On Course

by Lang, James M.

• ISBN13: 9780674047419
• ISBN10: 0674047419
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-05-10
• Publisher: Harvard Univ Pr

Summary

You go into teaching with high hopes: to inspire students, to motivate them to learn, to help them love your subject. Then you find yourself facing a crowd of expectant faces on the first day of the first semester, and you think “Now what do I do?”

Practical and lively, On Course is full of experience-tested, research-based advice for graduate students and new teaching faculty. It provides a range of innovative and traditional strategies that work well without requiring extensive preparation or long grading sessions when you’re trying to meet your own demanding research and service requirements. What do you put on the syllabus? How do you balance lectures with group assignments or discussions—and how do you get a dialogue going when the students won’t participate? What grading system is fairest and most efficient for your class? Should you post lecture notes on a website? How do you prevent cheating, and what do you do if it occurs? How can you help the student with serious personal problems without becoming overly involved? And what do you do about the student who won’t turn off his cell phone?

Packed with anecdotes and concrete suggestions, this book will keep both inexperienced and veteran teachers on course as they navigate the calms and storms of classroom life.

‘’James Lang's On Course is a marvelous book, full of wisdom, wide-ranging and well-synthesized research, and honest advice about what to do, what not to do, and how to get yourself out of many a pickle through knowledge, cleverness, and courage--all qualities that are in the book intself. The book clarifies, demystifies, and inspires.’’ -Emily Toth, author, Ms. Mentor's Impecccable Advice

‘’Briskly moving through the basics, Lang tackles the hard questions...with humor and insight...On Course is a vital resource for educators, even those who don't fit the first-year college-teaching market. My copy is dotted with notes about new ideas to try out in my lecture class this fall. Happily though, I took away from Lang's guidebook much more than techniques.’’-Barbara J. King (bookslut.com)

Author Biography

James M. Lang is Associate Professor of English at Assumption College and former assistant director of the Searle Center for Teaching Excellence at Northwestern University. He is the author of Life on the Tenure Track: Lessons From the First Year.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. vii
Preface	p. ix
Before the Beginning: The Syllabus	p. 1
First Days of Class	p. 21
Teaching with Technology	p. 43
In the Classroom: Lectures	p. 63
In the Classroom: Discussions	p. 85
In the Classroom: Teaching with Small Groups	p. 104
Assignments and Grading	p. 127
Students as Learners	p. 153
Students as People	p. 178
Academic Honesty	p. 196
Finding a Balance Outside the Classroom	p. 214
Re-Energizing the Classroom	p. 232
Common Problems	p. 251
Student Ratings and Evaluations	p. 265
Last Days of Class	p. 283
Teachers as People	p. 293
After the End: Top Ten Resources	p. 300
A Sample Syllabus	p. 305
Student Participation Evaluation Form	p. 313
Index	p. 317
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