Resources

While graduate assistants are valued as labour savers, they are also a precious resource whose preprofessional training needs careful design. Written by two leading authorities in the field of instructional development, this indispensable guide details the skills necessary for academics dealing with graduate assistants. The authors provide comprehensive coverage of all aspects of assistant preparation and assessment, and a chapter addressing special needs of international graduate assistants is included. (From the Publisher)

Simulations create and use a complete environment within which students can interact to apply theory and practice skills to real-world issues related to their discipline. Simulations constitute a powerful tool for learning. They allow teachers simultaneously to integrate multiple teaching objectives in a single process. They motivate students, provide opportunities for active participation to promote deep learning, develop interactive and communication skills, and link knowledge and theory to application. This book provides an introduction to the use of simulations - from creating simple scenarios that can be completed in a single class period, to extended, complex simulations that may encompass a semester's curriculum. Assuming no prior experience in their use, the authors provide a recipe approach to selecting and designing scenarios for all sizes of class; offer guidance on creating simulated environments to meet learning objectives; and practical advice on managing the process in the classroom through to the crucial processes of debriefing and assessment. The detailed concluding description of how to plan and manage a complex simulation -- complete with its sample scenario and examples of documentation - provides a rich demonstration of the process. This book will appeal to anyone, in virtually any field of study, looking for effective ways to bridge the gap between academic learning and discipline-specific practice. (From the Publisher)

Latinas/os are the largest ethnic minority group in the U.S. They are propelling minority communities to majority status in states as disparate as California, Florida, New Jersey, New York and Texas. Their growth in the population at large is not reflected in higher education. In fact Latinos are the least represented population in our colleges and universities, whether as administrators, faculty or students; and as students have one of the highest levels of attrition. Opening access to Latinas/os, assuring their persistence as students in higher education, and their increased presence in college faculty and governance, is of paramount importance if they are to make essential economic gains and fully to participate in and contribute to American society. In this ground-breaking book, twenty-four Latina/o scholars provide an historical background; review issues of student access and achievement, and lessons learned; and present the problems of status and barriers faced by administrators and faculty. The book includes narratives by graduate students, administrators and faculty that vividly bring these issues to life. This is a book that should be read by policy makers, college administrators, student affairs personnel and faculty concerned about shaping the future of higher education -- and constitutes an invaluable resource for all leaders of the Latino community. (From the Publisher)

Howard Hills' Team-Based Learning shows how the ability to learn lies at the heart of effective working in teams. His book identifies the ingredients that turn good teams into teams that improve. (From the Publisher)

Neuroscience tells us that the products of the mind -- thought, emotions, artistic creation -- are the result of the interactions of the biological brain with our senses and the physical world: in short, that thinking and learning are the products of a biological process. This realization, that learning actually alters the brain by changing the number and strength of synapses, offers a powerful foundation for rethinking teaching practice and one's philosophy of teaching. James Zull invites teachers in higher education or any other setting to accompany him in his exploration of what scientists can tell us about the brain and to discover how this knowledge can influence the practice of teaching. He describes the brain in clear non-technical language and an engaging conversational tone, highlighting its functions and parts and how they interact, and always relating them to the real world of the classroom and his own evolution as a teacher. "The Art of Changing the Brain" is grounded in the practicalities and challenges of creating effective opportunities for deep and lasting learning, and of dealing with students as unique learners. (From the Publisher)

Large classes are a fact of life in higher education. With 100 or more students in fixed seating, how does a faculty member structure the class to promote student learning? How does one manage the logistics of such a class? Are there alternatives to the lecture format? Are there actually advantages to the large class? Engaging Large Classes addresses these and many other questions. Experienced teachers of large classes across a wide range of disciplines and institutions offer instructional strategies and advice for both new and experienced faculty members. What many of the contributors have learned is that large classes can be just as stimulating and rewarding as small ones, and that the large size can yield surprisingly positive opportunities. (From the Publisher)

