Page 290 - Crisis in Higher Education

Reshaping Faculty’s Role • 261

c. Evaluation: Each year prior to tenure, there is a detailed teaching
assessment directed by a master teacher. These evaluations are
considered in making the tenure decision.
3. Continuous improvement: Effective teaching requires an ongoing
effort to improve.
a. Faculty initiatives: Once tenure is granted, faculty act indepen-
dently in choosing how to improve. They make annual improve-
ment plans that are reviewed by department chairs.
b. Routine assessment: Regular evaluations ensure that problems are
identified. Poor performance triggers an investigation that leads to
a detailed improvement plan. Tenured faculty members, who are
unwilling to follow the plan and improve, are subject to dismissal.

12.1.2 Supporting Full-Time, Contractual Faculty
to Become Better Teachers

At the time of hiring, preparation of full-time, professional and instructional
faculty is likely to be uneven with some new hires having extensive teaching
experience while others have very little. Faculty with little or no experience
would follow a process that is similar to the one identified for tenured faculty.

1. Basic education and skills: Typically, contractual faculty members
have worked in the United States for many years, so they know
English and are good communicators. Universities should describe
the presentation, pedagogy, and assessment skills that contractual
faculty need, so individuals who might be interested could address
their deficiencies before they apply.
2. Apprenticeship: Contractual faculty would follow a similar process
to the one outlined for tenured faculty. During the hiring process,
they would make a teaching presentation, which would help to
define gaps in their teaching skill set. Master teachers would evalu-
ate their presentation, pedagogy, and assessment skills and prepare a
plan and support system to help them attain these skills. Once they
begin to teach, they would receive annual evaluations that guide
improvement efforts for a significant period of time, say five years.
3. Continuing improvement: After five years of full-time teaching, they
would shift to continuous improvement mode and follow the process
for tenured faculty described earlier, which includes faculty initia-
tives on improving teaching and routine assessments of performance.