On some campuses, teaching comes far behind research and service in faculty priorities. To put it bluntly, not every school rewards good teaching. Many schools promise personal attention and a great classroom experience; not all of them deliver. At some, most instruction is done by graduate students working as teaching assistants.
Fortunately, many colleges are learning there’s a better way to encourage both research (which helps to keep academics up-to-date in their fields) and good teaching (which is what brought most undergraduates to the college). At the Colleges of Distinction, you will find classes that are deliberately kept smaller so faculty can give meaningful assignments and get to know their students. Furthermore, they are encouraged to involve students in their research.
Schools that are serious about teaching usually run teaching seminars, institutes, and other serious programs to help professors continue to develop as teachers and academics.
Finally, most teaching-centered schools recruit faculty who genuinely enjoy students. If the faculty at the schools you visit seem happy to speak with their students and are genuinely interested in them-and if professors are happy to speak with you during your visit-chances are you’ve found a school that really values great teaching.
Before You Visit
Ask if it is possible to meet with a faculty member in your area of interest. Prepare some questions about the program’s requirements, what jobs recent graduates are doing, and what activities and research projects are possible.
If it is not possible to meet with a faculty member, ask if you can e-mail your questions
Arrange to visit a class, preferably one for freshmen. Don’t worry too much about finding one in your proposed major; just ask for an interesting class that is popular with students. Is this a class you would like to take?
When You Are On Campus
Ask your admissions counselor to clarify any questions you have about class sizes, student-faculty ratio, etc. If the schools uses TA’s, ask about their role and how often you will encounter them.
Ask your admissions counselor some specifics about student-faculty interaction. Will you have a faculty member as an advisor (helping you pick classes and chart an academic path)? What other opportunities will you have to work closely with faculty?
Ask students about their favorite professors, and why they are favorites.
If you eat in the cafeteria or take a campus tour, look at how professors and students interact outside the classroom. Do professors seem accessible? Do students want to talk to their professors?
_________________
Profile: The teaching scholar at a College of Distinction
Teaching at a College of Distinction is more than lecturing and the laboratory. Among the activities that might fill a professor’s typical day are:
Giving a lecture to first-year students
Participating in a student-faculty panel about current events
Attending a departmental meeting on updating class offerings
Calling prospective students to describe the program
Moderating a discussion panel in an upper-division class
Writing graduate school references for former students
Eating lunch with a student service group in order to plan a weekend project
Moderating a chat room discussion for an honors class
Writing feedback for student essay projects
Working with a student on a paper they are publishing together
_________________
A Checklist for finding….
Great Teaching
Doing Your Homework
[ ] Take a close look at student-to-faculty ratios. 16:1 is about average for the Collegeof Distinction, and usually indicates plenty of time for faculty-student interaction. The closer this gets to 20:1, the more difficult interaction becomes
[ ] Take a close look at full-time versus part-time faculty. Also look to see how many faculty are tenured or tenure-track. These faculty will most likely be at the school from year to year, providing you continuity on your courses.
[ ] Does the school use teaching assistants (T.A.’s)? If so, how? Is it mostly the professors who grade and teach, or mostly the teaching assistants?
[ ] Look at average class sizes. What percentage of classes are under 25 students? Under 35?
[ ] If some classes are large, what does the school do to promote personal attention? Common ways to promote face-to-face interaction include freshman study groups and small labs in science classes.
[ ] Is there a special freshmen-year experience that attempts to integrate the major areas of human knowledge and that stresses writing and speaking, instead of just requiring freshmen to take unrelated introductory courses in large (over 50 students) classes?
[ ] What resources are available to help freshmen adjust academically? Is there a special office for students with learning disabilities?
[ ] Does the school offer majors or programs that will help you achieve your career goals? (Even when a school does not offer the precise major you are looking for, it may well offer individualized study options that will make career preparation possible.) Does the college make an effort to relate courses in the humanities, sciences and social sciences to careers and vocations, perhaps through credit-bearing internships?
[ ] If you are undecided about your career goas, how well will the school’s curriculum help you find your way? Is there a Career Planning Office that works closely with the faculty?
Chapter 4: Vibrant Community - “Just Right”: Where do you want to be?
As with other aspects of choosing a college, finding the right community can be tricky. You’d be surprised how many students transfer, not because of academic difficulty but because they are unhappy with their campus life. The big city that one student finds exciting may be too anonymous and distracting for another student. From athletic opportunities to religious atmosphere, from campus political opinion to cultural opportunities, from community service to residence life, there are a lot of variables to consider when looking at a college campus.
_________________
Some Self-Assessments on Campus Life
When you’re thinking about campus communities, it’s important to be honest with yourself about who you are and what you want. By using these three self-assessments, you can get an idea of what size college you might like, what kind of campus life interests you, and what setting you’d like to study in.
Self-Assessment #1: College Size
pick A or B
I like….
(a) my teacher