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1. Methodology
through Experience
By Patrick Jackson

2. Teaching experience
• Non-native English Instructor
• Professional Writing Consultant
• Online Instructor
• SEO ELA Instructor
• Adjunct Professor

3. Two common
Philosophies
The Funnel – Students are receptacles of teacher’s
wisdom
The Pump – Students are the sources of their own
creative expressions
• Mattot, G. (1976). In Search of a Philosophical Context for
Teaching Composition. College Composition and
Communication, 27:1, 25-31

4. Common Practices
• Peer Review
• Students learn how to read and respond critically
• Strengthen their own writing
• Identify a larger audience rather than just the instructor
• Communicate constructive criticism
• Deeper level of engagement/responsibility

5. • Individual Conferences
• Allows for instructor to get a good sense of the student’s
ability to comprehend the course material
• Establishes a stronger bond between instructor and
student
• Similar to the peer-tutoring model
• Ensures students understand feedback

6. • Clarity
• Provide examples of assignments to ensure student
accuracy and set expectations
• Adopt rubrics that state the grading weight of elements
of the assignment
• Scaffold assignments and provide feedback throughout
the process to allow for revision

7. • Active Learning
• More of a student-centered pedagogy
• Fewer lapses in attention vs. lecturing
• New level of engagement when students have responsibility
Examples:
Read, Pair, Share
Question and Answer
Free write Response
Roundtable
Problem-Solution
Teacher-Student Reversal

8. • Engaging Atmosphere
• Utilize all forms of media to appeal to different learners
(auditory, visual, kinesthetic)
• Demonstrate excitement about the course material
• Relate to students: “When teachers are willing to share
small characteristics of themselves, their students found
them to be approachable and motivating…among the
64% of faculty considered to be effective communicators,
100% were shown disclosing small facets of their
personal life in the classroom” (Ginsberg, 2014).

9. Approaching classes
and assignments
through a
pedagogical
perspective

10. What is the goal of
instruction?
• Awareness?
• Improvement?
• Mastery?

11. What is the best method
of instruction?
• What cognitive strategy will work best in teaching a
particular skill?
• Writing academic prose works best if approached over
time
• Punctuation can be transmitted through rules
• How to structure a particular essay can be provided
through analyzing examples of successfully written
essays

12. What is the best Mode of
Instruction?
• Peer Review
• Lecture
• Discussion
• Conferences

13. Final thought
• “In the end, ‘best practice’ is whatever helps students
to engage more deeply with the subject and to become
more actively responsible for their own learning”
(Entwistle, 2008).

14. References
• Bean, John C. (2001). Engaging Ideas: The Professor's Guide to Integrating Writing,
Critical Thinking, and Active Learning in the Classroom. San Francisco: Jossey-
Bass.
• Bunce, D. M., Flens, E A., & Neiles, K. Y. (2010). How long can students pay
attention in class? A study of student attention decline using clickers.
Journal of Chemical Education, 87, 1438-1443.
• Entwistle, T. (2008) Teaching and Learning Research in Higher Education.
International Symposium, Ontario, Canada.
• Ginsberg, S. Ed. D. (2014). Faculty Self-Disclosures in the College Classroom.
Effective Strategies for Improving College Teaching and Learning. Magna, 4.
• Mattot, G. (1976). In Search of a Philosophical Context for Teaching
Composition. College Composition and Communication, 27:1, 25-31
• Shaughnessy, M. (1977). Errors & Expectations. New York: Oxford University
Press.