Dee Fink’s Analysis of Ken Bain’s Book on “What the Best College Teachers Do”:

What Do They Do Differently?

Bain’s Definition of “Good Learning”: Learning that has a “sustained, substantial and positive influence on how those students think, act, and feel.” (p. 5) (Note: This is very similar to Fink’s Taxonomy of Significant Learning.)

Attitudes/Perspectives:Course Design Decisions: Interactions with Students:

  1. Intense desire to continuously learn about their subject and about teaching & learning
  • Rather than:
  • Lukewarm level of learning about their subject
  • No interest in learning about teaching/learning
  1. Attitude towards students
  • Trust
  • Never blame the students for problems
  • For example: don’t say “students today just aren’t…”, or “you have to force students to work hard.”
  1. Continuously evaluate own teaching
  • They close the loop in their evaluation, i.e., they use the feedback to change and improve what they do.
  • Rather than: quick glance at student evaluations, “How’d I do this time?”
  1. View their own teaching as an integral part of the larger context of the educational efforts of their institution & discipline.
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  1. Incorporate Big Questions & stories into structure and content of course
  1. Use 1st day of course in special way
  2. Formulate good learning goals
  • > Learn the content
  • Full range of Fink’s Taxonomy, p. 90
  1. Use good learning activities
  • Authentic tasks
  • Collaboration
  • Find sources of information
  • Reflective activities
  1. Adjust the course to deal effectively with students’ prior knowledge, prior learning patterns, students’ expectations of the course, etc.
  2. Use good assessment activities
  • Have students assess their own learning
  • Provide frequent, good feedback
  • Use rubrics to assess complex projects
  1. Integrate the course activities well
  • Connect out-of-class learning with in-class learning, p. 114
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  1. Teacher’s interactions show they CARE
  • about students, student learning, teaching-learning process,
  • about the subject of the course
  1. Interact in a way that motivates students
  2. Give praise in a way that motivates
  3. Listen well to the learners
  4. Motivate by interacting differently with different students
  5. Dynamic communication skills
  • Sense of drama, rhythm
  • Good use of language
  • Use language of “promises” > “demands”
  • Express belief in students’ ability to learn
  • Celebrate achievements
  • Use warm language
  1. Trustworthy: Power-Trust issues
  • Don’t use classroom to demonstrate power.
  • Build trust relationships
  • Give power to students to make decisions about their own learning
  • Interact fairly (same policies for all)