensitive; the teacher has to choose between correcting the student and moving on or discussing the comment as a learning experience.

Questions Asked During the Session

How do I get students to ask the questions I know they have?

Titchener suggested a Canvas feature called Piatza. Developed by people who were afraid to speak in class, it provides students with an anonymous forum to ask questions; the course instructor can approve the questions for an online discussion, or address the principal referenced in the question in class.

Bates passes out cards during each class for students to ask questions or make comments.

Should I have an attendance policy?

There isn’t a firm answer to whether attendance policies work or not. Keep in mind, however, that students are rational and follow the path of least resistance. Ask yourself: “If they’re not showing up, what am I not providing that they are finding elsewhere?” Perhaps all test information is in the textbook. Maybe class discussions aren’t adding to the content. Some students will always skip class, but do the best you can by evaluating what students are getting from your class.

How do I set high expectations when I have 100 students?

In some ways higher education doesn’t align well with what is considered great teaching. In a big class, it’s important to establish class “norms” in the first week. Clearly state objectives early in the semester and explain how coursework will help them meet those objectives and why those objectives matter.

If you have a student-of-concern (shows sign of depression, sexual harassment, etc…) Titchener has resources to help you brainstorm solutions. The UTF program has begun training students to be the first-line of defense for students of concern and have training videos and workshops as further resources.