Teaching Resources

The prospect of teaching a university-level class for the first time, especially as the instructor of record, can inspire exhilaration and panic in equal measure. At some point, you’re going to enter a room filled with adults who will look to you as a subject-matter authority. That realization might confer an element of cachet, but along with it, a huge responsibility. How will you find your voice as a new instructor? What will it take to earn your students’ respect and confidence? What if something—as it often does—goes awry?

While you can’t prepare for every classroom what-if, you can gradually acquire more confidence and resilience as a teaching assistant if you learn what to expect and how to troubleshoot issues. Peruse the sections below for helpful guidance about some of the key issues you may encounter as an instructor. 

Other resources you may want to check out:

• WMUx: How to prep for the semester, course design and activities, instructional guidance, and more 
• Office of Faculty Development: One-on-one appointments available to help you solve classroom dilemmas, strengthen your pedagogical skills, and obtain Elearning support
• National Center for Faculty Development and Diversity: An outstanding pedagogical resource featuring live webinars, multiweek courses, and a free newsletter 
• WMU Teaching Assistant Handbook: A stockpile of teaching advice and need-to-knows for new instructors 
• The Chronicle of Higher Education and Inside Higher Ed: Sign up for free newsletters from these reputable trade magazines, each featuring relatable articles about current trends and issues in college teaching
• College Teaching allows you to plug in search words and link to relevant journal articles through Waldo Library’s article linker
• Teaching in Higher Ed: Free faculty development podcast, weekly newsletter, and blog posts 
• Cult of Pedagogy: Another excellent podcast filled with teaching strategies, classroom management ideas, and news on educational technology 

And, as always, your advisors and mentors can provide you with additional support, answers, and reassurance if you have other questions or instructional dilemmas. 

Some departments provide a ready-made curriculum and predefined schedule for certain classes. You may only need to make minor adjustments to your Elearning course shell before you’re ready to focus on your syllabus and lesson plans. Alternatively, you could find yourself in the position of building a course up from its foundation, including defining the instructional goals and learning outcomes. In that situation, it helps to know you have a host of resources and people who can help you through this process. 

If you have questions or aren’t sure where to begin when designing your course, talk to former instructors of the class, especially faculty members, who can share their syllabi and provide ideas for assignments and classroom activities. You can also consult WMUx. This valuable WMU resource hub features an experienced team of instructional designers ready to work with you to help design a course that meets your learning outcomes, makes the most of Elearning tools, and allows you to develop a productive rapport with your students. 

WMU’s Functional Course Design Guide describes the four main course design phases: Ideation (establishing goals and anticipating challenges), Design (identifying needed skills/knowledge and creating a course plan and assessment process), Development (setting the schedule and modeling the course in Elearning), and Review (addressing the learner perspective and experience). 

It should be no surprise that the average length of a syllabus has grown in tandem with the use of the now-weary phrase, “It’s in the syllabus.” Often, students have reasonable cause to wonder, “Yes, but on which page?” One reason why the average course syllabus now runs five pages while some extend to 20 pages and beyond is that instructors have started viewing the syllabus as a binding contract. The thinking goes: If I don’t tack on every possible codicil, some situation will occur that will make me rue the omission.

A typical syllabus now often includes the “course policy statement,” another term that is sometimes conflated with the word “syllabus.” They each have distinct meanings, however. A course policy statement refers to the list of procedures governing classroom behavior, such as attendance and lateness policies, submission guidelines, plagiarism and grading policies, practices for civil discussions, and such. A syllabus, by contrast, refers to a description of the course and the assigned work.

Some faculty have started to buck the trend of bloated syllabi by opting for a shorter syllabus, an abridged version designed to convey just the essentials. Instead of printing a week-by-week (or day-by-day) course schedule in the syllabus, you could, for example, maintain your schedule in your Elearning course shell. One obvious advantage of this option is flexibility; you can update the schedule continually throughout the semester for those times when you run behind or want to jump ahead—or add on, change, or delete an assignment. To maintain this flexibility, it’s important to include phrases on the syllabus like “tentative” or “subject to change” so that students understand the “contract” is not a static document to which you could be held to the letter. Similarly, you could decide to keep your course and campus policy page in Elearning, where students are less likely to feel daunted by its heft. 

