I have often said that anyone can teach at a research university, but you have to be good to teach at a community college. This case study supports my contention. Problems with college students are … well … a real problem
Dr. Paul A. Hummel, Ed.D.
I recently responded to a question posted on HubPages. The person who posted it wanted to know what the most common interview questions where for teachers.
Common Teacher Interview Questions
If you preparing to interview for a college teaching position, you may be asked some of the following questions:
How can a college instructor improve students’ attitudes and make them eager to attend class? One tactic is to use humor. More importantly, research indicates that humor helps people learn.
Research on Humor and Teaching
Much has been written about humor and learning. Kher, Molstad and Donahue (1999) referenced some of the literature in their article entitled “Using humor in the college classroom to enhance teaching effectiveness in ‘dread courses”. With reference to an earlier work by Wandersee (1982), they indicated that cartoons are one form of humor that promotes facilitates learning.
How do you know you are grading your students fairly? Do your students grades reflect your performance as a teacher? What can you learn about your students’ learning from the class grade distribution?
How does a college instructor develop and maintain rapport with students? This has challenged even the most experienced instructors.
Successful Beginnings
The author of Successful Beginnings, Angela Provitera McGlynn, has provided some wonderful advice.
Learn what instructors say scares them the most.
What Scares You About Teaching College Courses?
I want to address what instructors fear. What about teaching scares you, maybe just a little or maybe a lot? Leave me a comment. I will publish the good ones, and I will respond regardless whether your comment makes this website or not. Rest assured, I will do my best to be of assistance.
FERPA Defined
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) – What college teachers need to know is that FERPA prohibits them from sharing information about students’ educational records with anyone inside and outside the college who does not have the right to know. There are a couple exceptions. Students may pr0vide written consent, but my advice is to consult with a college administrator before complying with requests.
It is no secret. More women graduate from college than men. The failures of male students may stem from our American culture and early childhood learning experiences. So says Ali Carr-Chellman. Every college instructor needs to understand his or her students, and this video will help you understand some of the lower achieving men you may have in your class.
For some time now I have pondered how can I succinctly share best practices for writing test questions. Some day I will figure this out. Perhaps yet this year. For now, I want to refer you to an article posted by Indiana University – How to Write Better Tests: A Handbook for Improving Test Construction Skills which was authored by Lucy C. Jacobs, Ph.D.
Recently, a reader asked me how to prepare for weekly lectures. What a great question, surely one all new adjuncts have asked themselves and others. I responded by suggesting he consider a broader question, how to prepare a lesson plan.