Learning and Teaching in Higher Education
The Reflective Professional
- Greg Light - Northwestern University, USA
- Roy Cox
- Susanna Calkins - Northwestern University, USA
Praise for the First Edition:
`For too long we have waited for a book that brings together the best contemporary thinking about learning and teaching and that connects with academics' everyday teaching practice in an engaging way. At last, in this book, we have it' - Ronald Barnett, Institute of Education, University of London
Worldwide, higher and professional education services are challenged by increased student numbers and diversity, tougher demands for professional accountability, increasing calls for educational relevance and thinning resources. This new edition addresses key issues in the practice and theory of teaching and learning in the sector and includes fully updated discussions of:
- the professional in academic practice
- mentoring
- teaching with technology
- the relationship between learning objectives, outcomes and assessment
- the novice teacher
The authors draw on theory, practice and current research to provide a new way of thinking about the many aspects of learning and teaching in higher education, enabling readers to reflect critically on their teaching. They also propose a model for continuous professional development appropriate to the higher education academic community.
Learning & Teaching in Higher Education: The Reflective Professional is for lecturers, researchers, staff developers and others involved in teaching in higher and professional education.
Greg Light is Director of the Searle Center for Teaching Excellence and an associate professor in the School of Education and Social Policy at Northwestern University, Chicago. Roy Cox was a visiting academic at the University of London where he helped establish one of the first centres for learning and teaching in higher education in the world. Susanna Calkins is Associate Director for Faculty development at the Searle Center for Teaching Excellence.
This edition of Learning and Teaching in Higher Edcuation is quite different to the first edition, and we like it. It is set out in a logical order and is easy to navigate. It could do with more emphasis on the relationship between teaching and research, as this is a very current debate. Many academics prefer to be seen as academics, rather than teachers so a shift towards academic practice as opposed to just teaching and learning is needed. However this book is good on theory and relating that to practice. That's why we have ordered a big box of copies for our Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice (PGCAP) programme participants this year.
Interesting book with some very good sections. Quite a lot of 'how-to' detail on lecturing / tutoring.
I have found this book extremely useful for my own understanding and learning in relation to reflective practice which is applicable in the areas of health & education that are of interest to me. As a result I have been able to recommend this text to students.
This is an excellent text book for the new educator. It enables the learner to build on knowledge in a very supported way and is highly appropriate for nurse educators
The book provides some useful ideas and framework for improving student learning. It would be even better, however, contain some content dealing with more diverfied students population like one can see in higher education in various countries.
Easy to read book which is beneficial for the lecturer and the students.
A well written and well structured book. I would recommend it for teachers and student teachers in higher education. Excellent references are made to theory and practice and new ways of thinking. It allows the reader to critically reflect on their teaching and provides a framwork for continuous development for teachers and student teachers alike.
Reflection is an essential part of teacher education. This book explores different methods of using reflection and how to encourage students to use it on a daily basis.
This is an excellent book well structured and written. In terms of putting together educational content for learning technologies or teaching a class this text has been reported by staff and students alike to be useful.
The staff in particular reported finding the section on providing student supervision very useful in relation to supervising: projects, dissertations and thesis guidance essential with reference to (1) discussing supervision issues – p. 156; (2) the student supervisor relationship – p 159; (3) accessing research -- 174; (4) Issues on creativity and originality p. 174; (5) attributes of a thesis p. 175; and (6) ideological incompatibility.
Students reported finding sections that were useful as follows: (1) the academic as reflective professional – pp. 22-32; (2) a critical matrix of learning and teaching – pp. 48-72; (3) genres of teaching in higher education – pp. 73-104; (4) innovating: teaching with technology – pp. 179-198; and (5) assessing: student assessment – pp. 200-235. For our purposes this book covered the basics of good teaching which my students were able to use when designing learning technologies projects. In particular the section on teaching with technologies and learning objectives, outcomes and assessment were of practical relevance.
This text is a useful addition to the booklist for my module Pedagogy and Learning in Higher Education on the MA Learning and teaching in HE. I found the teaching observation guidelines very useful especially in supporting the Peer Observation arrangements.
While the essential character and approach of this book have been retained, this new edition has been substantially updated with references to recent research, literature and teaching practices. When the book was first published, the millennium had just happened. Now, after almost a decade, we have seen startling changes in the use of technology in higher education and the increasing globalization of learning and teaching.
Having been situated in both London and Chicago during this time, the authors were also conscious of the international tensions differentiating the study and practice of learning and teaching – particularly between the UK and the US. This new edition consciously draws upon the diverse body of international literature and describes key areas of agreement.
