Mentoring new faculty / Challenges of new faculty member
As a relatively new instructor (1 year), here are my two biggest challenges / thoughts:
1. I am continually concerned with the lack of true education in the college classroom these days. I would argue that getting a college degree is (for most) an exercise of time management versus gaining a true understanding of the subject they are learning. I have seen in both my students and (as) a student the weak grading scales, the limited amount of homework, the "subjective" grading used quite liberally and the overall lack of quality students advancing through college programs. I've even spoken to vice presidents and department heads at various colleges & universities about this issue as a student and was told "professors simply don't feel comfortable grading and sometimes that leads to higher grades". How can I find a balance of challenging these, what I would define as "norms" for today's college experience, by pushing the students harder; while not overstepping what an institution would define as "excessive" work or "expecting too much of 'our' student population"?
2. In my limited experience (learning & teaching), new faculty seem to be hired and "released" to teach without a true mentor to guide them in best practice, college norms, "unwritten rules", etc. It's one thing to continually go to your Dean for guidance, but it's another thing to be formally connected to another more senior instructor that isn't your "boss", but instead is (or could be) a guide. I believe the guidance and mentorship would be extremely beneficial in building exceptional new instructors, retention and feeling an overall sense of connection to your instutition. I'm not sure what the question is here, but I guess I'm wondering what other institutions do (if anything)?
Hi Ian,
I have been an instructor for several years. I would like to comment that the concerns you voice are concerns I had when I started teaching and still have today. All of things you mention can create a great deal of frustration for an instructor. Yet, here are two things I continually come back to at the end of a hard day:
1) Don't ever forget just how much control and ability you have as instructor to shape your classroom environment and your students. Even if you feel your institution or education in general has standards that are too low, you don't have to embrace them. There are guidelines you must follow of course, but there are always many ways to meet those guidelines. Be creative.
2) I truly believe all students can learn and that most students in fact want to learn, want to be challenged and will live up to high expectations, along as they are reasonable. Yes, students today are driven by the instant gratification so built in to younger generations. This means you must make your class relevant to them based on those goals. Yet, many students I encounter have had instructors who just assume they are bad students or poor learners and thus, don't place any real expectations upon them. The first day of class the word I probably use the most is EXPECT--"this is what I expect from you and in return this is what you can expect from me and the class." This is the beauty of the traditional classroom, the relationship between instructor and student. If the students can trust you to guide them through an intellectual process, they will respond in surprising ways.
Lastly, I agree that more mentoring needs to take place. When I first started as an instructor there were some lonely times, especially when there was a difficult student or situation. Ultimately, I banded together with other new instructors and we provided support for each other. But, having a more senior instructor to guide you would be the ideal. If your institution does not have a formal mentoring system in place, seek out a more experienced instructor. I have found most instructors are more than happy to share their experiences with, and give guidance to, newer instructors.
Hi Sarah,
You have received some very good advice from experienced instructors. Keeping listening to them as you continue your professional growth. Your mentoring efforts are really meaningful for your students as you already know. They really appreciate the effort you put forth to keep them moving forward with their career goals.
Gary
I have been teaching for the past 4 years and have found that mentoring; formally or informally is always the most helpful. Its similar to OTJ training in a way. The role playing thing is a great idea for brand new teachers. I certainly would have loved that my first few classes with adult learners. Classroom management and being authentic seem to be things I need the most advice from senior teachers, especially when starting in a new teaching environment.
Hi Alyson,
Thank you for the good input on how to develop a new instructor. Trial and error is one method but it would be so much less stressful and challenging if a senior faculty member could be there to bounce ideas off of and give advice. We use the mentoring program to try and provide the support you outlined in your forum comments. It really helps to keep our new faculty engaged and the retention rate is so much higher. They know someone cares about their development and success.
Gary
I agree with a lot of your comments. I wish I'd had more mentoring when i began teaching nine years ago. I believe i would have become a more effective intructor much earlier. I also feel it would good going forward to have senior faculty become mentors for new hires. Teaching is so subjective, so to have tried and true guidance from an experienced faculty member would be invaluable. It would also be good to have more classes with role playing in various student situations to demonstrate different examples of ways to handle different situations.
Hi Ian,
You make two excellent points about professional development. The first point about course requirements is a tough one. After teaching a year you can see clearly the situation facing many career college instructors. How and what to require of the students to make sure they have the competencies required of the field. I base my requirements on the field. This gives me the leverage I need to justify the projects, assignments, policies and management strategies that I use in my classes. I reflect in my classes what will be expected of the students when they enter the field. This helps me when I have to "defend" what I do. It seems like the questions come up about every two years. So with the support of my advisory committee I am ready to show them the "hows and whys" of my courses. This stops any further concerns from those questioning. In addition, my students appreciate the fact that they can see relevancy and application to the work that I ask of them.
Your second point is one that makes me sad when I hear of it. Too many beginning instructors are left to drift on their own as the develop their skills and abilities in the classroom. I work very hard in my inservices to help college administrators to assign beginning instructors mentors that they can talk with and learn from. The payback on this is tremendous. Faculty stay and students learn. How much better can it get?
Gary