In Affective Teaching, Lynne Rompelman extends the research on the affective domain by incorporating students' and teachers' voices regarding the nature of caring of teachers within an academic setting. (From the Publisher)

The quality of our lives is determined by the quality of our thinking. The quality of our thinking, in turn, is determined by the quality of our questions, for questions are the engine, the driving force behind thinking. Without questions, we have nothing to think about. Without essential questions, we often fail to focus our thinking on the significant and substantive. When we ask essential questions, we deal with what is necessary, relevant, and indispensable to a matter at hand. We recognize what is at the heart of the matter. Our thinking is grounded and disciplined. We are ready to learn. We are intellectually able to find our way about. To be successful in life, one needs to ask essential questions: essential questions when reading, writing, and speaking; when shopping, working, and parenting; when forming friendships, choosing life-partners, and interacting with the mass media and the Internet. Yet few people are masters of the art of asking essential questions. Most have never thought about why some questions are crucial and others peripheral. Essential questions are rarely studied in school. They are rarely modeled at home. Most people question according to their psychological associations. Their questions are haphazard and scattered. The ideas we provide are useful only to the extent that they are employed daily to ask essential questions. Practice in asking essential questions eventually leads to the habit of asking essential questions. But we can never practice asking essential questions if we have no conception of them. This mini-guide is a starting place for understanding concepts that, when applied, lead to essential questions. We introduce essential questions as indispensable intellectual tools. We focus on principles essential to formulating, analyzing, assessing, and settling primary questions. You will notice that our categories of question types are not exclusive. There is a great deal of overlap. (From the Publisher)

Since its inception in 1969, Change magazine has been the bellwether of higher education. It has framed the key issues confronting the academy, attracted the best minds, and shaped the debate. In this important collection, Deborah DeZure and a panel of contributing editors have selected landmark articles on teaching and learning in higher education published in Change from its launch to the present. Through the articles and incisive commentaries we follow the controversies, witness the reception of innovations, and trace the threads of continuity of the past thirty years. What emerges is both an indispensable set of perspectives and a rich resource of models and ideas. The book spans a period that began in the turmoil of student unrest in the 60's, and concludes at the close of 1999 with higher education grappling with the issues of purpose, accountability, technology and changing demographics. What is striking about these articles is the vitality and relevance of the voices from the past. They offer valuable insights and inspiration as we plan for the future, and consider how to foster effective teaching and learning environments. Organized by topic, the articles in each section are introduced by a recognized authority in the field. Deborah DeZure's Introduction and Conclusion offer both the context and an analysis of trends. Learning from Change constitutes both fascinating reading and an important compass for administrators in higher education, directors of faculty development, and deans, department chairs and faculty engaged in leadership roles in the academy. It is an invaluable introduction and survey for anyone who wants to familiarize him or herself with the issues and trends. (From the Publisher)

"When Frank Lears came to teach at Medford High School in the fall of 1969, he looked easy prey to Mark Edmundson and his school-hating pals. At the front of the class, they saw a small, nervous man wearing a moth-eaten suit two sizes too big, with a large paperclip fastened to the left lapel. Lears, just out of Harvard, struck the class as absurd, the kind of teacher they could torment at will. And for some time, they did just that." "But Edmundson and his classmates radically underestimated Frank Lears. Lears got rid of their tired textbooks and brought in Kesey, Camus, and Freud. He ran a group psychology experiment that no one in the room ever forgot. He opened the class to a panel of SDS members and a crowd of proto-Black Panthers. He risked life and limb in a snowball fight with Edmundson and his football-playing buddies. He shook things up." Lears's opposition to the lockstep life of Medford High got under the skin and into the minds of Mark Edmundson and his friends - friends like Dubby O'Day, a fatalistic goof-off majoring in spitball ballistics. The conflicting ways of life represented by Lears and Medford's formidable football coach, Mace Johnson, confronted Edmundson with a choice. At real cost - the cost of conformity and belonging - Edmundson chose to go Lears's way. (From the Publisher)