Book Description: Laying the groundwork for a successful semester starts with the first day of class. Author Angela Provitera McGlynn tells that the first day is not the day to pass out a syllabus and let everyone go. Rather, it's the day to set the context for the rest of the semester.
The author stresses the need for developing an atmosphere of respect for diversity while simultaneously providing a safe and exciting place to explore differences.
Included are a whole variety of ice breakers and other exercises to keep students engaged and interacting. In addition, such vital issues as environment, motivation, and civility are addressed with suggestions for promoting positive interactions.
Took advice from the book and it worked Last night I taught my first-ever college class and used two of the several techniques from the book. Particularly, I used one of the name games to remember the students names, and after just one class I have every name committed to memory. I also used one of the student bonding excercies -- the "things in common" game -- and it actually worked too well. The class went from being distant to very wound-up, but it was all good.
Beneficial for new and seasoned professors alike Successful Beginnings is divided into seven chapters, the first six of which focus on one of the following themes: course organization, first-day "icebreakers" to help start the semester well, building a good rapport with students throughout the semester, encouraging student participation and interaction, dealing with misbehavior in the classroom, and keeping students motivated through the mid and end-of-semester "blahs". The final chapter summarizes the main points of each prior chapter. Given the variety of subjects and classroom dynamics that professors work with, McGlynn does an admirable job of offering a variety of suggestions on any given topic. That way, even if certain suggestions aren't very applicable to a given professor's situation, others are more likely to be. My guess is that chapters one and four will be most beneficial to all teachers regardless of their subject matter or classroom size.
Now, for a few of the shortcomings. First, although there is likely some merit to the section, "The Chilly Classroom Climate" in chapter three, I think she gets a bit too politically correct here. For better or worse, students and professors alike will always have their biases which will affect the learning environment. Fortunately, as McGlynn herself notes, the suggestions she gives are more about enhancing the learning environment for all students than they are about accommodating "outsider" groups. Also, some of the "get to know you" exercises in chapter two strike me as a bit goofy for certain classes. For example, if you're teaching a calculus or astronomy class, does it really matter that you find out who in the class likes chocolate, is Jewish, has a twin, was born outside the U.S., etc? Probably not. However, if one is teaching a sociology or social psychology class, this might be helpful. In short, the generality of the book is at the same time one of its main strengths and one of its (rather excusable) weaknesses.
Successful Beginnings for College Teaching is by no means the last word on how to be a good teacher, but I doubt the author ever intended it to be. On the other hand, it offers useful suggestions on a variety of relevant topics. As such, it makes a good primer for young professors and a good refresher (or maybe even a renovator) for "old pros".
Not just for beginnings, but for the middle & end, too! I was amazed at how much good advice McGlynn packed into such a short book! I read it in one sitting, and constantly found myself saying, "yes, that's right," or "ok, I'll try that." She not only describes techniques that work for creating a more active learning environment in the classroom, but also (implicitly) explains why they work. To be sure, this is not an "academic book" in the sense of being top heavy with citations and references.
Instead, it is a useful book, written in a very personal, easy-going style. I felt as if I were having a conversation with her, rather than being lectured to. And, of course, that's the kind of classroom she's helping you create, if you follow her advice.
Successful Beginnings means better learning I'm sorry that this book wasn't available when I first started teaching. This book is such a valuable resource and guide to making all the right moves in preparing for and meeting students for the first time. Faculty in colleges are often isolated, and practical issues are rarely discussed, so "Successful Beginnings" goes a long way to rectify that situation. There is such a nice balance between theory and practical suggestions that experienced faculty will also find this book immediately helpful. Most importantly, Professor McGlynn takes readers beyond the beginnngs of courses to proven methods of effective classroom teaching and course management. She has a wonderful section on concluding courses in meaningful ways, and I plan to use some of her techniques myself at the end of this semester. If I were an administrator at a college, I would make sure that I got this book into the hands of every new faculty member, full-time or adjunct!
A Fantastic book on teaching! I loved this book and felt so energized to get into my classroom and start using some of the wonderful techniques I learned from the book. McGlynn really knows her stuff and has clearly done some great research on how to get through to students. She shows how today's classrooms are different from those of 20 years ago or more when lecturing was the standard. She provides great information for breaking the ice the first day and then for ways to get the students to be active and engaged in class throughout the semester. Experienced and new teachers will get so much out of this book!
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