Hello, all

The ideas Jim and Harry have sent us for discussion look interesting.  I'd also like to hear teaching tips from anyone who would like to contribute.  We might want to consider using the old rules of group:

Anyone can talk about his/her favorite teaching technique, the one that gets the best results.  The person explaining the teaching tip may talk about it for NO MORE THAN 5 minutes, and then open the floor for questions, comments, approval and disagreements.  

I'd be particularly interested in hearing about good methods for hybrid instruction, and also distance learning techniques.  I'd also be very grateful to anyone who can tell us about some sort of assessment of basic knowledge students have about the topics in the major.  I'm thinking about an assessment tool (test) given to all students in a department or major as they enter the junior year.  The results of the test would NOT be used to stop students from progressing toward the degree.  Instead, the results of this assessment would be used to help a department understand  which topics, concepts, skills, had been successfully addressed in the first two years, and which may need additional attention.  This would help departments plan their curricula, sequence of courses, etc.  The assessment test could be crafted cooperatively by everyone who teaches that major, and could also refer to national standards as expressed by accreditation bodies.  Creating the assessment test might serve as a good means of generating conversation and making decisions about the goals of the major and the department in which the major is housed.  My suggestion is a practical one, and not meant in any way to replace the many campus-wide assessment initiatives we already have.  Instead, my suggestion is meant to offer the opportunity for a departmental fine-tuning of its methods and student outcomes, and a planning process that truly involves the entire department, rather than a smaller committee.

Thanks

Janet