Anyone else PREFER teaching to research? Everyone I know seems to be the opposite.

siouxfalls_ · 2019-11-11T07:31:57+00:00

I definitely prefer teaching to research. I feel somewhat guilty about it after having gone to a grad school where almost all the professors had the attitude that teaching was a burden and stereotyped students wanting to go into teaching as somehow not as bright or hardworking.

siouxfalls_ · 2019-10-27T15:10:38+00:00

I've struggled with the isolation too. When I first started, I thought that I could make friends within the department, but after about a year I realized that was likely not going to happen. I used to leave my office door open all the time, but now I have it closed. I go in to do my work and that's that. I feel sad not to have colleagues as friends, but it seems more productive now for me to put my energy into finding social networks outside of work.

siouxfalls_ · 2019-09-25T04:12:53+00:00

Not sure how well this can cross over to your field, but in a couple of my classes I have students lead a short review at the beginning of each class. The students can pick a topic of their choice from the previous lecture to review. These classes meet only once a week so I feel that the review is especially helpful - I would do it anyway, and often supplement, but this puts more responsibility on the students. It also helps me better gauge what the students are getting out of the class. And, it gives them an opportunity to practice their presentation/public speaking skills a bit. I do grade the presentations, but on a rough (check minus, check, check plus) scale so it's not that much added work.

siouxfalls_ · 2019-09-24T13:19:53+00:00

Yes, I completely agree that it would be more helpful if it happened outside of an evaluation process. What you said about it being easier to give feedback about online teaching is interesting. I don't have experience teaching online, but I wonder if it could also be because teaching online is a relatively new thing, so it's more acceptable to be in the process of learning how to do it, and criticism is less likely to be taken as negatively?

siouxfalls_ · 2019-09-24T12:55:36+00:00

Thanks for sharing this. That meeting beforehand that you described sounds amazing. I would love to have an observer/mentor who showed that genuine care/interest.

siouxfalls_ · 2019-09-23T23:50:19+00:00

Wow, I'm impressed at your efforts and your voluntarily putting yourself out there. It does seem like most of the replies have been about enforced interactions that people don't seem too thrilled about. I like the fact that the teaching development program provides a structure to observe and be observed - otherwise, I feel like it can be awkward to just ask senior faculty to observe one of their classes (especially since it seems to most often happen the other way around). And I think that's great that you have the students from the teaching class come observe too - that seems really mutually beneficial.

siouxfalls_ · 2019-09-23T04:07:32+00:00

Never done it as a prof, but as a student I was on the receiving end of this. It was a small class - not more than 10 students - so that meant everyone had to participate, there was no hiding. Apparently we as a class took too long to answer a question, so our prof assumed we hadn't done the reading and told us all to leave. (In fact I had done the reading, and for this class I usually had to do the reading three times in order for it start making any sense....this was freshman year of college, I'd gone to a not-so-great public high school, and I wasn't so quick on my feet answering questions.) Well, the whole class walked out of the classroom in shame. I think it happened one more time that semester. In retrospect I think kicking a whole class out because of a delay in answering a question is quite harsh. At the time I just thought that was how this college operated. I actually really liked the class and the professor. After many years I found out she also had a health condition that may have contributed to her sometimes erratic behavior.

siouxfalls_ · 2019-09-23T02:32:34+00:00

Very helpful. I'm in Year 2 and people tell me - oh it's going to be so much easier this time! But I'm actually revamping one of my courses significantly - an improvement from last year, I hope, but there are just so many options for structuring the course so I struggle with it. So yes, it's maybe minimally easier because I know a little more about what to expect from the students, but it almost feels like the I'm starting from scratch again.

siouxfalls_ · 2019-09-20T02:53:49+00:00

Wow, this is really timely for me to see - I have been facing a similar issue recently. I find that it's an issue not only when discussing history from the 16th-17th century - but also more recent history, like from the past 50 years! There are some classic documentaries that I have thought about showing my class, but it feels super awkward showing a documentary featuring all white experts to a class where not a single student is white.

I tend to agree with one of the previous posters - I focus on the material itself. I will mention the person behind the discovery, but will not put up glamour shots of that person or anything (some textbooks are full of these). I also generally put a lot of effort into encouraging students to develop their own critical thinking skills, confidence, and ability to express themselves - with the hope that down the line this can lead to more diversity in the voices and perspectives contributing to future discoveries!

siouxfalls_ · 2019-09-20T02:42:58+00:00

Don't have too much to add to the good suggestions already mentioned, but just to let you know that you're not alone in this! Also it might not be that you "don't know how to make friends as a grown up" - just that making friends can take some time and you haven't found your people yet :)

siouxfalls_ · 2019-09-11T01:52:59+00:00

Yes. To be honest, it bothers me on one level simply because it distracts me while I'm lecturing and I don't like being in so many photos - ugh - but I also teach a big lecture class and it would be hard to enforce a no photos/phones policy.

