Resources

In a sequel to his 1983 work, Theologia, Farley develops a conceptual apparatus for re-thinking the structure of theological education in church, seminary, and university which is unified by a hermeneutical approach. He defines this approach as acts of interpretation which yield understanding, and argues that it requires ordered learning and critical thinking. (From the Publisher)

Four leading philosophers of education offer a sophisticated but accessible introduction to the central debates about the role of gender in educational practice, policymaking, and theory. (From the Publisher)

This volume is structured to provide practical assistance to those engaged in the review of faculty reward systems on their campuses and to provide guidelines to academic administrators, deans, and chairs who are leading these efforts. Chapters have been designed to address major issues relating to promotion, tenure, and merit pay. The different ways in which campuses have approached the process of clarifying their missions and modifying their faculty reward structures are illustrated. Reference materials from scholarly associations and accreditation agencies are included to demonstrate disciplinary perspectives. A model for change is presented along with criteria for assessing a promotion and tenure system. A professional portfolio to document the work of faculty is also described. (From the Publisher)

A rich compendium of classroom-tested strategies and suggestions designed to improve the teaching practice of beginning, mid-career, and senior faculty members. Forty-nine teaching tools cover both traditional tasks, writing a course syllabus, delivering a lecture and newer, broader concerns, such as responding to diversity, and using technology. (From the Publisher)

Two decades after the first Women's Studies courses appeared on campuses in the US, feminist research and teaching are now thriving around the world. The editors of this book provide a rich sample of theoretical and practical reflections on classroom experience by teachers of Women's Studies over the past ten years, raising provocative questions which apply broadly to many areas of progressive teaching. The collection features new, unpublished and original work as well as a selection of the best articles to have appeared in recent years. (From the Publisher)

Greening the College Curriculum provides the tools college and university faculty need to meet personal and institutional goals for integrating environmental issues into the curriculum. Leading educators from a wide range of fields, including anthropology, biology, economics, geography, history, literature, journalism, philosophy, political science, and religion, describe their experience introducing environmental issues into their teaching. (From the Publisher)

Responsive Teaching: An Ecological Approach to Classroom Patterns of Language, Culture, and Thought, the fourth title in this series, provides a conceptual basis for recognizing the classroom as an ecology of lingistic and cultural patterns that should be taken into account as part of the teacher's professional decision making. It argues that the orchestration of classroom behavior cannot be separated from the students primary culture. Chapters discuss the metaphorical nature of language and thought, primary socialization, non-verbal communication, framing and social control, the classroom as an ecology of power, culturally responsive supervision, and educating teachers for the 21st century - all from a cultural and linguistic point of view. The authors challenge the Cartesian tradition of viewing the student as a culture-free individual, and the classroom as a problem in management. They draw on Gregory Bateson's ideas help to illuminate student behavior as a form of communication about social relationships - one that relies heavily on culturally embedded patterns - and to reveal the classroom as a mental ecology where thought processes of others are encoded in the metaphorical language used to introduce new concepts. The book emphasizes that responsive teaching involves being sensitive to how the ecology of patterns (behavior and thought) reflects cultural differences and may be a source of miscommunication and alienation. (From the Publisher)

Any attempt to explain why someone is a good teacher--or is strongly motivated to teach effectively--involves a complex discussion of one of the oldest questions in human history: Why do people do what they do? In Teaching Well and Liking It, a distinguished group of internationally known scholars offers a sophisticated and stimulating look at the issues involved in motivating teachers to teach well in the challenging environment of the modern university. With college and university administrators worried about how to encourage faculty to devote energy to teaching, and students and their parents concerned that faculty are not dedicated to their teaching responsibilities, and faculty themselves feeling guilty and disappointed at their own failure to find satisfaction in teaching, the time is right for a book that explores the factors that inspire, nurture, and reward good teaching. Motivation, as volume editor James L. Bess points out, is a key factor when it comes to commitment, preparation, sustained effort, and performance in any work. In fact, the effectiveness of any system of higher education is highly contingent on the quality of the teaching enterprise. What is learned, how much is learned, and progress in the psychosocial maturation of the student learner depend on the willingness of college and university faculty to devote long hours to all aspects of teaching. This collection of essays examines personal motivation to teach--both internal and external--as well as organizational conditions such as job characteristics, leadership, and student diversity, and system-wide conditions such as career phases, public policy, politics, and the vagaries of the academicmarketplace. It addresses the issues both theoretically and practically, drawing on the academic and hands-on experience of authors from many fields, including psychology, higher education, business, public policy, and sociology. (From the Publisher)

The first Quick Hits were collected in 1991 at a colloquium of Indiana University faculty who had gathered to exchange tips about successful teaching. Each participant described a particular challenge and explained how he or she handled it. There are four main areas: General Teaching Tips, Student Motivation and Involvement, Philosophies of Teaching and Learning, and Discipline-Specific Ideas. Covered are such subjects as first days, teamwork, student boredom, classroom leadership, writing, science, history, music...and much more. (From the Publisher)

The thousands of immigrants who enter the United States each year, the increasing number of children who speak a first language other than English in the schools, and the ever-widening gap between rich and poor are some of the realities that educators face today. Given these conditions, it is increasingly difficult to prepare students for democratic citizenship. Bringing together years of work as an expert on multicultural education, James Banks shows how we can prepare students to effectively participate in a society that reflects ethnic, cultural, and class diversity at the same time that we promote national unity and the public good. (From the Publisher)