Countdown for teaching excellence

One week from now, Roosevelt Academy (RA) will launch its second
New RA dean Dr. Barbara Oomen is looking forward to hosting thisevent. “I expect it to be as inspiring a course as it was lastyear, with lots of room for recent insights on what makes forstudent learning, but also for the exchange of experiences betweendedicated teachers,” she commented in her
Continuous feedback in minimal amounts
Leading up to the workshop, ScienceGuide talked to Dr. CorZonneveld. Zonneveld teaches biology at the Amsterdam UniversityCollege and attended last year’s practicum. The key thing he learntabout was the importance of good communication between students andteachers.
“I know you may think that this sounds pretty obvious, but thedevil is in the details! A key question for me as a teacher is: Howdo you efficiently open communication channels? I realized that itis crucial to continuously engage with my students. This means thatI invite them to give me frequent feedback, even in minimalamounts,” Zonneveld argued.
Teachers as learning facilitators
“I do things very differently now. I ask my students forfeedback on a weekly basis, instead of waiting for them to fill insome questionnaire at the end of the course. Here at the AUC, Idiscussed this with my colleagues as well. Designing your course asa platform for open learning and communication is challenging, buta very useful approach.”
With an eye towards next year’s
This week, ScienceGuide will publish a series of articles onthe Roosevelt Academy’s workshop on teaching excellence. Follow ourreports on this event via
To stay up-to-date with latest developments in teaching,click here.
