Education Commons^™

Graduate Student Mentoring, Mary C. Wright, Laura N. Schram

Professional and Organizational Development Network in Higher Education: Archives

Many graduate programs are reviewing how they mentor their students, taking note of the time to degree and low completion rates in their programs. Given the enormous time challenges that academics face and the complexities of effective mentoring, it can be difficult to change practice despite good will. We write about graduate student mentoring, drawing from research on graduate student careers and the role of mentorship, to make practical suggestions for cultivating an effective mentoring relationship.

The benefits of effective graduate student mentoring noted in the literature are numerous, with large national studies linking effective mentorship to degree completion, high …

Talking With Faculty About Cognitive Science And Learning, John Girash

Professional and Organizational Development Network in Higher Education: Archives

When it comes to teaching, faculty at a research-intensive institution can be very much like our students in relation to their studies: very smart people whose primary interests lie elsewhere or, at least, whose expertise is not in this area. And we hear over and over again the common wisdom that faculty want research-based ideas on teaching. This implies that we can treat the teaching of teachers about research-supported aspects of learning in ways analogous to teaching students about other academic topics.

In introducing research-based ideas into the pedagogical discussion, it can be tough to find a balance between concepts …

Teaching Assessment By Modeling Different Assessment Techniques, Cynthia E. Tobery

Professional and Organizational Development Network in Higher Education: Archives

Getting feedback early and often helps us gauge what students are learning well or less well, what they are taking away from the class, and what changes we may want to make. Assessment techniques can be used before, during, and after a class to get this feedback.

One of the goals of the Future Faculty Teacher Training Series offered through the Dartmouth Center for the Advancement of Learning is to model various instructional techniques that the participants may decide to use in their own classes. We include some type of assessment for each part of the series in addition to …

Helping Future Faculty “Come Out” As Teachers, Mark R. Connolly

Professional and Organizational Development Network in Higher Education: Archives

I study graduate education--specifically, the formation of future faculty and the professional development programs that help them learn to teach. Over the past seven years, I have interviewed more than 70 doctoral students and postdocs in science, engineering, and math at leading research universities. When I ask my respondents why they initially chose to pursue a doctorate, they usually tell me how much they enjoyed their undergraduate education, which was characterized by powerful learning experiences driven by strong relationships with smart and passionate instructors. My respondents fondly recall professors who stoked students’ curiosity, demonstrated the thrill of scientific discovery, and …

The Associates In Teaching Program: Graduate Student Development, Faculty Renewal, And Curricular Innovation, Bill Rando

Professional and Organizational Development Network in Higher Education: Archives

Conflicting goals define university life. Luckily, conflicting goals sometimes inspire creative innovation. The Associates in Teaching Program is one such example.

At research universities, administrators must balance the needs of graduate students and those of undergraduate students – graduate students need practice teaching to prepare them for faculty life; undergraduates (and their parents) would prefer instruction by more experienced faculty members. Nearly all universities meet the needs of graduate students through teaching assistant positions in labs and sections. Some go further by allowing graduate students to teach independent courses, which benefits most graduate students, but frustrates others who feel that …