Tuesday, July 22
Using Experimental Teaching Methods: "Here are some points that I've found useful to keep in mind when trying out new teaching methods:
They may not be working well.
This is the most obvious point. You may have misgivings about traditional lectures, but for better or worse they've survived a long time and students are quite used to them. So I think that most people who try something new are, quite reasonably, worried that they might be making things worse instead of better. You shouldn't let these fears stop you from trying new things, but you shouldn't let your enthusiasm for something that sounds good to you in theory blind you to ways in which it might not be working well in practice. "
They may not be working well.
This is the most obvious point. You may have misgivings about traditional lectures, but for better or worse they've survived a long time and students are quite used to them. So I think that most people who try something new are, quite reasonably, worried that they might be making things worse instead of better. You shouldn't let these fears stop you from trying new things, but you shouldn't let your enthusiasm for something that sounds good to you in theory blind you to ways in which it might not be working well in practice. "
