McKeachie's Teaching Tips: Strategies, Research, and Theory for College and University Teachers

The goal of McKeachie's teaching tips is to provide higher education teachers useful tips to improve teaching in the classroom. In its own words "'Teaching Tips' was originally written to answer the questions posed by new college teachers, to place them at ease in their jobs, and to get them started effectively in the classroom." McKeachie goes on to note that it is also a useful resource for experienced teachers. If you are an experiental learning theorist this book will not be as useful as if you are a teacher teaching students in a college classroom. I know a lot of faculty who use this text as a resource when planning and teaching. As a Learning Design Consultant, I use this book to help faculty reflect on and improve their teaching practices. If you want a "resource" book on typical/practical issues of teaching in the college classroom, this is your book.

This book is an outstanding resource for anyone who has to lecture at the college or university level. Each chapter is a research-based (and experience-based) guide to the key issues that arrise in different instructional environments. For several years, this book was given to all new faculty at my institution (Univ. Washington, Seattle) as part of the orientation process. It is ideal for that purpose, and still holds many useful comments for more experienced instructors, also.

If I could give this book six stars, I would. I was first introduced to an earlier edition of McKeachie's book back in 1992, when I first started teaching as a faculty member at a small school. This new edition is the third one to sit on my shelves, alongside two earlier editions. All three are worth keeping, reading, and re-reading.What I appreciate most about this book is it's mixture of theory and practical suggestions. When talking about how to make lectures more effective, McKeachie provide a concise review of the most relevant research, then spends time going over specific suggestions for how an instructor can improve his or her lectures. This same approach of providing an overview of the most important research alongside extremely practical suggestions is found in a number of chapters.Another aspect that I like about this book is that McKeachie has the openness to invite other people to write specific chapters on topics such as technology in teaching, motivation, laboratory instruction. Many of the individuals writing these chapters are recognized nationally for their expertise in various aspects of teaching. So this book isn't just a collection of McKeachie's insights - it provides the wisdom and counsel of nine other individuals.In my own work as a teacher at a small undergraduate college, it has become absolutely essential for me to re-read this book cover to cover every few years. There are other books that are highly recommended as resources for various aspects of teaching. But _McKeachie's Teaching Tips_ is one of the most balanced, broadest, and best coverages of what is involved in teaching effectively at a college. Get it, read it, reflect on it, and both your teaching and your students' learning will benefit.

On my instructional maiden voyage into the sea of communication, this text was my life vest. In 28 concise chapters, Wilbert McKeachie offers pearls of wisdom on everything from drafting a syllabus to dealing with excuses, and everything in between. His straightforward writing lends itself to quick reading and makes it a handy "flip-to" guide for refreshers.Whether you're wrestling with a "discussion dominator" or trying to finesse responses from silent students, this book offers proactive approaches and solutions to unforeseen challenges. Keeping things fresh and interesting for students and yourself makes the learning experience more enjoyable. Reading, attending workshops and talking to experienced faculty are some of the suggestions the author offers. As someone who used to teach natural resource seminars, I was pleased that he acknowledged the energizing power of an effective workshop. In addition, the text also offers tips on applying new changes learned in those courses to classes.As any instructor worth their salt is aware, teaching is an ever-evolving process, that must be honed and refined to suit both instructor and student. For anyone adrift in some arena of college instruction, grabbing onto this 379 page text will prove a worthwhile undertaking.

This text provides college faculty with strategies to become a better instructor and to deal with the challenges of the profession.Creating objectives, test design, learner goals, lecture formats, teaching to a diverse audience, grading, handling suspected cheaters - you name it and it is in there.I believe it will be beneficial to any college instructor regardless of size of school. I teach at a small school and the text, though maybe slanted a bit toward the experience at the large research university, was tremendously helpful to me.The book is easy to read. I have incorporated a lot of the strategies into this fall semester.