- Author
- Finkelstein, Martin, author; and Mark LaCelle-Peterson, ed.
- Publisher
- Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA
Colleges and universities in the United States are experiencing a major shift: while their student bodies change, their faculties remain largely the same--at least in the short run. The student body grows increasingly diverse in terms of ethnicity, economic status, and academic preparedness, with more and more students coming from the groups that have been least-well-served by higher education in the past. Student retention and ultimate success depends, in part, on the ability of professors--most of whom have been teaching for many years--to provide appropriate classroom experiences and learning assistance.
Faculty demographics present a start contrast: the professoriate, mostly white and male, will continue to age as the large faculty cohort hired in the 1960s and early 1970s reaches mid- and late career. More than half of all full-time faculty members in 1988 were over forty-five, nearly two-thirds had tenure, and relatively few between the ages of forty-five and sixty anticipated leaving their current position. The faculty members who face the challenges and opportunities of the college classroom in the 1990s are a seasoned, stable, and job-secure group. Happily for students and for institutions, faculty members frequently focus their energies on teaching in their later decades of their careers; to date, institutions seeking to support this crucial refocusing have not had resources or models to draw upon.
If senior faculty in their last decades of professional service do, in fact, turn their collective energies to improving teaching and learning, the potential for long-term impact on collegiate education is tremendous. Engaging senior faculty, who control the reward structure, in reflection on how excellent teaching is best supported can fundamentally alter institutional priorities toward a more appropriate balance between teaching and research--and create a better teaching environment. (From the Publisher)
Faculty demographics present a start contrast: the professoriate, mostly white and male, will continue to age as the large faculty cohort hired in the 1960s and early 1970s reaches mid- and late career. More than half of all full-time faculty members in 1988 were over forty-five, nearly two-thirds had tenure, and relatively few between the ages of forty-five and sixty anticipated leaving their current position. The faculty members who face the challenges and opportunities of the college classroom in the 1990s are a seasoned, stable, and job-secure group. Happily for students and for institutions, faculty members frequently focus their energies on teaching in their later decades of their careers; to date, institutions seeking to support this crucial refocusing have not had resources or models to draw upon.
If senior faculty in their last decades of professional service do, in fact, turn their collective energies to improving teaching and learning, the potential for long-term impact on collegiate education is tremendous. Engaging senior faculty, who control the reward structure, in reflection on how excellent teaching is best supported can fundamentally alter institutional priorities toward a more appropriate balance between teaching and research--and create a better teaching environment. (From the Publisher)