Wilbert J. McKeachie and Marilla Svinicki, Teaching Tips: Strategies, Research, and Theory
for College and University Teachers 12th edition (Houghton Mifflin, 2006)
Class 12: Teaching Philosophy
Student Presentation: Literature Review: Auger
Student Presentation: Syllabus Check:Ricci, Augur
Assignment: Statement of Teaching Philosophy -- peer review
Post #6 Group B
Jun 26 -- Deadline for turning in on-line portfolio
** Students who anticipate the necessity of being absent from class due to the
observation of a major religious observance must provide notice of the date(s)
to the instructor, in writing, by the second class meeting.
Graded Assignments
Attendance/Participation 25%
Weekly Posts (6) 10%
Syllabus Presentation 5%
Review of Teaching Resource 10%
Group Teaching Unit 10%
Online Portfolio 40%
Description of graded assignments
Attendance and Participation
Students are expected to be present and to participate in group activities, classroom practicals,
discussion and evaluation of peers. Success in the class is dependent upon this. If students
anticipate missing a class, they should prepare and submit work in advance of the class. Diligence
in the remaining classes may offset the failure in attendance.
Weekly Writings – Class Discussion Board
All members are required to participate in the electronic
discussion board maintained through Blackboard. Writing assignments will vary
from week to week, depending on the topic and activity for each class. In
general, each student will be expected to write a 200-300 word, original document
in response to the readings or topics for the week. These are due to be posted
by the day before class, either Monday or Wednesday by midnight. Students are expected to engage
in a class conversation rather than to submit isolated essays; therefore it is
also expected that students read each of the posts before class. This forum is
also open for other relevant discussions.
For general information on weekly posts to discussion board, including instructions,
click on Postings.
Because we will be meeting two times per week for six weeks, I will separate
the class into two groups. Group A will post for Tuesday's class; Group B will post for
Thursday's class. Everyone will read the posts for each class. Read
the posts of your classmates before composing your post (obviously, not everyone
will be able to do this in entirety.) Contribute something original to the
discussion, even if it is only a relevant question. As you will discover, I
believe the key to learning is asking the right questions.
Posts are graded on a scale of 1 to 3 for effort, not rightness or wrongness. If I do not
respond to your post, then you can assume it received full credit.
Please devote some thought to these posts, because they will constitute a
large part of our discussion material.
You will be responsible for reading ALL the posts before class discussion,
even if (especially if) you posted early.
** In case of server malfunction, bring a hardcopy of your
post to my office by noon before class.
Syllabus Presentation
Each student will be responsible for constructing a workable syllabus as part of the online portfolio. Because
the syllabus is the backbone of a course, it is the most significant element in the course portfolio. Each
student will be allowed the opportunity to present the syllabus-in-progress to get feedback on its
development and to solicit ideas for improvement.
These will be scheduled 2 per class starting May 27. The
presentation need not be formal, but you should outline what you have accomplished and be prepared with
specific questions for the class. Due to the number of students, these presentations must be strictly limited to 15 minutes; so please
practice and time your presentation.
Your syllabus should contain the following minimum elements:
Course information, title and description
Instructor contact information
Required and recommended texts and materials
Course objectives
Schedule of readings and assignments
Description of course assignments and grading weight
Course policies
Presentation on Teaching Resource:
Each class member will make one presentation on a teaching resource (literature review) to be selected through
the bibliographies in Showalter or McKeachie, or through your other course reading. I highly recommend that
you explore the journal Pedagogy which is available online through Project Muse. Please review the
Annotated Bibliography from LAE 6389 2004 and 2006 before making a selection. We will be
continuing to build this resource during our course.
Subjects for review can
be in the form of an article, book, website, DVD or CD or video (or other). The student
will be responsible for providing access to the material in some form so that
other members of the class can participate in the evaluation. In other words,
provide copies of an article (online or on paper), bring in the book to share,
have the CD to play in class, etc.
In the interest of coherence, the resource should reflect in some way the concerns
of the topic for that particular day, but this is not restrictive. In general
choose a resource that you are genuinely curious about and believe will be helpful.
Your presentation can be informal, but provide some basis of evaluation for class
members to discuss. Due to the number of students in the class, these presentations must be
strictly limited to 15 minutes (10 minutes presentation, 5 Q&A); so please practice and time your presentation.
Please provide answers to the following questions:
- What is the resource? Title, author(s), format, publication information including date, price, availability, etc.
- What is it about? (Summary of contents.)
- How is it organized?
- How is it helpful?
- What is the audience?
- In what situations could it be used?
- What are its strengths/weaknesses?
- How would you rate it?
Students will be responsible for signing-up for review presentations; there will be 2 scheduled per class
beginning May 22. The student should prepare an evaluative statement
based on the above information to be included in the online annotated bibliography.
As a class, we
will be continuing the online annotated bibliography begun by the LAE 6389 class of S04. Please
see Annotated Bibliography from LAE 6389 2004 and 2006 and 2007.
After each presentation, students will be asked to submit a formal
entry into the annotated bibliography that we will construct as an
ongoing project during the class. Final date for last entries will
be the Thursday following the last class, or Jun 26.
Entries should follow standard MLA formatting. The annotation should be
written in clear, full sentences. These annotations can be as long as
the resource merits.
Please submit as Microsoft Word Files or RTF so that I can format it easily.
Teaching Unit
The parameters of this assignment will be discussed in class and decided as a group.
Online Portfolio
Throughout the semester, students will be asked to draft different materials
for planning and teaching a course, and these will be submitted for peer review in class.
After review, students are expected to revise and submit the materials in their portfolios. This
online portfolio will demonstrate the progress the student makes in preparing to teach
literature, and it will also serve as a resource for the student as he or she begins to teach
his or her own literature classes. Minimum contents of the portfolio are:
Syllabus (see description above)
Sample assignments
Description of organization, theme
Supplemental readings
Statement of teaching methodology (including use of innovative technologies)
Grading policies-methods; assessment rubric
Teaching "philosophy"
Self-assessment
This syllabus is subject to change.
Related Sites
PET (Project for Effective Teaching) Resources: bibliography of
pedagogy resources aimed to help the new teacher in his or her craft. Maintained by Williams College for its new faculty.
Teaching, Learning and Technology at SUNY. Lots of resources for using technology in the
classroom.
Alternatives to Lecture short list of instructional options
Teaching Bibliography
from the Center for Teaching and Learning at Cornell University
Electronic Archive for teaching the American Literatures The Electronic Archives are created and maintained by the
Center for Electronic Projects in American Culture Studies (CEPACS) at Georgetown University's American Studies Program.
NCTE homepage National Council of Teachers of English
Teaching Literature Bibliography Linked from the syllabus of a (far more structured)
Teaching Literature class by Prof. Byron Hawk at George Mason University
Teaching Temperaments:
On learning Styles: From the Georgia State Master Teacher Program, this site
offers information on how temperaments inform different learning styles and strategies for adopting teaching methods
to meet these different styles.
Jungian Typology test: an online test from a site entitled Humanmetrics.
Kiersey Temperament Sorter: Commercial website that provides updates Kiersey's Please
Understand Me,
including "A Modern Guide to Temperaments."
There are numerous other resources available. Please contact me with additional information.
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