Resources

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 The collection features new, unpublished and original work as well as a selection of the best articles to have appeared in recent years.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)

If we believe that the welfare of individuals and the organization are one and the same, the points of compatibility and mutual support must be found and nurtured. If we value the "developmental culture" of an academic institution, the concerns of individuals for growth, change, advancement, recognition, and support can be brought into harmony with the goals of the "organizational culture" for stability, continuity, and community. The twenty-first century will bring new challenges to higher education. Academic institutions must renew their responsibility to support the developmental needs of all their members. This commitment to support human growth is also part of institutional regeneration. An integrated, comprehensive model of personal and organizational development that includes mentoring for students, faculty, staff, and administrators can make a significant contribution to the best use of human resources, community building, and institutional vitality. (From the Publisher)

Reissued in response to many requests, this is a book about the Bible--specifically about Christian ways of relating to, using, and understanding Christian scripture and tradition. Professor Wood demonstrates that the aim of Christian understanding is the knowledge of God and the changes in outlook on the Bible that came with the rise of biblical criticism. (From the Publisher)

This completely revised edition of Enhancing Adult Motivation to Learn offers updated, culturally responsive practical advice and strategies in the jargon-free, readable style that made the original work so popular. This valuable resource is for teachers, trainers, and anyone who wants learning to be a motivating experience for all adults. (From the Publisher)