Customer Reviews

Teaching What You Don't Know

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What a pleasure it is to read Huston's work. Besides the accessible writing style and funny wit, I'm pleasantly shocked to learn my ignorance can actually help my students, as I can share "the fervor of the uninformed." But then there are concrete ways to compensate, like scheduling the syllabus to let me start from my strengths. It's also packed with concrete classroom methods like the three-way interview, where students make connections between content and their personal experience. But even more important, the whole book is undergirded by solid research and principles. Like how most students learn not by hearing first about theory, but by first experiencing some dramatic encounter--whether with facts, visuals or a "live" experience. From there, you weave in technical terms and theories and give them practice at using them in life. I'm recommending this book not only to all new faculty, but to anyone concerned about midcareer brownout or late career rustout. It's bound to prompt change--and joy!

This one of very few academic books that wasn't written so turgidly that I had to reread passages to understand them. In fact, the book is hard to put down. Huston has a delightful writing style. Take special note of Chapter 6, in which Huston describes the Millennial Generation in a balanced way and (gently) drives home the point that we academics are the oddballs, not our students. If you are teaching outside of your specialized areas, this book will calm your anxieties--Huston will point out the pedagogical advantages you hold over the seasoned expert--and give you intelligent strategies for tackling the task ahead.

Loved this book! I will be a new professor in the Fall, and I credit this book for calming my nerves and making me feel more confident about teaching. I now understand that I am not alone in my fears of teaching topics that are at the periphery of my expertise.

New professors, tenured professors, and department chairs should read this book.

It is a fast and fun read, and my copy is full of bookmarks for future reference!

I also just finished reading James Lang's book "On Course: A Week-by-Week Guide to Your First Semester of College Teaching", and of the two I really gained the most from reading Huston's book. Her book energized me. Lang's book made me want to go back and re-read Huston's book to re-energize. I think that this is because Huston seems truly sincere in writing the book to knock down walls and assuage the fears of almost every professor out there. GREAT BOOK!!

A must-read for anyone teaching what they don't know, what they used to know, or what they think they ought to know. The author assures us that if you find yourself in this predicament, you are far from alone! The practical tips, appealing examples, and witty, approachable style of the prose will leave you feeling like you've spent an hour at tea with a close mentor. Highly recommend!

I'm not currently a university professor, but am preparing a module for a week-long management training seminar for a corporate client. All the topics in the module are outside the usual MBA curriculum; no ready-made cases exist for any of them. I'd planned some 1- to 2-hour exercises for each class, but I was terrified that I'd wind up spending the remaining 4-6 hours a day lecturing. Terrified because not only would it be physical torture for me and a mental snore-fest for the participants, but because my own enthusiasm for the theorethcal aspects of the material would make über-lecturing an easy temptation. This book showed me at least a dozen different techniques for breaking up what would have been solid pedantry with short (5-20 minutes) exercises to engage students with the challenging material in the syllabus. It's far more readable than the usual book from a scholarly press, and far more substantive than the usual book in the "how-to" genre (or, for that matter, the usual book from sibling outlet Harvard Business Press). Much of the information is conveyed in exactly the sorts of anecdotes one would want to hear if asking a colleague for advice, but the author does also cite to a number of controlled experiments on teaching techniques, for the benefit of those who only believe statistics. (However, it would have been nice if HUP had allowed her to include a complete reference list, instead of forcing the reader to back-track through the footnotes to find a source.) A real confidence-builder, even if you're worried about presenting too much, rather than too little, to your class. -- PS (2011/07): I gave the seminar, using many tricks I learned from this book; it was very well-received. I'll be referring to it again when I start a university position next year.

This is an awesome, awesome book. I just fell in love with it & see my teaching style changing for the better because there will be no pressure to be the expert. I think all teaching assistants in colleges & universities should buy this book. New faculty members will definitely gain new perspectives from this book. This one is a keeper!!

Fred Rogers often said, "What is mentionable is more manageable". This is true for a child who feels angry, for a parent who is exhausted, and for a teacher who has to teach something he doesn't quite know well. The fact that "teaching what you don't know" is unmentionable is evident in our own experiences -- how many of us could remember a teacher, from kindergarten through graduate school, who opens a class with the admission, "I am about to teach you something I don't know very well."

Unlike many "how to teach" books who seems to pile guidelines and advice and checklists unto an already overwhelmed reader (teacher), Huston is a listener, a compassionate one at that! The tone and aim of her writing is one of understanding and empathy, while whatever suggestions she offer (from her own experience, from research, and from the many excellent and diverse sources she interviewed) are very "close to the ground". She avoids ideological or theoretical extremes, and treads a middle road that balances realism and idealism. She takes the "shame" out of teaching what one doesn't know (which all of us who teach, even in K-12, have done) and makes it possible for the reader to consider adopting a mindset as well as strategies that may ultimately enhance the teaching experience and foster a positive relationship with the students.

While the entire book carries the listening and compassionate disposition of the author, perhaps Chapter 6 "Teaching the students you don't know" is really a revelation of the source of such compassion -- caring for and respecting the students. As I read the very personal introductory story to the chapter, I thought that the entire chapter can expand into its own book.

In short, by gently presenting a framework and concrete ideas for both accepting the instructor himself and embracing the students, Huston made it possible to manage, and to even thrive in, what had been thus far unmentionable in teaching -- teaching what you don't know.

A worthwhile read for anyone who is teaching or plans to teach at any level, particularly in higher education.

Therese Huston has written one of the best books on teaching in higher education. She synthesizes diverse research to offer practical advice and to ask provocative questions. She also writes beautifully, making this an unusually thoughtful book that is a pleasure to read. My only quibble is that the title might lead some faculty to think this book is not for them. That's unfortunate because this book should be widely read by faculty. As Huston explains, many of us occasionally teach on the boundaries of our expertise, and all of us teach students who we don't fully know.

One of the most valuable resources on college teaching I have encountered. I picked up the book because after six years of teaching private and group piano lessons at the college level, I decided to teach a freshman seminar in education. I had no idea where to start, but this book, with its suggestions for course preparation, class activities, and assessment procedures, provided a clear path for me to follow. Mixing academic research with real-life experience, Dr. Huston's straightforward writing style makes it easy for teachers to apply her ideas in their classrooms. Her commitment to providing students with the most meaningful learning experiences possible is to be commended, and it shows on every page. This book is a must-read for college teachers. --Laura Amoriello, Westminster Choir College, The College of New Jersey

Therese Huston has sculpted a gift for every teacher in every discipline and field of study. Her profiles and case studies cover the complete continuum of experience, ranging from the first-term instructor to the most seasoned veteran.

I also found her book to be illuminating for approaching material we do know with a fresh perspective. Indeed, this material can be very helpful for teaching courses instructors have taught many times before, primarily because (as was once said of General Motors) "nothing fails like success." New findings, changes in the economic/political/social environment, and changing student demographics all reinforce the need to look at every teaching assignment with "beginner's mind" rather than as a comfortable veteran.

Therese Huston's book is an energizing experience that all teachers should read and discuss with colleagues.