http://blog.commarts.wisc.edu/2011/07/26/advice-on-surviving-the-competing-demands-of-academia/ Responses to Media and Culture Fri, 12 Feb 2016 19:35:04 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=4.7.5 http://blog.commarts.wisc.edu/2011/07/26/advice-on-surviving-the-competing-demands-of-academia/comment-page-1/#comment-100093 Tue, 26 Jul 2011 23:11:52 +0000 http://blog.commarts.wisc.edu/?p=10074#comment-100093 Great points, Sharon. I’d add from my own experience that it can often be good to be open to adapting one’s teaching style to accommodate one’s current needs and duties. So, for instance, there have been times in my career when I’ve needed to teach a new class, and I haven’t gotten as much prep done on it as I’d prefer; in such situations, I’ve usually been upfront about this being the first time I’ve taught the class, and I’ve shifted from “let me tell you stuff” mode to “here’s a problem, let’s try to solve it together” mode. As much as some students really want to come in and get a whole bunch of notes from a class, just as many usually want to feel empowered in the process, and thus sometimes being honest with oneself and one’s students that one doesn’t know everything is the first step towards a great learning experience for the students. And thus I’ve taught “the same class” in very different ways at different times, yet with little discernible difference in evaluations. As one’s research and service requirements ebb and flow, one’s teaching style can too and it doesn’t need to be a bad thing.

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