Enhancing the Quality and Relevance of Higher Education through Effective Teaching Practices and Instructors’ Characteristics

Birhanu Moges Alemu

doi:10.13189/ujer.2014.020906

Abstract

The five key behaviours for effective teaching are: lesson clarity, instructional variety, and instructor task orientation, engagement in the learning process and student success rate. This study examines the reflections of university students and instructors regarding the implementation of effective teaching practices and instructors' characteristics in engineering education. Data gathered from two groups (engineering students & instructors) interviews were developed and 25 item Likert scale questionnaires were completed by a sample of 69 students and 64 instructors. Means, ranking, and standard deviation followed by other analyses indicated that there was a high degree of similarity between students and instructors with respect to the perceived attributes of effective and ineffective teaching. It appears that the effective instructors are the mirror image of the ineffective by being imbued with a generous dose of personality traits in addition to skills. Both instructors and students in this research conducted in the selected universities of Ethiopia depicted the effective/excellent university instructor as someone who: (1) is respectful, (2) makes classes interesting, (3) is fair in evaluating, (4) cares about students' success, (5) shows a love for their subject, (6) is friendly, (7) encourages questions and discussion, (8) is always well prepared and organized, and (9) makes difficult subjects easy to learn. Findings of students' and instructors' perspectives suggest that effective teaching is the blending of both personality and ability factors. The key factor, however, remains the instructors' personality.

Highlights

Effective teaching is an art and no easy endeavour
Research question one: What are the predominant characteristics used by the study participants to describe effective teaching? Since the questionnaire items were categorized under two separate categories of effective teaching characteristics, the results from the questionnaire are presented in two different Tables (1 and 2) and was addressed in separate sub-sections
According to these study participants, both skills and affective factors are necessary virtues to paint a portrait of the effective university instructor

Summary

Introduction

Effective teaching is an art and no easy endeavour. Recent findings shed light on two characteristics of effective instructor: their personality and their ability. An effective university level instructor is one who demonstrates “... The need for this study arises from a professional desire to better serve students and communities It has been researcher observation while working with different levels of students at different institutes in the high schools, teacher training institutions, college and university that some instructors interface very well with their students and are highly successful in contributing to their profession, while others appear to have difficulties in the classroom from the initial contact with students. The main intent of this study was to analysis implementation of effective teaching practices and instructors’ characteristics in engineering education at selected universities, Ethiopia. 2. To what extent are student perceptions of effective teaching similar to those of instructors? To what extent do mediating factors such as academic discipline and participants’ gender have an effect on the portrait of the effective/excellent instructor?

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusion