This paper provides teachers and teacher educators with food for thought by developing a broad, contemporary re-evaluation of the often-used analogy between teaching and the theatre. It does so by synthesizing insights from scholarly works in education with insights from writing about theatre, including both historical work and published…

Getting students to ask questions in class, about the content, can be a difficult undertaking especially once students get to university. The nature of the lecture format makes it problematic for students as they often feel like they can't ask questions. When children are small they ask questions all the time. Sometimes we get tired of them asking…

This paper presents a model for teaching large classes that facilitates a "small class feel" to counteract the distance, anonymity, and formality that often characterize large lecture-style courses in higher education. One author (E. P.) has been teaching a 300-student general education critical thinking course for ten years, and the…

Students with high incidence disabilities (i.e., specific learning disabilities, emotional disturbance, intellectual disability, etc.) exhibit impairments in the areas of attention, memory, perception, processing linguistic information, and reasoning that affects their ability to learn. Hence, the ability to design and deliver explicit, enhanced…

Learning takes place mostly through communication. This is why teachers employ different types of interaction in the classroom in order to provide a varied environment for the students. Apart from the commonly used Student-Teacher-Talk or Teacher-Student-Talk, presentations or lectures may offer advantages with regard to the promotion of…

In the online environment, students and instructors are virtually, but not physically, present in the same environment. In the online environment, technology mediates learning: it mediates communications and information transfer between the student and the instructor, between the student and the content, and among the students. Critics fear that…

This article discusses self-assessment of gerontology teaching practice. Through a process of self-reflection one may find insight into their teaching and, concomitantly, develop best-practices for enhancing student learning in gerontology. A self-assessment framework is presented, illuminating best-practices in the areas of the lecture-discussion…

Presents techniques aimed at promoting a higher level of student-faculty interaction and active student participation in the learning process in introductory physics lecture classes. Discusses group problem solving, the use of flash cards, and assessment. (JRH)

This article profiles the teaching careers of history professor Giovanni Costigan of the University of Washington and English professor Tommy Howells of Whitman College in Walla Walla (Washington). It maintains that both men were accomplished lecturers who set the standard for their respective campuses and corners of Washington State. (MDM)

This handbook is divided into two parts. Part 1 focuses on being a teaching assistant and ideas for teaching. Sections of this part cover: (1) university policies applicable to teaching assistants and behavior guidelines; (2) teaching tips; (3) lecturing techniques; (4) discussion and laboratory sections; (5) using questions; (6) demonstrations;…

Five communication strategies are essential to success in large courses: managing instructor anxiety, using presentation time efficiently, motivating students, communicating enthusiasm, and organizing content. (MLW)

Much of what has been written about improving lecturing is summarized, and strengths and weaknesses of this approach are identified. Lecturing is defined as teaching by the spoken word with emphasis on the teacher talking and the student listening. Instructional goals that are met by lecturing include: communicating the intrinsic interest of the…

Educators are moving toward models of instruction that contain a myriad of interaction patterns among teachers and students. This shift from didactic teaching models to intensely involving designs is difficult for teachers, but is made easier if seen as a gradual change. This book provides an overview of 12 cooperative interaction designs for the…

Suggestions on how to enhance college teaching are provided. Lecturing is stressed as a critical component of teaching, and each lecture's introduction, main body, and conclusion must be correlated prior to any given lecture. Information on how to compose and give a lecture includes: what to put in an introduction; what can be done to help the…

Asserts that increasing enrollments in college-level geography courses have led to larger class sizes and the dangers of impersonal treatment of students. Provides suggestions for improved interpersonal connections, connections with the content being studied, and connections with the world beyond the university. (CFR)