Geeky Pedagogy: A Guide for Intellectuals, Introverts, and Nerds Who Want to Be Effective Teachers (Teaching and Learning in Higher Education)

by Jessamyn Neuhaus

There are entire libraries of research about learning, and if we want to be effective teachers, we should know some of the basics. A good starting place is the seven “learning principles” identified by pedagogical researchers in the influential book How Learning Works: • Students’ prior knowledge can help or hinder learning. • How students organize knowledge influences how they learn and apply what they know. • Students’ motivation determines, directs, and sustains what they do learn. • To develop mastery, students must acquire component skills, practice integrating them, and know when to apply what they’ve learned. • Goal-directed practice coupled with targeted feedback enhances the quality of students’ learning. • Students’ level of development interacts with course climate to impact learning. • To become self-directed learners, students must learn to monitor and adjust their approaches to learning.29