Lehrman American Studies Center

In a previous post, I reflected on two basic questions that all college faculty must continually address: what do the best teachers know and understand and how do great teachers prepare to teach. Obviously, the implication of these questions is that those who ask them really do desire to be great college teachers. Those who don’t may never ask these questions or care about the answers.

As a vantage point, I have encouraged readers to consider Ken Bain’s answers to these questions as found in his important work What the Best College Teachers Do (Harvard, 2004). Bain also asks faculty to consider two further questions regarding the audience of all faculty, viz., students. So for this post, let us reflect not so much on the content of what we teach but rather on those who learn from us.

In Bain’s study, he considers the following queries regarding college faculty and their students:

1. What do the best college teachers expect of their students? "Simply put, the best teachers expect 'more'. . . . They avoid objectives that are arbitrarily tied to the course and favor those that embody the kind of thinking and acting expected for life" (pp. 17-18).

This question and its answer have caused me to pause and reflect on what I expect of my students. As I write this post, I am on a train on the way to Philadelphia and dozens of students are preparing to arrive at my university and settle into their dorms or off-campus housing. Do I expect my students to be life-long learners? Do I encourage this type of learning in my classes and teaching, learning that continues beyond the confines of a classroom or online discussion board? Do I expect my students to learn in such a way that it actually affects both their thinking and acting? I do confess that quite often I find myself thinking whether or not it is the role of universities and faculty to affect both the thinking and acting of students. Some of my colleagues have argued that college teaching is about the mind and intellect and not about character. In other words, we faculty should only care about what our students know, not about what they do or who they become. But is this compartmentalization between knowledge and character really warranted? I am becoming more and more convinced that it is not (perhaps I have Plato to blame for this!).

2. How do the best college teachers treat their students?

"Highly effective teachers tend to reflect a strong trust in students. They usually believe that students want to learn, and they assume, until proven otherwise, they can" (p. 18).

Thinking about this question reminds me of a conversation I just had with a colleague. In our discussion of the upcoming fall semester, my colleague declared that students had to be "watched very carefully" or else they would always try to be "sneaky" and get by with little effort. I confess that in the past I have echoed this very same sentiment of my students. But Bain’s work reminded me of the dangers of becoming cynical and caused me to ask myself whether or not I really thought highly of my students or somehow always assumed that they aim for the lowest effort simply "to get by." Our attitudes toward our students are extremely influential in how we approach teaching, learning, and the classroom environment. Do our course policies betray our lack of trust and lack of belief in their efforts?

I am hopeful that these questions lead to further reflection from all of us on the craft of teaching. And, further, it is indeed my hope that we faculty never forget that the craft of teaching is ultimately about the crafting of souls and minds and not just about content and ideas.

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