by Jessica Smith | Oct 18, 2019 | Best Practices, Small Teaching Tip, Teaching Advice, Web 2.0
If you’re like most faculty, you receive an inordinate number of questions from students that they could have easily answered themselves if they only consulted the syllabus. For years, I’ve pondered the question: why don’t students read the...
by Jessica Smith | Sep 20, 2019 | Presentation, Small Teaching Tip, Teaching Advice
The belief that people fear public speaking more than death has become so readily accepted that Jerry Seinfeld’s joke about preferring to be in the coffin than giving the eulogy is now cliché. Unfortunately, this fear prevents us from honing our oratory skills since...
by Jessica Smith | Aug 16, 2019 | Best Practices, Small Teaching Tip, Teaching Advice
Over the years, I’ve written a few blog posts about using the first day of class more effectively. But since it’s been a while and a new semester is upon us, I thought I’d revisit this topic. So here are a few ideas to spice up that first day (or...
by Jessica Smith | Jul 19, 2019 | Small Teaching Tip, Teaching Advice
Many faculty lament how few students take advantage of office hours. Often, undergraduate students do not perceive office hours to be beneficial unless something has gone wrong, such as a failing grade. But interactions between students and faculty outside the...
by Jessica Smith | Jun 21, 2019 | Best Practices, Small Teaching Tip, Teaching Advice
Historically, a syllabus has been defined as an outline of the topics to be covered during a course. But in the past twenty years, the functions of our syllabi have expanded greatly. Common functions faculty cite include serving as a contract, listing required...
by Jessica Smith | Apr 19, 2019 | Best Practices, discussion, Pedagogy, Small Teaching Tip, Teaching Advice
“I’m tired of looking out at a sea of blank faces.” “There’s nothing but crickets when I try to get a discussion going.” “It’s like talking to a brick wall!” How many times have you lamented the quality of discussions in your classes? Facilitating engaging...