June, 1988 ‘The Teaching Professor Summer Reading 2 The: it The Teaching Professor brings to you information about teaching and learn- ‘ “ ot , “ARACHINC ing from many different sources. By doing this, we hope to convey several wah TG BA messages. Lots can be learned about teaching; good sources of information do \ PROFESSOR. exist. Most important, reading can increase instructional effectiveness (we ex- : plained how in the June 1987 issue). We also think that the chance of your doing some extra reading about teaching is better during the summer. Even if you still teach, many of the pressures of the regular academic year seem less intense. Summer invites introspection, We try to seize the opportunity by of- fering in the June issue a collection of materials we unabashedly endorse. Last June it was a collection of books; this year it’s a potpourri of shorter pieces. How do we justify the claim that these pieces (mostly articles) are among the best that can be read on college teaching? More subjectively than objective- ly. We read a great deal of material on teaching and learning. These are the pieces that stick with us, the ones with the ideas we continue to contemplate, the materials we’ve given faculty which they’ve been enthusiastic about. If you disagree or don’t find your favorite on the list, by all means contact the editor. She’d be most interested in reviewing the best article you’ve read about teaching and in hearing why it’s your favorite. We've categorized the articles in three general areas, hoping to reflect inter- ests and needs relevant to you. The articles within categories address dif- ferent issues but share a common tone. You may benefit by reading everything in a category or by letting the titles and annotations guide you to a collection that crosses the categories. At this point, we don’t make prescrip- tions. After all, as soon as you make a reading assignment “required,” you en- courage “students” to put it off and hate every minute of having to do it. One final note: We’ve tried to include materials from a variety of sources. We did that partly because we aren’t sure how well-stocked your library might be -- which is a side issue worth noting. If your college expects the best of you in the classroom, don’t they have some responsibility to stock the library with materials that might help you accomplish that objective? But we’ve also included materials from various sources to show you that good materials on teaching can be found in lots of places. We’d only be too pleased if your trip to collect summer reading material took you places in the library you've never been before! READ TO BE STIMU- These pieces will make you think, challenge your assumptions about teaching LATED, PROVOKED, AND and learning, get you to examine why you do what you do in the classroom, CHALLENGED raise the hair on the back of your neck, and make you want to talk about what you've read with others. Eisner, Elliot W. “The Art and Craft of Teaching.” Educational Leadership (January 1983): 5-13. Eisner looks for a description of teaching that recognizes the creative com- plexity involved in “orchestrating” (and he does use the orchestral metaphor) learning in classrooms. When you finish this article you'll be surprised by the magnitude of your successes and humbled by your failures, but you'll under- stand as you have never before the complexity of the task that confronts you every time you stand before a class. Eble, Kenneth E. “Craft, Science or Art?” In The Aims of College Teaching (chapter four), San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1983. For many years educational writers have debated whether teaching is a science or an art. Eble sides with neither, but rather sees teaching as a craft -- 14 La a