First-generation college (FGC) students compose nearly a third of the total student population in most four-year higher education institutions in the United States. Yet they graduate in drastically lower rates than their non-first-generation peers. To understand how these students can persist with their college learning, faculty need to…

Practitioner inquiry methodology, applied in primary and secondary schools worldwide, provides a structure for systematic study of an instructor's own teaching practice in order to address a self-identified instructional dilemma. This methodology holds promise for improving teaching in higher education as well. In this dialogue, two faculty…

One college writing teacher's approach to teaching, characterized by reflection on the relationship between what she knows and what she does, is described. Techniques include structured assignments and specific suggestions for revision, cooperative learning, interest in individual students, and use of a personal journal for exploring problems and…

A discussion of concerns of gay and lesbian college students, based on interviews on one campus, focuses on these issues: understanding and articulating sexual identity; campus and classroom experiences; communication with faculty; and the effects of learning style, classroom content, and research on their lives. Recommendations are made for…

A white woman professor teaching a black theater history course describes her experiences in the classroom, including the realization of students' expectations of her, her own fears of miscommunicating, the perspectives expressed by students in their journals, differences in white and African American student responses to the same material, and…

The author argues that Total Quality Management (TQM), in its entirety, is inappropriate for college instruction because the organizational cultures of a college and a corporation differ. Additionally, in a classroom, student contributions are as important as the teacher's, and the student, as "customer," may not know what quality instruction is.…

The college student who participates in genuine collaboration with a faculty member in an intellectual endeavor transcends the barrier of power. Once it has been breached, other power lines will be less constraining. The experience transforms the nature of learning and constructs a lasting authority in the student. (MSE)

The ways in which teachers conceptualize their institutions and their students are interrelated and will control the process of learning. Teachers must assume a different metaphorical stance toward their students in order to facilitate their education. Two metaphorical roles are described. (MLW)

Discussion of student assessment at the college level looks at the relationship between grading and student learning and proposes an alternative system in which letter grades would be replaced with a two-part evaluation by the student and teacher. A practical compromise using letter grades is also outlined. (MSE)