I have just joined this forum, so forgive me if this post does not quite connect to the main topic. I joined in because I have worked with students for many years, both in teaching credit courses, and in leading workshops for professors and others who teach at the university level.
It was the 'student perspective' aspect of this forum that attracted me to check it out. Not sure if any of you are on the POD (professional and organizational development) listserv, but a recent post I found, from Kevin Johnston of Michigan State University (MSU) quite interesting and certainly connects to the student perspective is this; several connect to the use of technology, but many are basic things. Interesting?
MSU Teaching Thoughts #10 "What Undergraduates Say are the Most Irritating Faculty Behaviors"
This short MSU Teaching Thought contains views culled from about 50 surveys in which students (mostly freshman and sophomores) commented on what they thought was the most irritating faculty behavior. Ask your students what they think. See if they match any of these. (Except when I have noted, these are in no particular order. When starred, “*”, indicates more than 20% mentioned this as a trait.)
According to the surveys, irritating faculty/TAs
1. Show up late for class. *
2. Are unprepared to teach that day.
3. Seem unorganized.
4. Ask too many personal questions.
5. Inadequately explain difficult problems or concepts.
6. Don’t control the class.
7. Don’t show up for office hours. *
8. Make students feel stupid (“Put down,” ”Inferior” ”Dumb” “Lack of respect”). *
9. Assign busy work.
10. Write on the board but block the information. (Also, talk to the board). *
11. (TAs) act like they know more than the faculty.
12. Lecture too quickly.
13. Don’t talk loud enough or in a monotone.
14. Don’t get to know students. *
15. Teach directly from outlines/notes.
16. Start classes early and end it late.
17. Assign work that is never graded.
18. Don’t prepare students well for exams.
19. Require on-line readings of more than 20 pages (printing is costly).
20. Don’t respond to e-mails.
21. Don’t understand you have work from other classes.
22. Don’t follow the syllabus. *
23. Allow the class to get behind then “speed up” the last few weeks of class.
24. Writes on the board (or overheads) in very small handwriting.
25. Assume students know more than they do.
MSU Teaching Thoughts
http://tap.msu.edu/teachingthoughts/
Alice Cassidy
Discussions started by Alice Cassidy
Hi, this is what was at the end of the message I posted in another thread, but I thought I would include it here too, in a new thread, in case some of you are reading by the thread, and not chronologically:
I am thinking that one outcome of being part of these interesting conversations that I am interested to pursue is to write a brief article on the key points that were raised, and a bit of the flavour of where in the world, and what sorts of centres people contributed from, for either our national teaching and learning newsletter (from STLHE) and/or for a journal article. For that I am thinking of a relatively new journal from Braslov University in Romania. I met the journal editor when she came to TAG at UBC to find out about starting her own T and L centre in Romania (Transylvania, to be exact!). She did set this up and the journal was an outcome. She has been asking me to write something.
So, I need to ask your permission to include excerpts, or examples or bits and pieces and ideally to name you and your institution, including web links, etc. What say each of you? Feel free to email me personally if you are more comfortable with that: alice.cassidy@ubc.ca
Vivian: how does this sit with you? Okay or not something you like to see done with the onine seminar discussions. I am thinking I do not need ethics approval, but do any of you out there feel otherwise? Also, Vivian, if this is okay to proceed with, will the archives of the seminar stay up fora while?
Many thanks all. Not sure I will be checking back until next week, as I have an off-campus meeting tomorrow, then not in on Friday. Will check back on Monday and hope we are all still here....(online in this form, I mean).
Cheers from the west coast of Canada,
Alice Cassidy at TAG, UBC
I am thinking that one outcome of being part of these interesting conversations that I am interested to pursue is to write a brief article on the key points that were raised, and a bit of the flavour of where in the world, and what sorts of centres people contributed from, for either our national teaching and learning newsletter (from STLHE) and/or for a journal article. For that I am thinking of a relatively new journal from Braslov University in Romania. I met the journal editor when she came to TAG at UBC to find out about starting her own T and L centre in Romania (Transylvania, to be exact!). She did set this up and the journal was an outcome. She has been asking me to write something.
So, I need to ask your permission to include excerpts, or examples or bits and pieces and ideally to name you and your institution, including web links, etc. What say each of you? Feel free to email me personally if you are more comfortable with that: alice.cassidy@ubc.ca
Vivian: how does this sit with you? Okay or not something you like to see done with the onine seminar discussions. I am thinking I do not need ethics approval, but do any of you out there feel otherwise? Also, Vivian, if this is okay to proceed with, will the archives of the seminar stay up fora while?
Many thanks all. Not sure I will be checking back until next week, as I have an off-campus meeting tomorrow, then not in on Friday. Will check back on Monday and hope we are all still here....(online in this form, I mean).
Cheers from the west coast of Canada,
Alice Cassidy at TAG, UBC
Check out the attached file, which describes TAG at UBC in about a page.