Whether you choose a comprehensive or condensed version, your syllabus is designed to serve three main functions. First, it invites students into your learning space and sets the tone for the semester. From there, it acts as a handy reference tool by providing your contact information, office hours, required materials, and a description (brief or otherwise) of the course content and goals. Finally, your syllabus furnishes expectations for the major assignments and how they’ll be graded. 

WMUx offers a Universal Design for Learning syllabus template that you can download and modify if you’re looking for a starting point. This Advice Guide from The Chronicle of Higher Education offers a comprehensive syllabus overview. Also on the WMUx page, you’ll find a video on building a syllabus and useful design tips. The Faculty Senate webpage contains an updated list as well of syllabus essentials and policy statements. 

You’ve probably heard the line, “You never get a second chance to make a first impression,” and this fact has particular relevance in the classroom. First impressions are vital to college instructors, says psychologist Sarah Rose Cavanagh, because they can shape how students feel about both you and your course for the entire semester (62-63). 

So, given those high stakes, how do you set yourself up for first-day success? It’s helpful to begin by trying to get a clear idea of what to expect:

• Visit your classroom ahead of time so you’re familiar with the layout.
• Understand the IT setup and make sure you have the needed plug-ins or converters. 
• Take your syllabus to the Writing Center or make an appointment at WMUx for reader feedback, questions, and suggestions.
• Print out your roster with photos and try to learn names and faces before the first class. 
• Decide in advance what you will wear to make a positive first impression.
• Create a detailed lesson plan (see below).
• Write and practice your opening welcome remarks. 

Consider your two main tasks as you think about what you will say: to introduce yourself as a competent, knowledgeable, and approachable instructor, and to pique your students’ curiosity about what they will be studying. You could accomplish both tasks in one shot by telling an engaging story about how you came to be standing in front of them. Which weighty questions drove you to pursue graduate study? In your experience, why does a knowledge of your discipline matter beyond the classroom? How will learning the course’s subject matter connect to and enrich other facets of their lives (as it has yours)?

After you’ve introduced yourself, it’s a good idea to encourage dialogue and promote your classroom as a reciprocal learning community. For example, you might ask students to pair up (or work in threes), introduce themselves, and work together on a course-related task or problem. You can find ice-breakers and pair-and-share ideas in “6 Ideas to Perk Up Your First Day of Class” (accessible through WMU’s site license) and this First Day of Class resource from WMUx. During those chatty, relaxed moments (including before and after class), try to make the rounds, greet, and get to know students individually.

James M. Lang, author of Inspiring Excellence in Education, advises waiting until later in the class period to pass out the syllabus. Once you’ve taken steps to build trust and create a welcoming, collaborative environment, then you can go over expectations such as assignments, required materials, and important dates and deadlines. If you included campus and course policies in Elearning, show students where to find the information and set aside time for questions.

The terms “assessment” and “grading,” while related and sometimes used interchangeably, are not the same. And it helps to understand the difference. 

Assessment has a broader meaning than grading because it describes the process of evaluating whether an entire cohort of students is achieving the learning outcomes for a particular course. A formative assessment measures student learning during instruction, and a summative assessment, as it sounds, measures student learning after instruction. You can discover more about assessments by visiting the “Assessment Toolkit” offered through WMU’s Office of Institutional Effectiveness.

Grading, by contrast, evaluates an individual student’s course performance and assigns a corresponding letter or point value. Grades are based primarily on the student’s ability to achieve the course learning outcomes, but they may factor in outside elements as well—such as attendance and participation. These elements likely influence a student’s ability to achieve the learning outcomes, but they’re not directly tied to the outcomes. 

As an instructor, you’ll be requested to submit both midterm (optional but recommended), and final grades for your class. Some departments also encourage submission of “first” or “early” work, which midterm grades ultimately replace. Neither early nor midterm grades show up on your students’ transcripts; rather, they’re simply used to provide them with an idea of how they’re doing. Thus, they give a needed nudge to those students who may not realize they have to focus more and work harder the rest of the semester. Relatedly, academic advisors use both early work and midterm grades to contact struggling students and help them regain their footing. Helping students achieve better grades also supports retention efforts, since those who do well are more likely to return to campus the following semester or year.

