No faculty member sets out to be a bad teacher—at least I hope not—but there are bad (or ineffective) teachers. I’m sure some of these faculty see teaching as an obligatory chore or are indifferent to whether students learn. Then there are those who want students to learn but have not yet figured out how to teach effectively. One root cause of ineffective teaching for all these groups may be faulty beliefs about teaching and learning. Normally, we focus on what the most effective teachers think and do, but it is equally important to identify and avoid harmful beliefs that undermine teaching success.
Hativa (2001) documented some common beliefs among ineffective teachers. These are teachers who regularly get poor student evaluations. Hativa compiled this set of detrimental beliefs from both a literature review and her own experience working with faculty. I list and discuss them below. I’ve quoted the beliefs from Hativa (2001, pp. 67–70), but the discussion is my own.
- There’s nothing to be learned about teaching. Many college faculty hold a narrow view of teaching—specifically, that teaching is limited to presenting information for students to learn. They are unaware of or ignore the vast literature on factors that affect student learning (e.g., Chew & Cerbin, 2021). They have no interest in refining their course presentations or learning about innovative approaches to teaching. They don’t see the point of professional development or campus teaching and learning centers. This belief is convenient for faculty who see teaching as a chore and want to spend minimal effort doing it.
- I do the teaching, but it’s not my responsibility whether or not students understand and learn. The idea here is that teachers and students have separate, independent responsibilities. The teacher’s responsibility is to present accurate information in a clear and organized way; the students’ is to learn regardless of how the class is taught. Presumably, students learn according to their ability and motivation. There is nothing the teacher can or should do to promote learning. The research, however, indicates that the characteristics and actions of teachers have a major influence on student motivation and learning (e.g., Jansen et al., 2022). Students will use deeper learning strategies if they believe the material is relevant to their personal goals. Their motivation to learn varies according to how much they trust the instructor and how meaningful and important they perceive the content to be.
- I maintain my integrity and would not lower/sell myself by decreasing the level of teaching, as some of my colleagues do, to gain popularity or high students’ ratings. Virtually everyone exhibits what is known as self-serving bias. They take credit for successes but explain away failures. The belief stated above is self-serving bias applied to teaching. If students learn, it is because I’m a good teacher. If students don’t learn, it’s because they are lazy or ill prepared. It’s the fault of the admissions office for not recruiting strong enough students, high school teachers for not adequately preparing students for college, or parents who are too indulgent and overprotective. If my colleagues get higher ratings, it is because they have lower standards than me or prioritize being popular with students. These teachers fail to distinguish between making it easier to make high grades, which is grade inflation, with making it easier for students to learn, which is skilled, effective teaching. Self-serving bias allows people to maintain a strong ego in the face of failure, but it also blinds them to steps they could take to improve.
- Students do not have the tools to fully appreciate my teaching at present. However, in future years, when they become professionals and look back, they will realize how much knowledge and understanding they gained from my course. Think back to a teacher in college or high school that you really didn’t like. Has your opinion of them improved over the years? The research says that’s unlikely. Several studies have found that stud