I believe that becoming an effective teacher is both a formative and reflexive process. One’s teaching skills, techniques and methodologies must develop within each specific course and over time through experience and continuous assessment of learning outcomes. Though this process is ever-evolving, my progress toward this objective has already exemplified many of the core competencies of teaching. Below, I will discuss the elements that bridge my teaching philosophy with these competencies, many of which follow a model of “active”, “cooperative”, “social” and “personalized” learning (Silberman, 1996).

Students are better able to compartmentalize thought processes if the course objectives and layout are clearly defined and presented out-front. To accomplish this when structuring a course, I present a set of attainable goals at the forefront of every syllabus which are routinely preceded by directly relevant topical issues meant to motivate key questions of the course. Course documents, assessment techniques, modes of delivery, classroom structure and overall course organization are tailored in light of these goals which serve as the backbone of the course. In addition, a clear blueprint for the course, which includes exam dates, weekly topics chapter-by-chapter and due dates for writing assignments, provides transparency and a map for the students to follow. As mentioned in my teaching philosophy, my courses are designed to be forward looking for both students and instructor.  This common thread permeates itself through communication with students, assessment techniques and many features of active and cooperative learning discussed in greater detail below.

In order to accommodate the diversity of learning avenues and abilities across undergraduate students I do not adhere rigidly to one vehicle in facilitating the learning process. An active learning environment, as opposed to a passive one, is simply not conducive to it (Bonwell and Sutherland, 1996). I consistently implement a mixture of classroom lecture, power point presentation, writing assignments, news videos and newspaper and magazine articles when motivating and presenting curriculum. When timed correctly, each one of these tools may serve as the additional stimulus and dynamism necessary to engage the marginal student or amplify one’s conceptual understanding (Mayer, 2002). The incorporation of technology into the learning process inside the classroom (and outside: see below) is an extension, and application, of the social context that higher education students are engrossed in within their daily lives. As such, I use several technology-based channels to communicate with students. Several of these elements are incorporated into the learning process through the online supplement MyEconLab.

A relatively underused method of active learning is through student writing. I employ several writing exercising that positively impact learning, and thus teacher effectiveness. For example, in the principles of macroeconomics course I assign an economic journal to be updated and handed in weekly. As outlined in the course syllabus, students are asked to find an article involving an event relevant to the week’s discussions, summarize it and applying analytical and conceptual tools developed during the course provide some analysis, policy prescription or prediction. This learning portfolio gives students an opportunity to reflect on and clarify one’s thoughts. And since updated entries to the journal are handed in weekly I, as the instructor, am provided with another mode for intermittent assessment where I may provide subsequent feedback to the student.

Given the heterogeneity of contemporary undergraduate culture it would behoove any college educator to search for and identify alternative instructional methods that accommodate this. Cooperative learning is one such approach; one that I consistently follow when organizing classroom structure. Cooperative learning in higher education is predicated on the more social and personalized aspects of learning – transforming the process into a more student-to-student interaction which the instructor may “structure” rather than the traditional channel of teacher-to-student (Sharan, 1994). For example, I organize think-pair-share sessions whereby small groups of students are given problem sets to work through in an active and constructive setting. Students are then asked to share processes and results in an open forum or at the board in an instructional manner. Both approaches encourage students to take responsibility for material. But, more importantly, it empowers students with the confidence to produce their own personalized learning outcomes. This active learning process promotes a sense of classroom community by giving students the opportunity to read, write, talk, listen, reflect and embark on critical thinking.

I always attempt to provide feedback to students at a high frequency both in and outside of the classroom. Too often, feedback is given at inopportune times, such as two weeks following an exam or from homework due seven days ago. The most productive feedback is likely to occur during an active learning process. As such, I structure a substantial amount of feedback within a formal learning tool known as the testing effect whereby students are shown to be able to retrieve and recall information – and thus perform better on midterm and final exams – if evaluated on the material prior to formal instruction (Roediger and Karpicke, 2006).

To employ the testing effect I utilize the online educational supplement MyEconLab. As the instructor, I assign a problem set, pertaining to material to be covered the following week, for students to complete over an extended period of time, say one week. Students have access to a number of resources including the text, online supplements, their notes and the instructor who can be emailed any question directly from the problem set. If answered incorrectly, the student is provided with immediate feedback in the form of a detailed description by which to conceptually and analytically arrive at the correct answer. In addition, I may allow students two attempts at certain questions. By not immediately discouraging a first incorrect attempt, students are given the opportunity to rethink and reformulate though processes.

Not only does this approach enhance the overall learning process, it provides immediate discussion on concepts that students have already seen and attempted to understand – not to mention the benefit of monitoring student performance and providing a window into subjects that may require more time and attention during formal instruction. Teaching evaluations and student excerpts suggest that this methodology imposes a welcomed structure to the course and demands constructive and active engagement outside of the classroom. I also utilize MyEconLab to provide transparency in student performance. All assignment, exam and overall grades are continuously posted online for students to access providing yet another form of communication and feedback to guide students’ learning strategies.

An understated component of every class that I facilitate is an element of personalization that permeates all levels of the learning process. At the commencement of each course I make a concerted effort to learn students’ names. For instance, after any oral contribution to a classroom discussion I consistently inquire their name and thank them for contributing. This may instill in the student a sense of value and appreciation within the class. I also ask students to fill out an index card with some information regarding their course backgrounds, past experiences in economics courses, neat facts and recreational interests. Becoming an effective teacher – and thus progressing toward the core competencies – is an immediate function of obtaining knowledge about your students – where they are from, what they identify with, how they learn best and so on.

Finally, I always seize every opportunity, usually in office hours – which is essentially an open door policy – to ask students about their experience in my class. For instance, I always ask students to provide a positive and negative comment on the course and how all of my techniques, approaches, methodologies and assessment tools are working, or not working, for them. I believe that collecting feedback at the end of the course in the form of evaluations and student comments – while maybe beneficial in the longer run – comes at a time when only adjustments can be made to the next teaching of that course; one which inherently presents a whole new dynamic and different nuances to confront.

References 

Bonwell, C. C., & Sutherland, T. E. (1996).  The active learning continuum: Choosing activities to engage students in the classroom.  New Directions for Teaching and Learning, 67, 3-15.

Mayer, R. E. (2002).  Cognitive theory and the design of multimedia instruction: An example of the two-way street between cognition and instruction.  New Directions for Teaching and Learning, 89, 55-71.

Roediger, H. L. III., & Karpicke, J. D. (2006).   The power of testing memory: Basic research and implications for educational practice.  Perspectives on Psychological Science, 1, 181-210.

Sharan, S., ed. (1994). Handbook of Cooperative Learning Methods. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.

                Silberman, M. (1996). Active Learning: 101 Strategies to Teach Any Subject. Allyn and Bacon, Boston.