-- Ok I may be putting my head in a hornet's nest here, but I've been
bugged by something ever since Inkshed in Orillia.
When Russ Hunt was presenting his piece on Hypernews, I asked the
reasonable and intelligent question: "How does this fit in to your
lectures?" at which point Stan Straw piped in with "Oh lectures, well,
we haven't lectured since the 1970's" (delivered in perfect show tune
tenor of course). Feeling appropriately cowed, I was silenced (no
bloodshed, just inkshed).
Well, to set the record straight, I haven't lectured since the seventies
either. After all I was in highschool until 1980. But in the 1990's I
do lecture and I'm damn good at it. I have a great classroom rapport and
my students remember the lessons I teach because I make 'em memorable.
So, here is my question to you pedagogy gurus:
WHY NOT LECTURE?
(Man I wish e-mail let me use bigger fonts'n stuff)
I know some of the basic blague about students' lack of attentiveness
and so on, and Russ's point about no answers without questions is valid
in part, but have you considered that the anti-lecture pedagogy is just
a crummy lecturer's way of covering his weakness? So, give it to me
both barrels, and convince me that I shouldn't lecture. And while
you're at it, tell me how else I might handle a class of 200 engineers.
Hearing the buzz but not yet stung
Rob Irish
*************************************************
Dr. Robert Irish
Coordinator of Language Across the Curriculum
Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering
University of Toronto
e-mail: [log in to unmask]
*************************************************
