Thinking About Teaching

1
Thinking About Teaching Supervision

• Prof Alistair McCulloch
• Learning Teaching Unit

2
From the Oxford CETL Blogspot

• Academic practice has been traditionally
  understood to encompass three forms in varying
  degrees(1) forms of inquiry, from scholarly
  examination of documents to empirical research
  whether applied or pure, commissioned, individual
  or collaborative(2) forms of teaching, working
  with undergraduates, postgraduates and
  postdoctoral fellows in the broadest sense -
  including, for instance, planning, assessment,
  supervision, advising and mentoring(3) forms of
  service to the institution, the discipline,
  profession and larger community, e.g.,
  chair/member of an institutional committee,
  organizer of a disciplinary conference,
  consultant for a charity.
• http//academicpractice.blogspot.com/2007/03/wht-d
  oes-academic-practice-mean.html

3
A False Shorthand

• For convenience Ill use
• Teaching to refer to engagement with students
  on taught programmes
• and,
• b) Supervision to refer to engagement with
  students on Higher Degree by Research programmes.

4
What are we doing when we teach?

• Helping students to gain academic and
  professional awards
• Imparting knowledge
• Developing knowledge and understanding (theirs
  and yours)
• Checking student learning

5
What are we doing when we teach?

• Helping students to gain academic and
  professional awards
• Imparting knowledge
• Developing knowledge and understanding (theirs
  and yours)
• Checking student learning
• Engendering critical, self-reflective thinking
• Showing how to discriminate between what is to be
  valued and what is not
• Showing how to make decisions and choices

6
What are we doing when we teach?

• Helping students to gain academic and
  professional awards
• Imparting knowledge
• Developing knowledge and understanding (theirs
  and yours)
• Checking student learning
• Engendering critical, self-reflective thinking
• Showing how to discriminate between what is to be
  valued and what is not
• Showing how to make decisions and choices
• Modelling certain practices
• How to construct a complex argument
• How to manage groups and groups discussions
• Safe practice in practical situations
• Professional behaviours

7
What are we doing when we teach?

• Helping students to gain academic and
  professional awards
• Imparting knowledge
• Developing knowledge and understanding (theirs
  and yours)
• Checking student learning
• Engendering critical, self-reflective thinking
• Showing how to discriminate between what is to be
  valued and what is not
• Showing how to make decisions and choices
• Modelling certain practices
• How to construct a complex argument
• How to manage groups and groups discussions
• Safe practice in practical situations
• Professional behaviours
• Inducting into a discipline and/or profession

8
Is Supervision Teaching?
9
Is Supervision Teaching?

• 
  
  Teaching Super
• Helping students to gain academic and
  professional
• awards
  
  
• Imparting knowledge
• Developing knowledge and understanding (theirs
  and
• yours)
• Checking student learning
• Engendering critical, self-reflective thinking
• Showing how to discriminate between what is to
• be valued and what is not
• Showing how to make decisions and choices
• Modelling certain practices
• How to construct a complex argument
• How to manage groups and groups discussions
• Safe practice in practical situations
• Professional behaviours
• Inducting into a discipline and/or profession

10
Is Supervision More Than Teaching?

• On the surface at least, teaching has an
  immediacy, supervision is much longer term

11
Is Supervision More Than Teaching?

• On the surface at least, teaching has an
  immediacy, supervision is much longer term
• Teaching is about introducing the student to a
  discipline, supervision about the student making
  a contribution to the discipline

12
Is Supervision More Than Teaching?

• On the surface at least, teaching has an
  immediacy, supervision is much longer term
• Teaching is about introducing the student to a
  discipline, supervision about the student making
  a contribution to the discipline
• Teaching is about introducing the student to a
  discipline, supervision is about contributing to
  the socialisation of a potential member of the
  disciplinary community.

