Observation of 401 college teachers indicates that teachers of different academic disciplines (arts/humanities, social sciences, natural sciences/mathematics) differ in the frequency of specific classroom teaching behaviors, but that what makes an effective teacher, in the perception of students, is consistent regardless of discipline.…

Differences in the kinds of knowledge validation processes, truth criteria, and other factors associated with knowledge production are presented for five disciplines (physics, engineering, psychology, education, and English literature), and implications for improving instruction are examined. It is concluded that faculty must understand the…

The principle of athletic coaching is applied by analogy to first year community college writing instruction. The role of the coach and five essential elements are discussed: practice and drill (nongraded exercises); fouling out (assessment); playbooks and plays (resources and strategies); big games (formal research papers); and postmortem (review…

A study is outlined that evaluates the effectiveness of a program to train prospective college geography teachers by comparing those trainees with untrained teachers after one year of teaching experience. The study gathered information on teacher intentions, situations, feelings, and judgments about their profession. (MSE)

Drawing on a number of studies of college student learning, this review concludes that students in different disciplines develop characteristic ways of learning based on their perceptions of what is required in their academic work. Within a discipline, effective learning involves an interplay between the characteristics of the student and the…

In a study of effectiveness of classroom assessment techniques (CATs) on student learning, two college accounting teachers each taught two classes, one using CATs and one not using them. Course results did not suggest greater learning in CATs classes, better student participation, or more positive attitudes. Further research is recommended on the…

A study investigated whether Biglan clusters of academic disciplines (hard/soft, pure/applied, life/nonlife) could be used to explain disciplinary differences in college student ratings of instruction. It was found that Biglan clusters do not explain the differences, many disciplines still emphasize knowledge acquisition over higher-order skills,…

A former college teacher's eight-year experience in the business world taught him valuable lessons about audience awareness, risk taking, honoring social and political differences, teamwork, civility within an organization, preservation of standards under duress, and humane and productive use of evaluative information. (MSE)

The similarities and differences in college honors programs' objectives, design, administration, finance, recruiting, and public recognition are discussed as a starting point for comparing programs and determining what kind of college program works best. (MSE)

Universities often fall short in dealing with college freshmen and sophomores. The community college succeeds at educating students and provides a humane environment in which to teach and learn. Despite its inherent drawbacks, it offers faculty collegiality and opportunities for professional and curriculum development. (Author/MSE)

Two lessons from comparable undergraduate courses in physics and engineering are analyzed to identify content, issues emphasized, and concepts used. Differences reflecting the pure nature of one field (physics) in contrast to the applied nature of the other are identified. Implications for classroom instruction and for research on college teaching…

In a study using student rating data from over 8,000 course sections in a large university, disciplinary differences and the value students placed on the time they spent preparing for class are correlated with students' evaluations of teaching. Implications for faculty promotion and tenure policy, instructional improvement, and further research…

A study of the role of subject matter in shaping high school teachers' beliefs, curricular concerns, and instructional practices complements studies of the disciplines in higher education. Factors discussed include the "hard/soft" distinction between disciplines, curriculum sequencing, range of classroom techniques, breadth of course content, and…

Comparison of the experiences of three public universities in the northeast and midwest in changing from monocultural to multicultural campuses suggests intrinsic barriers to change and common elements in organizational and curricular development. Lessons were learned for organizational administration and governance, college environment, and…

Empirical research on aspects of teaching role performance in which disciplinary differences have been observed (teaching goals, teaching practices, course examination questions, and the relationship between teaching and research) is summarized, and implications for faculty and development, academic affairs administration, and improvement of…