Program for effective teachers

Think of your students as teammates, not adversaries. Learning and teaching are challenging, but that doesn't mean that you can't have fun in the classroom. Stay focused, but don't be afraid to be creative and innovative. Allow yourself to be enthusiastic and find ways to let students see what is interesting about your subject. You should know the course material. If students are required to attend lectures and read assignments, then it seems reasonable that you would do the same.

Most faculty expect graduate TAs to attend lectures, especially if they have never taken or taught the course.

Review key concepts and ideas if you are unclear about them, particularly if it has been a while since you have worked with the topics you will be teaching. Think about how the material can be most effectively demonstrated and design a strategy. Write an outline or take notes to follow during a lecture, and prepare your overheads, diagrams, handouts and other aids well in advance. Don't wait until the morning of the class! Have a plan for what you want to teach. Your job is to illustrate key points and essential context, to help students integrate all of their work reading, labs, exams, papers, lectures, etc.

Given that there is never time to teach everything, choose the most important concepts and show how they are related. Explain ideas so students are able to build on material they have already mastered, whether from your course or previous classes.

Don't just focus on what you happen to be teaching today. Show students how what they are learning now is connected to material covered later in the course. Keep your long term goals in mind, pace yourself so that you don't run out of time at the end, and try to end every class with a conclusion. Effective teachers can explain complex ideas in simple ways.

As you develop expertise in an academic field, it is easy to forget that students may have no prior knowledge of fundamental concepts that you take for granted. Help students understand and use new terminology, so they can become fluent in the language of your discipline. Many concepts can be more effectively demonstrated with visual aids such as diagrams, drawings, charts, slides, etc.

Make sure that they are large enough to see, neat enough to read, and don't stand in the way! Think about the role body language can play. Focused on process over product, teachers are giving and receiving feedback, engaging in dialogue around student work, taking risks and experimenting with valid practices, embracing a growth mindset for themselves and others, and learning how to reflect productively on the results of their work. We teach them strategies and techniques to employ in building a similar classroom culture for their students.

Participants learn and apply the skillful practices that shape the learning core of all classrooms: effective teaching strategies, high functioning teams and rigorous, relevant content. Teachers explore and use a range of techniques to engage students and improve collaboration with colleagues as they look at student work, analyze data, and make instructional decisions designed to improve learning.

The program can be tailored to meet the needs of new teachers, teachers in need of improvement or any other specific teacher population. No matter the format and duration, it will foster conversations and reflections that lead to improved and inspired learning for all.

Contact us or call the office at for more information. Effective Teaching program participant The fact that we practiced the very strategies we were learning about, along with the frequent movement from whole group to small group work, helped me retain my focus.

While there are many ways great teachers achieve this, there are some habits they nearly all share. The best teachers present information to students in ways that maximize their understanding, yet also listen to their students and let them influence the shape of their own learning.

They challenge students, yet build the support they need to thrive. They optimize learning for their students, yet remain flexible in meeting their needs. Teachers who possess these habits maximize their impact on their students. One sometimes overlooked habit shared by great teachers is a drive to model lifelong learning. To be great, teachers need to continue to challenge themselves by continuing their education.

This can be achieved in a self-directed way through professional reading, or in more formal ways like earning a graduate degree. Great teachers demonstrate their commitment to education by continually renewing their practice as graduate students.

Earning a graduate degree earns many benefits for teachers and their students. For example, teachers who possess their graduate degree can reduce student absences and can unlock new career opportunities for themselves. In addition educators who earn advanced degrees can expect higher compensation than their peers.