New book addresses teaching large classes
- By Wits University
A conundrum faced by many academics, teaching large classes is often a daunting, but unavoidable prospect in education.
The idea of teaching in large classes is often met with apprehension and resistance. Such learning environments are indeed difficult and pose many challenges for both students and lecturers alike.
Enter a new book edited by Wits academics Dr David J. Hornsby, Professor Ruksana Osman, and Dr Jacqueline De Matos-Ala, entitled Large-Class Pedagogy: Interdisciplinary perspectives for quality higher education. Osman is the Dean of the Wits Faculty of Humanities and Hornsby and De Matos-Ala are both senior lecturers in the Department of International Relations.
The book launch takes place on Thursday, 10 October 2013 at 17h00 in The Atrium, South West Engineering Building, Braamfontein Campus East. Media is welcome to attend. RSVP to anna.veileroglou@wits.ac.za on (011) 717-1195.
Springing from a symposium in November 2011 on teaching large classes, the authors conceptualised this book “mostly for academics teaching large classes, policy makers, and those who are interested in higher education as a developmental tool”.
“The biggest challenge today is how you engage with students and get them to become active learners in a context which reinforces you to just stand and teach. We address the conceptual issues, we look at the value of the lecture and whether or not the lecture is relevant in the learning process. We also consider technology, how we engage students in the classroom and how we can utilise technology to promote engagement,” says Hornsby.
This book considers these learning contexts and offers conceptual and practical considerations on how ensure quality higher education is preserved from a range of disciplinary backgrounds.