Teaching Skills
Regardless of whether you intend to concentrate on a primarily research
career, you still need to develop your teaching skills. The vast majority
of academic careers, as well as many other career paths, will require you
to be able to teach, whether in a formal classroom or in some other
format.
The APS
and the Association of Chairs of
Departments of Physiology recommend that trainees understand the
importance of and work to develop the following teaching skills:
-
Effective classroom teaching to varied audiences in
terms of subject matter
-
Effective classroom teaching in terms of pedagogy
-
subject matter and confidence in
one’s ability to teach
-
Ability to develop course curriculum and individual
lessons
-
Effective use of common instructional aids,
including audiovisual techniques
-
Ability to help students understand the general
principles and concepts underlying a particular lesson
-
Ability to explain both basic and difficult concepts
clearly
-
Ability to put a specific lesson into larger context
(clinical relevance, prior material)
-
Ability to ask good questions (testing, study, case
histories)
-
Ability to provide feedback to students
-
Awareness of the strengths and limitations of
various means for evaluating teaching performance
-
Ability to adjust lesson plan based on information
garnered from student questions
-
Ability to foster an effective learning environment
including showing respect for the student, encouraging their
intellectual growth and providing a role model for scholarship and
intellectual vigor
(from the APS/ACDP List of
Professional Skills for Physiologists and Trainees)
These are some web sites that have resources to help you become a good
teacher.*
Finding Teaching Experiences During Your Postdoc
Siribhinya Benyajati, APS Mentoring Forum
Dec. 2007
Teaching Your First Course
Jodie Krontiris-Litowitz, APS Mentoring Forum
Nov. 2006
The Academic Scientists' Toolkit
James Austin, ScienceCareers.org
April 2004
Delivering an Effective Scientific Lecture
Randy Schekman, American Society for Cell Biology
Developing
Teaching Skills
Peggy Johnson, Ph.D., Pennsylvania State University
Faculty
Development: Teaching Tips Index
Honolulu Community College
Summer Prep for New Teachers
James Lang, ChronicleCareers.com
July 2008
Careers in Teaching: Resources
ScienceCareers.org
Teaching
Center Tip Sheets
Graduate School of Arts & Sciences, Columbia University
Teaching Strategies & Disciplinary Resources
Center for Research on Learning and Teaching, University of Michigan
For more detailed information, see
Teaching Skills-Postdoctoral
See also:
*APS does not endorse or assume responsibility for the information
posted on these web sites.
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Your Skills
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