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Contents

Acknowledgements
Foreword
Using This Resource

I. Preparing to Teach
Planning a course
--Defining Instructional Objectives
--Teaching and Learning Styles: The   Academic Culture
--Choosing and Using Instructional   Materials
--Writing a Syllabus
--Syllabus Checklist
--Using the Syllabus in Class
--Summary of Course Planning
Addressing Students' Needs
--Importance of Knowing Your   Students
--Planning Considerations
--Getting to Know Your Students
--Students of Different Backgrounds
--Students with Disabilities
--Teaching Strategies: Non-Native   Speakers of English
--Creating a Learning Environment
--Dealing with Disruptive Behavior in   the Classroom
--Common Disruptive Student   Behaviors and Possible Responses
--Dealing with Apathetic Students
--Cultural Differences for International   Instructors
--Summary of Addressing Students’   Needs
Teaching Tips
--Organizing Class
--Ways to Be Accessible Outside the   Classroom
--Six Common Non-Facilitating   Teaching Behaviors
--Wireless in the Classroom: Advice   for Faculty
--Summary of Teaching Tips

II. Teaching Methods
The First Day of Class
--When the Class Meets You
--When You Meet the Class
--Diversity the Instructor Brings to the   Classroom
--Conversing with Students with   Disabilities
--Moving Forward
--Summary of the First Day of Class
Lecturing
--Strategies for Effective Learning
--Advantages and Disadvantages of   the Traditional Lecture Method
--Enhancing Learning in Large   Classes
--Chalkboard Technique
--Writing Assignments in the Lecture
--Engaging Women in Math and   Science Courses
--Formulating Effective Questions
--Summary of Lecturing
Discussion
--Brief Overview
--The “Nuts and Bolts” of Discussion
--Facilitating Discussion of Sensitive   Issues
--Encouraging Student Contributions
--Alternative Instructional Methods
--Potential Problems in Discussions
--Summary of Discussion
Expanding Teaching Strategies
--Practical Examples
--Show and Tell
--Case Studies
--Teaching with Case Studies
--Guided Design Projects
--Brainstorming
Group Work
--General Information about Using   Groups
--Group Work in an Introductory   Science Laboratory
Science Labs
--The Role of the Lab Instructor
--What Do the Students Need to   Know?
--The First Day
--Planning and Running a Laboratory
--Safety Procedures
--Summary of Science Labs
Teaching Outside the Classroom
--Tutoring
--Office Hours
--Teaching Students to Solve   Problems
--Advising and Extracurricular   Activities
--Summary of Teaching Outside the   Classroom
Overcoming Misconceptions
--Societal Attitudes and Science   Anxiety
--Misconceptions as Barriers to   Understanding Science
--Common Difficulties and   Misunderstandings

III. Teaching-as-Research
Assessing Student Performance
--Establishing Objectives for   Assessment
--Assessment Primer
--Formulating Effective Methods of   Assessment
--Helping Students Succeed on   Assignments and Exams
--The Why and How of Tests
--Grading Lab Reports, Problem Sets,   and Exam Questions
--Grading Checklist
--Grading Specific Activities
--Grading Writing
--Summary of Assessing Student   Performance
How to Evaluate Your Own Teaching
--Evaluating Your Own Teaching
--A Note on Teaching-as-Research

IV. Appendices
Inspirational Essays
--Mathematics: The Universal   Language of Science
--Transforming Quizzes into Teaching   and Learning Tools
--Teaching My Students to Fish
--Chemistry: The Other Foreign   Language
--Teaching to Different Modes of   Learning
--Notes from a Career in Teaching
Additional Resources
Websites
Graduate Assistant Handbook Outline
--Department- and Institution-Specific   Information
--18 Questions to Have Answered

Works Cited

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Hints for More Effective Lecturing

When lecturing is the chosen or necessary teaching method, one way to keep students engaged is to pause periodically to assess student understanding or to initiate short student discussions. Calling on individual students to answer questions or offer comments can also hold student attention; however, some students prefer a feedback method with more anonymity. For example, if students have an opportunity to discuss a question in small groups, the group can offer an answer, which removes shy students from the spotlight. Another option is to have students write their answers on an index card and pass the card to the end of the row; the student seated there can select one answer to present, without disclosing whose it is.

Other literature on teaching and learning contains other examples of techniques to maintain students’ attention in a lecture setting.

1. Avoid direct repetition of material from the textbook, so that it remains a useful alternative resource.
2. Use paradoxes, puzzles, and apparent contradictions to engage students.
3. Begin each class with something familiar and important to students to pique their interest.
4. Make connections to current events and everyday phenomena.
5. Begin and end each class by summarizing the main points of the lecture.
6. Adopt a reasonable and adjustable pace that balances content coverage and student understanding.
7. Relate lecture materials to past or future presentations.
8. Throughout the lecture, check on student understanding by:
1. Asking students to answer specific questions; present a problem or situation which requires use of lecture materials to find a solution.
2. Asking for student questions and waiting at least five seconds for responses.
3. Watching the class for nonverbal cues of confusion, such as loss of eye contact, talking, clock watching, etc.
9. Consider using slides, videos, films, CD-ROMs, and computer simulations to enhance presentations, but remember that:
1. Remember that students cannot take notes well in darkened rooms.
2. Present text so that it is large enough to read from the back of the room.
3. Allow students sufficient time to summarize their observations and to draw and note conclusions.

Transitioning Students to Become Active Participants

There are several ways to help students make the transition from passive listeners to active participants in their own learning (Orzechowski, 1995).

1. Start off slowly; students may not have much experience with active learning.
2. Introduce change at the beginning of a course, rather than midway through it.
3. Avoid giving students the impression that you are “experimenting” with them.
4. Don’t give up lectures completely.
5. Anticipate students’ anxiety, and be prepared to provide support and encouragement as they adapt to your expectations.
6. Discuss your approach with colleagues, especially if you are teaching a well-established course in a pre-professional curriculum.

Case 1: Biochemistry, Genetics, and Molecular Biology at Stanford University

Professor: Sharon Long
Enrollment: 400 students

One important tool I use to engage students is to create opportunities for thought and for active pursuit of an unknown during the class session. If I give a lecture for which I provide notes — a common practice — I always leave blanks in critical parts of the notes. On the board or transparency, I indicate the unknown. I pause while I talk about it, drawing the students’ attention to the hole in the notes. If possible, I ask for suggested answers or for a vote among the possibilities. By arranging the pause in your lecture, you can give the students the chance to answer the question themselves and to work on the questions independently. And only by attending class can a student gain all the information — which encourages class attendance.

In teaching formal genetics, I draw out a genetic cross first in general form (in this example, a Drosophila eye color inheritance test): w+y x w w

Then I put into the lecture notes a completely blank Punnett square to show the structure of the approach — but not to provide the answer.

The students encounter this as an unknown, because I address the contents of each line, and each box, as a question. (“Everybody, consult with your neighbor for a minute — now, second row, anybody tell me, what should be in these two blanks at the top? What would be the genotype and phenotype for the bottom right box?”)