Pedagogy: Is It Important?

Most of us probably have heard some of the arguments about what’s more important in the classroom—subject matter knowledge or pedagogical comprehension and experience. David C. Berliner (2000) writes about the top 12 teacher education criticisms that he hears. A couple of them are: “All you need is subject matter knowledge; the rest is a waste of time.” And “Any reasonably smart person can teach; all you have to do is follow the textbooks. . . .” (p. 359). There should be no argument about our needing to be subject matter experts, so let’s move on to an equally important topic. How important is pedagogy? Pedagogy is a substantial topic—student development, learning process, teaching methods, assessing learning, among others. One fascinating aspect of pedagogy is the relationship between faculty and student.

Faculty-Student Contact. Most college teachers have spent many years becoming experts in their disciplines of study. Most of us have not completed a traditional teacher education program where we learn the skills of teaching and learning; so we are sometimes unaware of what matters most to college students. Fortunately, there are years of research findings to enlighten us about how we can be better teachers and support better student learning. Jose Cuseo’s article on “Faculty-Student Contact Outside The Classroom: Supporting Evidence & Promoting Practices” comprises a review of several research findings about student-faculty contact outside the classroom. Three studies that he highlights are from George Kuh (1981), Vince Tinto (1987) and Alexander W. Astin (1993). Kuh concludes “The empirical evidence seems unequivocal: Faculty-student interaction is an important part of a quality undergraduate experience” (1981, p. 21). Tinto reaches a similar conclusion: “Institutions with low rates of student retention are those in which students generally report low rates of student-faculty contact. Conversely, institutions with high rates of retention are most frequently those which are marked by relatively high rates of such interactions” (p. 66). Astin’s research involves “. . . a longitudinal study over a 25-year period, which included a national sample of approximately 500,000 students and 1300 institutions of all types. He finds that student-faculty interaction was significantly correlated with every academic achievement outcome examined, namely: college GPA, degree attainment, graduating with honors, and enrollment in graduate or professional school.” Similar findings are found in K-12 schools. John Hattie synthesizes over 500,000 studies where K-12 student achievement is identified as being most influenced by the students themselves (50%) and next by teachers (30%).

Our positive engagement with students can help produce better outcomes for students of all types and in a variety of college experiences. The faculty-student contact is one of the most important practices we can include in our practice of pedagogy.

References

Berliner, David C. (2000). A Personal Response To Those Who Bash Teacher Education, Journal of Teacher Education, American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education. Retrieved April 4, 2007, from http://courses.ed.asu.edu/berliner/readings/teached.pdf

Cuseo, Joe. Faculty-Student Contact Outside The Classroom: Supporting Evidence & Promoting Practices. Retrieved April 6, 2007, from http://web.uccs.edu/bgaddis/retention/

Hattie, John (2003). Teachers Make a Difference, What is the research evidence? Australian Council for Educational Research, October 2003. Retrieved April 4, 2007, from http://www.acer.edu.au/workshops/documents/

Discipline Workshop Information

Discipline Workshop Information

Discipline Workshop Information

Discipline Workshop Information

Discipline Workshop Information

MAY 22: CLASSROOMS OF THE FUTURE: Teaching, Learning, and Technology: In That Order.  Keynote speaker: Steve Gilbert, The TLT Group
Hamline University.

Conference Information

BEEP for best e-practices

St. Petersburg ( Fla.) College has amassed an amazing collection of resources aimed at improving online and technology-enhanced practices. BEEP, or Best Educational E-Practices, is a U. S. Department of Education-funded effort to provide the public with scores of information, tips, hints, and links to Web sites that explore all things technology. The Web site for BEEP’s project is http://www.spcollege.edu/eagle/research/beep/. Here are some highlights.

• The November 1, 2006, issue explores student retention. The issue is devoted to keeping students enrolled and engaged. For example, the issue contains a link to a Web site at the University of Washington that highlights the “five P’s” of effective online instruction. “Online learners come to your course with expectations about the frequency and kind of interaction they will have with you,” reads the site. These tips are to be prompt, be personal, be positive, be practical, and be patient.

• IPods, wikis, and blogs are explored in the January 1, 2006, issue. Resources there include an introduction to podcasting, an article about how iPods can be an alternative to notetaking, and an excellent article entitled “Weblogs in Education: Bringing the World to the Liberal Arts Classroom.”

BEEP is just one of the many resources available to faculty members through CTL’s ITeach Center. Drop in today.

- Thomas Wortman