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Teaching at Tufts: Students’ Perceptions of the Research and

Teaching Balancing ActPresentation to Academic Affairs Committee

Trustee Weekend, February 5th, 2010

Road Map

• Tufts and the Research-Teaching Spectrum

• Student Perceptions

• Tufts’ Resources

• Suggestions for the Future

University’s Goal“Students come to Tufts knowing they will have access to world-class scholars who are interested in their teaching and want to get to know their students.”

Liberal Arts and Research

• Tufts balances the benefits of a liberal arts education with the resources of a Research 1 university

• Over the past few decades, emphasis has been on advancing research

• Tufts’ research efforts are well-publicized and have advanced the University’s reputation

• Tufts emphasizes that the benefits of research carry over into the classroom

“Teaching has always been a priority, we just hear about research because that’s what is changing” - Linda Jarvin, CELT Director

“A Good Academic Experience”

Students want:

• An engaging class that inspires them to declare their major

• Dinner at their professor’s house

• An unintimidating math professor who knows the tough areas of syllabus and can identify blank looks in class

• A couple of professors they know well enough to ask for recommendation letters

• An advisor who can offer lab and research opportunities and graduate school advice

A Great Professor Is:

CaringOrganized

Engaging

Students’ Perceptions• While students have a good overall academic

experience, the perception is that the University prioritizes research and reputation over teaching quality

• Students experience bad teaching that doesn’t seem to change

• Students experience great teachers who don’t seem to be rewarded for their teaching work

• Negative examples carry more publicity and impact more than positive ones

• Students understand the need for research and are willing to make sacrifices

• “Tufts just tries to perpetuate the image that teaching ‘matters’ and that research and teaching are balanced.”

Teaching at Tufts• What resources exist to emphasize and encourage

good teaching?• How can we cultivate a positive teaching culture?• How can we demonstrate to students that Tufts

values teaching?

How can the University capitalize on its teaching resources to create a better teaching culture and raise students’ perceptions?

Course Evaluations• At the end of the semester, student complete

anonymous course evaluations• 57% of students feel that course evaluations have

little to no impact on professors/departments*• Leaves the “evaluation loop” open• How can the course evaluation system be

improved?• System is being updated to an electronic version within 2 years which will collect and present evaluation data online• 89% of students would be likely or very like to use previous course evaluations to pick future classes if information was available*• Need to close the evaluation loop

* TCU Senate Survey Fall 2009

Tenure Considerations

Re

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Teaching

Professors of the Practice• Hired to bring real world experiences into the

classroom• Professors of the Practice are free to focus on

teaching with the “overhead” of maintaining funded research

• Primarily an Engineering School program (12 positions), but recently expanded to Arts and Sciences

• Great program that can be expanded to “practical” fields

Center for Enhancement of Learningand Teaching (CELT)

• Offers faculty development seminars, workshops, and individual consultations, mentoring programs

• Selected by Dartmouth’s faculty development center as a peer institution

• Given support to over 300 faculty across three campuses (2008-2009)

• CELT basics are funded centrally through Tufts, all programming is funded through outside grants

• Focuses on “organic growth” through a positive, open teaching culture

• How do we reach out to professors who most need the most teaching help?

SPIRIT (Students and Professors Integrating Recreation, Intellect and

Teaching) Fund• Program designed to promote faculty-student

interaction• Popular in foreign language departments• 67% of graduating seniors have never been a

guest in a faculty member’s home*• 56% of graduating seniors have never eaten a

meal on campus with a faculty member*

• $15,000 budget/year• Funded 60+ events• 178 meetings in Tower café• How can we further promote

faculty-student interaction?* Tufts Senior Survey 2009

Recommendations

• Put a stronger emphasis on teaching in tenure and hiring considerations

• Follow though on new course evaluation system and close the “evaluation loop”

• Encourage positive teaching culture by expanding programs under the umbrella of CELT

• Publicize teaching and teaching-research programs to students and faculty

• Encourage faculty-student interaction by expanding and publicizing the SPIRIT Fund

• Increase the number of Professors of the Practice

Many Thanks To:• TCU Senate

• Secretary of the Corporation Linda Dixon and Paul Tringale

• Associate Provost for Institutional Research Dawn Terkla

• Dean of Academic Affairs Andrew McClellan

• Professor Sol Gittleman

• CELT Director Linda Jarvin

• Professor Susan Russinoff

• Professors Ben Hescott and Norman Ramsey

• Professor Charles Inouye

• Associate Dean of Undergraduate Education Jeanne Dillon

• Former Trustee DJ McGrath