What the Best College Teachers Do by Ken Bain

Abstract

According to Ken Bain, director of the Center for Teaching Excellence at New York University, teaching is both an intellectual creation and a performing art (p. 174). It is best done by those eager to seek real answers to such questions as:
1. What do I need to know and understand to engage my students in the great questions of my discipline?

2. How do I need to prepare myself and my students to attain significant learning objectives?

3. What should I expect of myself and my students?

4. What approaches should I take in the classroom to foster excitement about and engagement with the ideas, issues, and controversies of my discipline?

5. How might I assess my real impact on student learning so that I can continue to challenge myself to grow as an individual?