tunities. This means not doing all the talking yourself. Outside ob- servers of classrooms are struck by how much work instructors do in class and how little their students do (Weimer, 1989). Instead, instructors must let the students do some of the work, then stand back and let them do it without interference. Allowing students to struggle and take wrong turns helps them learn something from the process. This requires your not being rigidly tied to your own agenda. You will always have an ultimate goal in mind, but there may be many wrong paths which would be just as instructive and possibly more interesting because they would reflect the students’ own struggle with the task rather than your pre- conceived notion of the “correct way” to do something. In the long run students will lear more from the following their own wrong path than from following the well-worn footsteps of the experts. In the end we must come to the realization that itis the students who must do the learning. The teacher's task is to make learning possible, not to doit for them. This involves cre- ating a classroomatmosphere of trust and confidence where risk-taking is possible, even exciting, and then giving the students ample opportu- nity to take those risks by being ac- tively involved in their own learn- ing. It may not be as easy and as comfortable for the instructor as A PUBLICATION OF THE PROFES- “covering the material,” but in the SIONAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL long term, the learning will be bet- DEVELOPMENT NETWORK IN ter. HIGHER EDUCATION MaRILLa SVINICKI Editor: UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS-AUSTIN Loren Ekroth, Center for Teath- ing Excellence, University of References Hawaii at Manoa, 1733 Adams, J. L. (1986). The Care and Donaghho Road, Kuyken- Feeding of Ideas. Reading, MA; dall Hall 108, Honolulu, HI Addison-Wesley. 96822 Bandura, A. (1977). Social Learning Theory. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Associate Editors: Prentice Hall. Sandra Tomlinson, Galveston Bloom, B. J. (1984). The 2 sigma College, 4015 Avenue Q, problem: the search for methods Galveston, TX 77550 of instruction as effective as one- Marilla Svinicki, Center for to-one tutoring. Educational Re- Teaching Excellence, Uni- searcher, 13, 4-16. versity of Texas-Austin, Johnson, D. W., & Johnson, R. T. Main Bldg. 2200, Austin, TX (1985). Motivational processes in 78712-1111 oe he San and in- SUBSCRIPTIONS: Institutional, ividualistic learning situations. $100 annually (unlimited repro- In Ames, C., & Ames, R. (eds.). duction rights); Individual, $10 Research on Motivation in Educa- annually. Teaching Excellence is tion: The Classroom Milieu (vol. 2). published eight time annually. Orlando, Fl: Academic Press. To order, send check or P. O. to Weimer, MaryellenG. (1989). Who’s Teaching Excellence c/oLoren doing the work? The Teaching Pro- Ekroth, Center for Teaching fessor, 3(2), 1. Excellence, University of Ha- . . waii at Manoa, 1733 Donaghho For further information, contact the Road, Kuykendall Hall 108, author at University of Texas- Honolulu, HI 96822. or call Austin, Center for Teaching Effec- (808) 948-6978 for fu rther infor- tiveness, Main Bldg. 2200, Austin, TX 78712-1111 mation. The Professional and Organizational Development Network in Higher Education Dedicated to Improving Teaching and Learning in Higher Education The POD Network facilitates the ex- change of information and ideas, the development of professional skills, the exploration and debate of educa- tional issues, and the sharing of expertise and resources. For further information, write to: Dr. Delivee Wright POD Network * Teaching and Learning Center University of Nebraska 121 Benton Hall Lincoln, NE 68588 Other Publications: For publication orders or informa- tion about the 1989 POD Annual To Improve the Academy (annual) Conference, please contact: 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, each @ $10.00 Dr. Emily Wadsworth Handbook for New Practitioners @ 15.00 POD Network — : Professional Development oe Gl oie a ETE Northeastern University , 5500 North St. Louis Bright Idea Network @ $5.00 Chicago, IL 60646