Philosophy
We're about to have some candidates come to campus for an opening we have. Finding someone who will become a solid scholar is fairly straightforward. In conversation you can get a sense of the breadth and creativity. In writing samples, you get a sense of rigor. From the cv you get a sense of progress.
But we are hiring a teacher. What do you look for in a teaching demonstration that shows you have someone who will be wonderful in the classroom? What are the marks of a good teacher? of a great teacher? What little things show you that the person in front of you possesses pedagogical excellence?
- Does Teaching Require Sacrifice?
I was in the doctor's office yesterday reading an old copy of Smithsonian and came across a fascinating article on chimpanzee behavior. While tool use has been observed many times in many contexts, learning is transmitted through an apprenticeship...
- Is Research Success Related To Sucessful Teaching?
I applied for a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities' pilot program called "Enduring Questions" which funded the development of courses dedicated to enduring questions. My class was called "Can This Class Be Taught?" and asked students...
- What Can Be Taught?
Strange that we don't ask this question before we begin to teach, but what is it that can be taught? Skills can be taught. That seems uncontroversial. But what else? As a teacher of critical thinking, can people be taught to be rational? As an ethics...
- Is There A Relationship Between Teaching And Scholarship?
The following claim is made on the University of Vermont's philosophy department's website: The Philosophy Department at the University of Vermont is committed to pursuing philosophical scholarship while offering our students the highest quality...
- What Makes A Great Teacher?
When I'm on a plane chatting and the person next to me finds out that I teach philosophy, the reaction is either, "I took that in college and hated it" or "I took that in college and had the strangest teacher." When I get the second one, inevitably...
Philosophy
Finding Great Teachers
We're about to have some candidates come to campus for an opening we have. Finding someone who will become a solid scholar is fairly straightforward. In conversation you can get a sense of the breadth and creativity. In writing samples, you get a sense of rigor. From the cv you get a sense of progress.
But we are hiring a teacher. What do you look for in a teaching demonstration that shows you have someone who will be wonderful in the classroom? What are the marks of a good teacher? of a great teacher? What little things show you that the person in front of you possesses pedagogical excellence?
- Does Teaching Require Sacrifice?
I was in the doctor's office yesterday reading an old copy of Smithsonian and came across a fascinating article on chimpanzee behavior. While tool use has been observed many times in many contexts, learning is transmitted through an apprenticeship...
- Is Research Success Related To Sucessful Teaching?
I applied for a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities' pilot program called "Enduring Questions" which funded the development of courses dedicated to enduring questions. My class was called "Can This Class Be Taught?" and asked students...
- What Can Be Taught?
Strange that we don't ask this question before we begin to teach, but what is it that can be taught? Skills can be taught. That seems uncontroversial. But what else? As a teacher of critical thinking, can people be taught to be rational? As an ethics...
- Is There A Relationship Between Teaching And Scholarship?
The following claim is made on the University of Vermont's philosophy department's website: The Philosophy Department at the University of Vermont is committed to pursuing philosophical scholarship while offering our students the highest quality...
- What Makes A Great Teacher?
When I'm on a plane chatting and the person next to me finds out that I teach philosophy, the reaction is either, "I took that in college and hated it" or "I took that in college and had the strangest teacher." When I get the second one, inevitably...