13
Is Supervision More Than Teaching?

• On the surface at least, teaching has an
  immediacy, supervision is much longer term
• Teaching is about introducing the student to a
  discipline, supervision about the student making
  a contribution to the discipline
• Teaching is about introducing the student to a
  discipline, supervision is about contributing to
  the socialisation of a potential member of the
  disciplinary community.
• Supervision involves a closer relationship than
  does teaching Trust, affirmation of the student
  and acceptance of a potential emotional
  rollercoaster

14
Is Supervision More Than Teaching?

• On the surface at least, teaching has an
  immediacy, supervision is much longer term
• Teaching is about introducing the student to a
  discipline, supervision about the student making
  a contribution to the discipline
• Teaching is about introducing the student to a
  discipline, supervision is about contributing to
  the socialisation of a potential member of the
  disciplinary community.
• Supervision involves a closer relationship that
  does teaching Trust, affirmation of the student
  and acceptance of a potential emotional
  rollercoaster
• Teaching involves guiding a number of students
  towards independent learning, supervision
  involves letting go of a student as s/he develops
  and, increasingly, learning from them.

15
Is Supervision More Than Teaching?

• On the surface at least, teaching has an
  immediacy, supervision is much longer term
• Teaching is about introducing the student to a
  discipline, supervision about the student making
  a contribution to the discipline
• Teaching is about introducing the student to a
  discipline, supervision is about contributing to
  the socialisation of a potential member of the
  disciplinary community.
• Supervision involves a closer relationship that
  does teaching Trust, affirmation of the student
  and acceptance of a potential emotional
  rollercoaster
• Teaching involves guiding a number of students
  towards independent learning, supervision
  involves letting go of a student as s/he develops
  and, increasingly, learning from them.
• Teaching involves imposing a curriculum and a way
  of studying it, supervision does not involve
  imposing your agenda

16
Your Career in Teaching Supervision
17
Some Key Things To Think About

• The Institutional Context
• Different types of university/HEI
• Institutional balance between Teaching and
  Research
• Student backgrounds (WP, International)

18
Some Key Things To Think About

• The Institutional Context
• Different types of university/HEI
• Institutional balance between Teaching and
  Research
• Student backgrounds (WP, International)
• Range of teaching vis-a-vis specialism

19
Some Key Things To Think About

• The Institutional Context
• Different types of university/HEI
• Institutional balance between Teaching and
  Research
• Student backgrounds (WP, International)
• Range of teaching vis-a-vis specialism
• Teaching should always be research-led
• Academics specialism
• Students learning by doing research (enquiry-led)

20
Some Key Things To Think About

• The Institutional Context
• Different types of university/HEI
• Institutional balance between Teaching and
  Research
• Student backgrounds (WP, International)
• Range of teaching vis-a-vis specialism
• Teaching should always be research-led
• Academics specialism
• Students learning by doing research (enquiry-led)
• Nature of the professional relationship

21
Some Key Things To Think About

• The Institutional Context
• Different types of university/HEI
• Institutional balance between Teaching and
  Research
• Student backgrounds (WP, International)
• Range of teaching vis-a-vis specialism
• Teaching should always be research-led
• Academics specialism
• Students learning by doing research (enquiry-led)
• Nature of the professional relationship
• Teaching loads

22
Finally.

• Find your own style and an institution to fit
  both it and your motivations and personal goals

23
Some Resources

• Rebecca Boden, Debbie Epstein Jane Kenway
  (2005). Building Your Adademic Career. Sage.
• Rebecca Boden, Debbie Epstein Jane Kenway
  (2005). Teaching and Supervision. Sage.
• Peter J Frost M Susan Taylor (eds.) (1996).
  Rhythms of Academic Life Personal Accounts of
  Careers in Academia. Sage. (Despite being based
  on accounts by those working in Management
  Studies, this is an excellent book in which
  academics reflect on specific stages in the
  development of their careers from becoming a
  university teacher to refreshing oneself after a
  period as a Dean.)
•  
• Wyn Grant Philippa Sherrington (2006). Managing
  Your Academic Career. Palgrave Macmillan.

24
Some Resources

• Rebecca Boden, Debbie Epstein Jane Kenway
  (2005). Building Your Adademic Career. Sage.
• Rebecca Boden, Debbie Epstein Jane Kenway
  (2005). Teaching and Supervision. Sage.
• Peter J Frost M Susan Taylor (eds.) (1996).
  Rhythms of Academic Life Personal Accounts of
  Careers in Academia. Sage. (Despite being based
  on accounts by those working in Management
  Studies, this is an excellent book in which
  academics reflect on specific stages in the
  development of their careers from becoming a
  university teacher to refreshing oneself after a
  period as a Dean.)
•  
• Wyn Grant Philippa Sherrington (2006). Managing
  Your Academic Career. Palgrave Macmillan.
• ANDDo as much Staff Development on this as you
  can..