Welcome to the Tuesday Teaching Tip. Each week, the Faculty Collaborative for Teaching will bring you an easy-to-implement tool that you can use immediately in your classroom teaching. The goals of these tips will be to add to your teaching toolbox, share resources on teaching, and alert you to upcoming teaching and learning opportunities from the Faculty Collaborative.

TUESDAY TEACHING TIP: Is it too late to make a difference? 

As the academic year winds down, many of us—faculty and students alike—are already looking ahead to summer. With Week 9 upon us and just a few weeks remaining, it’s natural to feel the pull of the finish line. 

Throughout the term, we've set ambitious goals and tried various strategies to keep students engaged. At this point, you might be wondering: Is it too late to re-engage students or reignite their motivation?

We’re here to remind you—it’s never too late. Every effort you make now contributes to your students’ growth as lifelong learners.

This week we challenge you to avoid common misconceptions about students and finish the quarter strong. Here’s are some ways to do it:

• Misconception: Students are in it for the grade, not for learning.

Generally, grades alone are not enough to sustain student motivation (Nist-Olejnik & Holschuh, 2007). Remind students that the knowledge and skills they have acquired in your course can help them in other courses of future career development. 

• Misconception: Academically underprepared students are less motivated now than those who have been doing well. 

While there may be differences among students’ motivation (e.g., Howey, 1999), instructors can implement strategies that benefit all learners to give one last push to the finish. During the last two weeks, praise students on progress or accomplishments with specific examples during the class. Connect learning in your courses to other courses and to students’ personal or professional interests.

• Misconception: Instructor enthusiasm cannot make unmotivated or uninterested students eager to learn anymore.

On the contrary! Instructor enthusiasm is contagious and a crucial factor in student motivation (Davis, 2009). Even though it may be hard to muster the enthusiasm this time of the academic year, do your best to demonstrate enthusiasm with a lively voice, humor, and an energetic attitude during the last classes. Let students know what excites you about some of the topics you have not covered in the class and what open issues keep you interested. 

DID YOU DO IT?

Let us know how it went. We would love to hear your feedback about how you implemented today’s Tuesday Teaching Tip in your classroom. Click here to fill out our 3-question survey. The survey is anonymous, but if you choose to enter your name, you’ll be entered in a drawing at the end of the quarter to win a new book from Faculty Development!

UPCOMING EVENTS

• Join us tomorrow, May 21 for the CAFE “Engaging Students in the Classroom-Strategies for Reducing Screen Time and Increasing Eye Contact”. Register here. 
• Don’t miss our Center for Teaching Excellence Town Hall on May 28th, at St. Clare room. This will be an opportunity to weigh in on the vision and direction of the new center as it is being established, so that it might serve the needs of a broad base of teachers and learners across the university. Read more and register here. 
• Please share your input about the new Center for Teaching Excellence through this brief (5 question) survey by the end of the month. Your voice matters, and your insights will help ensure the center reflects your interests and aspirations.

WANT TO READ A LITTLE MORE?

• For more suggestions, check out our DRT page on Motivating Students
• Davis, B. G. (2009). Tools for teaching (2nd ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
• Nist-Olejnik, S., & Holschuh, J. P. (2007). College rules! How to study, survive, and succeed in college (2nd ed.). Berkeley, CA: Ten Speed Press.
• Vanderbilt University, Center for Teaching. (n.d.). Student evaluations of teaching. Retrieved from https://cft.vanderbilt.edu/guides-sub-pages/student-evaluations/

This week’s Tuesday Teaching Tip was prepared by Fiona Ji and Emily Park on behalf of the Faculty Collaborative.

 

Missed a teaching tip? Read them all here. Don’t forget to check out our Faculty Associates office hours here.

And check out our full calendar of CAFEs and other Faculty Development and Faculty Collaborative events.