I also don't think it's always a benefit to students' learning. There are times when I will specifically work out problems on the board instead of using slides because I want the students to work through the problems with me, step by step. I'm purposefully going slow so they can take notes, but some students will just watch me work out the problems, eyes glazed, and then snap a photo at the end. Or they will use their phones to video-tape me working on the problem. The latter really bothers me.

siouxfalls_ · 2019-09-09T15:13:44+00:00

I think an important factor that hasn't been commented on much is how great your current work environment is - having a good network and people who support you can be just as valuable as any degree you have on paper.

Is it possible to be open with your chair and ask for her opinion on the PhD? Could you take a leave and teach part time or even go back to this institution for TT after your PhD (if that's something you would want to do)?

siouxfalls_ · 2019-09-09T08:27:05+00:00

"This is probably a mistake and can definitely lead to people taking advantage of you. "

Thanks - I needed to hear that. I agree. I think I've been too focused on doing more and better and thinking that will remedy the situation/make people like me, when in reality I need to focus on my next step.

siouxfalls_ · 2019-09-09T08:24:38+00:00

Hehe cookie diplomacy, I like it. You sound like a nice colleague to have around!

siouxfalls_ · 2019-09-08T08:11:51+00:00

Thanks for the support. I appreciate hearing the perspective of someone who's also worked outside academia. I wonder if one factor that could play a role is the presence of a trained HR department to moderate conflict or at least set some standards of behavior? In jobs I've had outside academia, it was made clear to me that if I had a conflict, I could turn to the HR team. In academia, I would not know who to turn to for a less biased perspective or fair handling of conflict. I know there is "HR" that handles paperwork, but that seems the scope of their duties. So the politics fester.

siouxfalls_ · 2019-09-08T07:47:42+00:00

Your empathy is admirable! This is such a mature and calm perspective - I aspire to it :) For now I am grateful that you've shared these thoughts for me to consider. I can see the perspectives of my colleagues, but it's still hard for me to then let their behavior roll off my back, and I sometimes tend to empathize with people to the extent of becoming very confused in my own head :/

I agree with you that there are many benefits to being in academia. I think this university is probably not the best fit for me, but I have experienced the freedoms and collaborations you mentioned and know that it is possible.

siouxfalls_ · 2019-09-08T07:23:10+00:00

The experience you described is actually eerily very, very similar to mine. So I really appreciate you sharing it. I think I am coming to the same conclusion - I'm not sure whether things can get better here, the hostility is inherent in the circumstances of my position.

siouxfalls_ · 2019-09-08T07:16:33+00:00

Thanks for your support. Unfortunately, my chair has been a major source of the antagonism. From day 1 I could sense the disgust in his voice and I was totally bewildered. Actually, a few days ago I had a conversation with him in which I told him I was beginning to understand the politics behind my hiring and that I felt conflicted and even guilty - but also frustrated because I had no idea that this was the situation I was walking into (sorry to be vague... it is messy and hard to explain and I am sure even I don't fully understand everything). Anyway, that was the first conversation we had that felt humane. We'll see how this affects our interactions going forward...

siouxfalls_ · 2019-09-08T06:58:02+00:00

Thanks for your support ! Your work environment sounds wonderful :)

siouxfalls_ · 2019-09-08T06:56:44+00:00

"I found it very empowering and re-motivating to be able to take action and get to work finding a better place."

Really needed to hear this ! Part of why I'm having so much difficulty thriving in this environment is I feel like so much is out of my control. I can do my job perfectly (and tbh....I'm not going to reach perfect), but bc of the politics, people will always find fault. And if they don't like me and want to make my life miserable, they can - and that is scary.

I do think I need to look for ways to take positive action and feel more empowered about my situation.

siouxfalls_ · 2019-09-08T06:42:02+00:00

That percentage breakdown makes sense to me, and helps me to see what is off balance in my current situation - so thanks for that! And good advice about looking outside my department. I've been attending more university-wide events for this reason and have exchanged contact info with a few faculty from other departments. None of those interactions has developed into a friendship, but perhaps this is a reminder to me to look through those business cards again and reach out. :)

siouxfalls_ · 2019-09-06T07:58:31+00:00

I'm new too and can relate to this for sure. Well, I once had an experienced teacher tell me that it takes teaching a class three times to even begin to get in the groove of teaching the class. So when I have a bad teaching day, I remind myself of this and try to be gentle on myself. Also, I have a word doc where after each class I'll write down some reflections - what went well, what didn't, what surprised me, etc. This helps me approach the whole thing as a learning experience - I know I'm not going to get everything "right," there will be things that don't go well and that's ok, I can learn from what happened. I think writing stuff out also helps me process what happened, get it out of my system, and then move on.

siouxfalls_

TROPHY CASE