My course design is fluid and adaptable in several ways. To begin the semester, I typically ask students to provide some basic information about themselves, their interests, reasons for taking the class, and so on. Next, I code and tally their interests, and present the (anonymous) findings to the class. Not only does this draw the students in by getting them invested in the content, but it also gives them an introduction to basic academic research methods. After some discussion, the class then votes on specific subject matter areas to receive a greater focus later in the semester. In my Urban Geography class, we decided to dedicate more time to public transportation financing (a hot-button issue in Tampa Bay) and waste management (a hot-button issue everywhere). The outcome of this process can be observed in Week 13 in the course schedule at the end of the sample syllabus included below.
Throughout the semester, I also incorporate fluidity into each lecture and into course assignments (see innovation & success page for an example). My content planning is highly detail oriented, which in this case means that I also plan for flexibility and adaptability. When points of interest are raised or students ask a lot of questions about a particular subject, I often compose a mini-lecture on that issue for the next class. Students have specifically thanked me for this practice. A recent discussion of the history of eminent domain law even brought together two students who are usually at odds - one who tends to favor strong private property rights and another who is an environmentalist. This could never have happened absent my dynamic teaching methodology.
I ask a lot of my students. For each subject, I prepare a detailed lesson plan which integrates readings, assessments, activities, discussions, and a lecture. Reading materials are typically drawn from academic journals, as well as white and grey papers. I deemphasize reliance on a single text, favoring instead a design which helps students make the necessary connections between a carefully cultivated library of readings. As a practitioner in a field that regularly encounters bitter conflict of various sorts, helping my students to understand the importance of perspective is a constant focus. I often ask students to complete critical readings in which they must compare viewpoints and/or evaluate opposing arguments. During lectures, I bring the discussion into the classroom. At key points, students are prompted to articulate and support their position, and to relate it to the material presented in the lecture.
These activities are all designed as successive levels of a (gentle) formative assessment. At the culmination of any given topic, students work on an in-class assignment that connects content to practice. For example, when students in my Urban Geography course learn about theory and practice(s) of urban form, the activity starts with a blank map. At successive steps, I introduce more and more detail while they fill in the blanks. All of a sudden, you have a highway running through the eastern half of your carefully planned city, separating residential areas from the central business district! What do you do? At the end I reveal the real-world context, giving students an opportunity to compare their work to the decades of real-world planning and experience that produced the actual urban form of the city in question.
Finally, as I mentioned above, students are subjected to a gentle, ongoing, formative assessment which pervades all class activities. In terms of the total number, I assign a moderate/large number of assessments. These assignments are designed to facilitate participation and they impose very little pressure or cognitive burden upon the students. In addition to those relatively minor assessments, I also give a midterm and a final exam. To help students prepare, I provide an exam study guide, and spend some class-time on a review game. Examinations and assessments are designed primarily to facilitate and reinforce a quality learning experience, and less to act as enforcement mechanism. In the past, students have complemented the design of these assessments. One student told me that even though they usually tend to dread exams, in my class they felt relieved of that pressure.
Students repeatedly stress that they feel challenged by the material but fulfilled when they are able to connect the dots. As a new teacher, I am thrilled to receive these kinds of comments. To ensure that I remain on the right track, I have undertaken a number of professional development initiatives. I regularly solicit formal and informal feedback from my students and colleagues. In the second year of my Ph.D. coursework, I took a semester-length course dedicated entirely to learning the best techniques for college teaching. I attend a variety of professional development sessions, and I engage in frequent, thoughtful personal reflection about my performance.
[Please also see the Innovation & Success page for more teaching materials.]