Interactive

Having now been charged with the holy task of lecturing, I have begun to realize that assembling content is quite time-consuming. It leaves little creative time to develop my presentation of the material, knowing that my “progress” as a professor is gauged on my teaching skills (not on my ability to recall the pKa of water…15.7). My formal training in teaching (as is the case for most science Ph.D.’s) is effectively nil, and, in all sincerity, I’m not complaining. I believe my peers recognize my struggles as a fledgling prof, which prompts many of them to invite me to watch them teach.

Recently, I had the opportunity to observe a history lecture, which is no doubt a far cry from the molecular orbital theory. But I rationalized that good teaching has intrinsic qualities that work in any class (regardless of the subject).

After taking some time to digest my observations, my wife was curious to know what I learned.

I thought for a moment. “Mexico’s Independence Day is September 16, not May 5.”

She giggled. “No, I meant about the teaching style.”

The professor had gone in many different directions, and I tried to narrow down what I liked the most. “I think enjoyed how the professor encouraged student interaction. I wish I could apply more of that in my classes.”

Chemistry isn’t exactly an interactive or (even) team sport. But why not try something different? An increasing number of disciplines are pushing detailed content back on the students while using lecture time to reinforce concepts, provide a birds-eye-view of course content, and engage the class through interactive exercises. Notice how I didn’t say “flip through slides” or “derive equations.”

What can be done about creating more interactive science lectures? Here’s an excellent article about delivering effective medical school lectures (published by the US Agency for International Development, c. 1996). The authors suggest beginning lectures with an open-ended question (to be answered at some point in the lecture), a video clip, or an exercise in “think-pair-share.”

Personally, I plan on visiting more classrooms and looking for new ideas that I can incorporate into my lectures.