Degree Name

EdD (Doctor of Education)

Program

Educational Leadership

Date of Award

December 1993

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to examine what teaching methods new college teachers received and which ones they believed were important. New college faculty were asked questions on teaching methods to determine which, if any, were made available to them before they entered college teaching. The research questions under study were: (1) What type(s) of methodological preparation do/does higher education faculty receive? (2) What methodological preparation would be beneficial to new higher education faculty? (3) How do new higher education faculty learn methodological preparation? (4) What strategies could be developed to assist new higher education faculty in the development of instructional skills? (5) Are there differences between faculty who teach at institutions classified according to the Carnegie Classifications (1987) regarding the importance of methodological preparation and the amount of training received? The conclusions of the study were that new faculty were not prepared for the overall duties of the career as college teacher, except for being knowledgeable in their subject area. New college faculty also indicated a large difference between what they should know prior to beginning their college teaching and what they actually know. There were differences between faculty at two year colleges and at four year colleges, both in what was perceived as important to know and in the amount of training received. The recommendations of the study were that training programs for new college faculty should prepare these faculty in more than content; that as more non-traditional students return to college, faculty need to know more about how adults learn, different student learning styles, and how to increase student motivation; colleges should include training mechanisms for new faculty, such as how to teach, developing mentoring relationships, or creating internships; and orientation programs should be set up for newly hired faculty.

Document Type

Dissertation - unrestricted

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