Daniel D. Pratt

Conceptions of Teaching

From interviews of 253 adults and teachers of adults in Canada, the Peoples Republic of China, Hong Kong, Singapore, and the United States, five conceptions of teaching emerged: Engineering–Delivering Content; Apprenticeship–Modeling Ways of Being; Developmental–Cultivating the Intellect; Nurturing–Facilitating Personal Agency; and, Social Reform–Seeking a Better Society. Variation amongst conceptions was examined in relation to three interdependent aspects of each conception: actions, intentions, and beliefs related to one or more of five elements and the relationship amongst those elements: teacher, learner, content, context, and/or an ideal vision for society. Findings have implications for cross-cultural work, the evaluation of teaching, and the development of teachers.

Chinese conceptions of learning and teaching: a westerner's attempt at understanding

Four qualitatively different conceptions of learning and three of teaching are presented as the findings of this study. Learning was understood as (l)the acquisition of knowledge or skill from others, (2)a fulfilment of responsibility to society, (3) a change in understanding of something external to self, and (4) a change in understanding ones self. Teaching was understood as (1) the delivery of content; (2) the development of character; and (3) a type of relationship. It is argued that some of these conceptions are compatible with, and possibly derivative of, cultural, social, political and economic factors within China.

Reconceptualizing the evaluation of teaching in higher education

Trends within higher education in the United States and Canadasuggest that, although there are calls for recognition of teaching as ascholarly activity, teaching is not perceived to be a significant aspect ofscholarly work. Furthermore, policies, procedures, and criteria for theevaluation of teaching in higher education contribute to the marginalizationof teaching within the reward structures of universities and colleges.Evaluation policies, procedures, and criteria tend to (1) emphasizetechnical, rather than substantive aspects of teaching, (2) focus on processrather than outcomes, (3) lack strategic concern for the use of evaluationdata within the institution, and (4) are devoid of the very substancethrough which academics derive a sense of identity – their discipline.Recommendations are offered for evaluating three aspects of teaching:planning, implementation, and results. Within each aspect, conceptualarguments and practical solutions are suggested for establishing criteria,deciding on sources of data, and determining the nature of data that must begathered. The goal is to set in place evaluation policies, procedures, andcriteria that will be perceived as rigorous and credible alongside moretraditional forms of scholarship, while respecting the diversity of contextsand disciplinary identities within universities and colleges. Sevenprinciples for evaluation of teaching are proposed.

Conceptions of self within China and the United States : contrasting foundations for adult education

Abstract Cultural, social, political, and psychological influences are shown to result in different conceptions of self within China and the United States. The Chinese construction of self emphasizes continuity of family, societal roles, the supremacy of hierarchical relationships, compliance with authority, and the maintenance of stability. Identity is, largely, externally ascribed, subordinated to the collective, and seeks fulfillment through performance of duty, ordained roles, and patterns of filial loyalty. Within the United States the individual is recognized as the starting point for construing the social order, and the self is considered a psychological construct as much as an artifact of cultural, social, and political influences. These differences are shown to provide different foundations for thinking about the provision of education for adults.

Educational Contracts: A Basis for Effective Clinical Teaching.

An educational contract is a negotiated agreement between a teacher and a learner. It addresses four elements: needs, expectations, roles, and content. Contracts should develop and evolve via explicit negotiation between the teacher and the learner. Research to validate the concept of the educational contract and to document its utility is important to understanding effective clinical teaching.

Student perceptions of assessment and feedback in longitudinal integrated clerkships

Objectives  This study was conducted to elucidate how the learning environment and the student–preceptor relationship influence student experiences of being assessed and receiving feedback on performance. Thus, we examined how long‐term clinical clerkship placements influence students’ experiences of and views about assessment and feedback.

An update on master's degrees in medical education

Planning and implementing educational programs in medicine optimally requires a background in educational theory and practice. An avenue of training open to such practitioners is a masters degree in medical education. A single 1998 report lists the programs known at that time and information about them remains scarce. The authors have re-examined all current programs offering masters degrees in medical or health sciences education in the English-speaking world, including the Netherlands. The authors contacted the programs identified in the 1998 report to establish how many were still in operation. The search was extended using Pubmed and other search engines. A further verification targeted a selected sample of 10 prominent US medical schools. Twenty-one currently operating programs were identified: six in the US, eight in the UK, three in Canada, three in Australia and one in Holland. Seven of nine original masters programs were still in existence. URLs, website and other logistical information about each program are tabled. A masters degree in medical or health sciences education is the most specific method for medical faculty to obtain a credentialed grounding in educational theory and practice. The authors provide up-to-date contact information for current programs and summarize other related essential logistical data.

The Teaching Perspectives Inventory at 10 Years and 100,000 Respondents: Reliability and Validity of a Teacher Self-Report Inventory.

The Teaching Perspectives Inventory (TPI) measures teachers’ profiles on five contrasting views of what it means “to teach.” The inventory can be used in aiding self-reflection, developing statements of teaching philosophy, engendering conversations about teaching, and recognizing legitimate variations on excellence in teaching. Available at www.TeachingPerspectives.com, the TPI is a free, self-report, self-scoring inventory that promotes a pluralistic understanding of teaching and equips respondents with a more explicit vocabulary for reflecting on their own teaching and that of others. Ten years of accumulated responses for more than 100,000 respondents in more than 100 countries has provided a rich data bank for analysis of the instrument’s reliability, validity, and utility in promoting conversations about teaching that are respectful of disciplinary and professional signature pedagogies as well as cultural and social variations on how teaching is understood and valued.

Do spouses know how much fatigue, pain, and physical limitation their partners with rheumatoid arthritis experience? Implications for social support†

To determine whether perceptions of clinical manifestations (fatigue, pain, and physical limitation) of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) differ between spouses and their partners with RA, and to determine whether the differences are associated with the perception of beneficial and problematic spousal social support.

Orthopaedic surgeons as educators. Applying the principles of adult education to teaching orthopaedic residents.

Teaching residents the knowledge, skills, and ethical values of orthopaedic surgery is critical to our profession. Currently, the standards for orthopaedic residency training are set by the Orthopaedic Residency Review Committee (RRC) of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education and the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery. However, the means by which those standards are to be achieved is largely left up to individual residency programs. This article considers how we might improve the quality and effectiveness of orthopaedic education if we apply to residency programs the core principles of adult education. These core principles form the central theme of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) Course for Orthopaedic Educators, the first course among all medical specialties to be devoted entirely to education and the longest-running continuing medical education course offered by the AAOS. This article reviews the critical elements involved in educating orthopaedic residents, applying the core educational principles established by the Course for Orthopaedic Educators. We suggest that if orthopaedic educators understand the educational process and the principles that underlie it, they will be able to improve the quality and effectiveness of residency education and thus ultimately improve the profession. This article presents eight core principles of adult education and outlines how they can be applied by orthopaedic educators—both by program planners and by physician-teachers. Cognitive psychologists and educational scholars have generated a large body of peer-reviewed research on effective techniques of adult education1-3. This research established a set of core educational principles (Table I) that can be used by orthopaedic educators to improve resident learning. The eight core principles presented here are not the only ones that might be applied to medical education. However, they are featured in the AAOS Course for Orthopaedic Educators because they capture key themes in current research …