It's sometimes hard to accept, but the average undergraduate student thinks and learns very differently from the average professor. If this feels suspect, keep in mind that... Click for more
It's sometimes hard to accept, but the average undergraduate student thinks and learns very differently from the average professor. If this feels suspect, keep in mind that only a tiny fraction of our students will follow in our footsteps to become university faculty. The majority (even the majority in the most prestigious universities) will find academe too abstract and too isolating to be the basis for a satisfying life. Research into "learning styles" (Kolb, Vark and Felder, below) suggest that our students on average tend to benefit from instruction that emphasizes concrete activities and social interactions as entry ways into understanding difficult and abstract concepts or theories.
At the same time, students are also dynamic beings, in constant, often visible change even over the few weeks of a single university course. For this reason, many university instructors find the "Perry Scheme" to be a highly effective tool for thinking about how to move students from naīve and reactive thinking to more systematic and reflective thinking. A quick review of Perry's research will greatly reduce an instructor's frustration at student questions such as "Why don't you just tell us the answer??!!! Click for less
