“Understanding Great Teaching” (Ken Bain and James Zimmerman, Montclair State University)
“If there is a difference between good instructors and popular ones, what is it? Every year hundreds of promotion and tenure committees struggle with that question, and for good reasons. Without some definitions, all attempts to improve teaching wander aimlessly in a sea of conflicting ambitions. In this essay, we offer a way across those troubled waters. With a definition of good teaching clearly in mind, we can then offer some insights into how the best teachers achieve them.”
Listen to Ken Bain and James Zimmerman’s entire article, “Understanding Great Teaching” (Peer Review, Spring 2009, Vol. 11, No. 2). Narrated by Samuel Smith, CTL.