As a faculty development specialist, new professors often implore me to reveal the secret to the “right” way to teach.  My “it depends” answer usually leaves them quite dissatisfied.  You see, as Daniel Pratt points out in his book, Five Perspectives on Teaching in Adult and Higher Education (1998, Krieger Publishing Company), there is an assumption that all “educators share perspectives and meanings about teaching.”  However, the truth is that there is no universal perspective on how to teach.  Our values, learners, context, and content, to name a few, all impact whether we are effective as teachers.

Teaching Initiative Award Winner Chris Grieshaber, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Health Sciences, Director - Safety Program

Often, professors decide to teach the way they were taught by their own professors.  That works well if they have the same values, types of learning, context, and content as the professors they are emulating.  But, if they aren’t, they may struggle with roadblocks.  The solution I offer to those asking about the “right” way to teach is to  become a mindful practitioner and find one’s own teaching voice and methods that encourage student learning.  A good place to start is by asking these questions (from Pratt’s Five Perspectives on Teaching in Adult and Higher Education):

  • How do you define your role and responsibility?
  • If someone were evaluating your (or someone else’s) teaching in this situation, what would they expect you to be doing?
  • How do you describe your learners?
  • What are some factors, histories, or problems that might impede their learning?
  • How do you decided what to teach and what should be learned?
  • Can you name any ideals, beliefs, or values that influence your teaching?

CTLT Coordinator, Faculty Development, Julie-Ann McFann, Ph.D.

Over the years, the answers to these questions will change and evolve.  I know when I started as a faculty development specialist, I thought my role was to disseminate information about how to teach college to graduate students and faculty.  Some twenty years later, I now view my role as being a mentor or resource to help instructors  achieve their teaching goals.

Is there a “right” way to teach?  Of course, there are best practices in teaching college but they all interact within the framework of one’s values, learners, context, and content.

Resources for Further Exploration

  • CTLT’s Teaching With Style Teaching Excellence Series on Tuesdays from 12:00 – 1:30 (feel free to bring your lunch)
  • Teaching Perspectives Inventory developed by Daniel D. Pratt