The Journey to a Teaching-Oriented Faculty Position

The Journey to a Teaching-Oriented Faculty Positions

Janet Davis, Grinnell

Ruth Anderson, U of Wa

Cheryl Seals, Auburn

Megan Thomas, Cal State

Tammy VanDeGrift, U of Portland

(I got in late, so I missed the intros)

Tell us a little about your current positions and other positions you have held?

C: worked at Bell

Others were covered in their intro, which I missed.

How can I gain teaching experience

Tammy: went to U of Wa, people expected to go to research careers. Knew wanted to go to teaching school (small LA for undergrad), other undergrads wanted to teach. Started a seminar & organized for other grad students. Education based, theory & pedagogy. Good communication with teaching assignments person. taught TA training seminar. Taught CS 1 course.

Informal: volunteered to tutor 1+ undergrads/sem. Still gives idea how to help students and engage in learning. Mentor. Outreach activities.

As an undergrad, teachers need graders. (Another way to get involved in the process of teaching). Give idea of what mistakes students make and help you learn to give feedback.

Experiences don’t count for much unless you document them. Document grading, interactions, tutoring. Hard copy verification is good too.

Janet: UG can be lab assistants

Megan: Teaching a class is good. Hiring committees look for a sign of genuine interest in teaching. Public library programs.

Where and when can I find job ads?

Tammy: Handout has a list of URLs. ACM, IEEE, CRA, Chronicle of Higher Ed. Check out websites of schools if you know where you are interested in going. Mailing lists. Small teaching oriented schools…SIGCSE mailing list.

Megan: Start in early fall. Check Weekly. Send send and send again.

What application materials will I need to prepare?

Janet: if seeking primary teaching position, make it clear that teaching is your priority

1^st-Teaching Philosophy statement (how teach, what accomplish, what’s important, techniques) (less than 2 pgs)

research statement. Not all will require, but it’s good if yours is good. Talk about research & future. Emphasize how work can engage UGs in research and how can your research inform your teaching (less than 3 pgs)

CV-put teaching first & include service. Tammy told her to include personal interests. Grinell people liked that because she appeared as human and showed bredth.

cover letter-address specific issues. People will actually read at a small school

some schools want additional stuff (evidence of teaching excellence, teaching evaluations, descrips of courses want to take, statement of faith)

transcripts (plan ahead, order in advance)

letters of rec (think carefully about who’s writing. Need someone who can talk about your teaching. Make their job as easy as possible)

Ruth: teaching track faculty member first. Letters can make it clear that they were a BAD match.

point out teaching experience on CV

if have evals or teaching materials is good!

pick up SIGCSE proceedings!

add personal things on CV

you’re a team member and want to contribute

Does Education research go into teaching statement or research statement?

teaching statement is more experiences and philosophy, research is research

philosophy doesn’t have to be right…it just has to be if you’ve thought about it

What is a teaching philosophy?

Megan: Why am I concerned about that? What do I try to bring into the lectures? What would interest CS students?

Is how planning to organize lecture part of philosophy?

Tammy: Definitely part of teaching philosophy

Additional materials? Should you send a video of class?

SEND IT (if it’s good)

What should I think about when I am planning my job talk?

Cheryl: First, what type of dept are you interviewing at. Where do you fit in? Start using your research. (proposal or defense). Also, what classes would you like to teach.

Megan: Do not underestimate the difference between research universities and a teaching university. Audience will be primarily students. They are watching your rapport with the students. Don’t talk over their heads. “Rewind way back. Back to the dawn of time when a stack was new.” Put in silly pictures to make them pay attention and remember you.

Ruth: It’s different than a defense or a conference. They think you know enough already. They are asking: CAN THIS PERSON COMMUNICATE? Gave talk in the way she’d teach class.

Janet: You may be asked to give a teaching demo on a standard topic in addition to or in place of research talk.

What if you’re interviewing at both?

You need 2 talks!

Is it ok to interact with audience?

YES!

Advance notice for teaching demo?

Megan: Yes. Had to turn down job interview because no time for prep.

Teaching philosophy: what if mixed philosophies?

Megan: Evidence have thought about topic. That’s the main point.

Teaching Evaluations: How should you view your evaluations? And how do you view other peoples evaluations?

Cheryl: Take it as a learning experience, but don’t take it personally.

Tammy: If not as good as want to be, don’t worry about it. It depends on a lot of factors. If you are submitting them, comment on what you learned from the evals.

What do you do about confidentiality of teaching evals?

Tammy: Only sent aggregate data…Summarized comments with themes.

Ruth: Don’t send students handwriting. Type comments out if sending them.

Is it helpful?

Yes, esp if they’re good and show trying to improve.

How do you negotiate with your advisor to go to a teaching school?

It’s hard.

Tammy: Find a mentor who will support your path.

Talk to people who are at small schools.

GO TO SIGCSE!!!!!!! (student volunteers are needed)

Cincinnatti in March

If you can convince your prof that you’re great!

Remind your advisor that you will be breeding grad students.

It’s possible to create environ in classroom where you will get more useful evaluations. Tell students 1 class or more ahead about evals and they should think about 3 things. How was the book? Did you like the projects? Finish this sentence (I really loved it because____. It would have been great if she had _____. Postpone evals if students who like you aren’t there. If bias is in attendance, you have control.

Do evals at beginning of class (investment in taking a long time)

Isn’t a complete dichotomy

there is a continuum. Stressing teaching doesn’t mean NO research. Tell your supervisor that you’re just hedging your bets.

What can I expect during phone and on-campus interviews?

Tammy: review all aps, then rank and call the reasonable fits. Phone interview. The school’s job is to do screening to ensure that the candidate is a good fit. Gives you a chance to see if you want to be there. “Please describe your teaching experience” “How do you plan to carry on your research?” Most schools require scholarship of some sort. Opposite of killing research career. Want to ensure that you have those plans. Talk to 1 or more people. You need to make sure you get your questions answered. TAKE NOTES. Always had website of curriculum up (knew course numbers). It helps if you know their lingo.

Ruth: If you made it to campus, YAY! You are being seriously considered. They are really evaluating you in the classroom. Generally they care how you carry yourself. Personality issues are HUGE!

Cheryl: Interviewed at teaching and research schools. Limit job talks to one per week. 1.5-2 days. Meet with every faculty member in the department. Talked to dean, dept head, etc. Be honest about the area. Because you have to go home and live in that area. You’ll be miserable if you don’t like the area.

What should I be doing now for a successful job search?

Tammy: See timeline on sheet. Maintain faculty relationships. Your UG days aren’t too far away.

Megan: It’s never too late.

Cheryl: Don’t lock your self away in a corner. NETWORK! Applied at places she knew would hire her. (Cause she knew in advance)

What was transition from research to teaching?

Megan: time to learn names. Students in multiple classes. short distance across classes. It’s fun. There’s more student interaction. intimidation factor is less.

Did you face gender issues at small schools?

Megan: Didn’t see any gender issues.

Janet: Gender worked in her favor “We went out looking for a great computer scientist and when she happened to be female, that was a great plus.”-her dean

Should you declare an interest in teaching in a grad school application?

NO.

Cheryl: What do you do in negotiating an offer? Come talk to us.

ghc2006