For more information on grades and how to submit them, visit the grading information page. 

A rubric will help your students understand how you will grade them on a given assignment and it will help you ensure the grades that you assign are consistent and fair. See this WMUx resource to learn about the different types of rubrics you can use and how to compose and attach a rubric in Elearning. 

WMU is dedicated to a student-centered approach to learning. Our faculty and TAs strive to provide learning experiences that recognize and value the unique backgrounds, identities, and learning preferences of all students. This approach, sometimes referred to as “inclusive pedagogy” or “meeting students where they are,” involves the use of Universal Design to create syllabi and assignments that are accessible and meaningful to all. Activities in an inclusive classroom focus on collaborative learning strategies to enable students to learn from one another, then follow up these activities with reflective practices to assess and recalibrate lesson plans as needed. 

Visit the online WMUx module, “Creating Accessible and Inclusive Learning Experiences,” to learn more about this pedagogical approach, including information on backward design, authentic assessment, and cooperative learning strategies. 

Developing a respectful class atmosphere can prevent difficult situations from cropping up in the first place, but it can’t eliminate every possibility. What do you do when a student nods off during your PowerPoint? Or when someone shows up late and then disappears mid-class? How do you manage the discussion monopolizer? Or the student who challenges your authority and knowledge about a topic? Each of these situations, left unchecked, has the capacity not only to ruffle you as the instructor but also to disrupt an otherwise productive learning environment. It’s helpful to have coping strategies ready. 

• Practice empathy. You were once an undergrad, too, and can remember the challenges you faced. Many students grapple with pressures we can’t see or know—family issues, mental exhaustion, peer conflicts, relationship troubles, job stress, and excessive time commitments. Keeping these challenges in mind can help you approach a trying situation with patience and understanding. 
• Stay calm. When you first notice a student engaging in inappropriate behavior, it’s natural to feel uncomfortable or even annoyed. If you show those emotions, however, the situation could only escalate. Instead, pause, take a long breath, and try to keep your nerves in check before you respond. 
• Don’t ignore the behavior.Based on the circumstances, you may want to address the problem during class as it’s occurring or ask the student to meet with you after class. Your goal is to restore a respectful environment for the remainder of the class (and future classes). If you avoid addressing the problem, there’s a good chance it will continue and may even spread.   
• Show active listening skills. Focus on what the student is saying and repeat what you’ve heard before you respond. For example, “I understand you’re swamped with finals and would like the due date extended …”
• Avoid arguing. A back-and-forth exchange on the same point can make some students dig in and become more resistant. Instead, try to approach the issue from a different angle: “I realize you aren’t happy with your midterm exam grade. Let’s look at the remaining work for the semester and see how you can bring up your overall course grade before the final.” Validating a students’ feelings while trying to get them to see your point of view can be a productive way to move forward.
• Seek guidance as needed. If you’re not sure how to handle a particular situation, you may want to check with a mentor or your advisor. The Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities can also assist you in working through issues related to student conduct.

This helpful guide for Classroom Management addresses many specific situations you may face, as does this resource compiled by WMU’s Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities. The staff at WMUx can also meet with you one-on-one for consultations, either virtually or in person at their Ellsworth Hall offices.

If one of your students starts behaving uncharacteristically—perhaps by acting up or becoming withdrawn, missing classes and deadlines, or making inappropriate comments—take action. If you wait for the situation to resolve on its own, the behavior may only escalate. The student could be in real distress and in need of help, and you can provide it. 

This guide offers suggestions about how to talk to a student you’re concerned about. If the student does not respond to your efforts, complete and submit this Student Concern Form (intended for nonacademic concerns only) and a staff member will follow up. 

Artificial Intelligence (AI) keeps evolving at such a frenetic pace it feels dizzying to try to grasp what it’s capable of at any given moment. The prospect of continually modifying your teaching practices in response to those changes can seem like an overwhelming if not impossible task. Yet, when it comes down to it, that is our mission. 

The good news is that you have expert help available: WMUx educators who have synthesized what you need to know. Visit the five-step Quick Start AI Guide, which covers an overview of generative AI, bias concerns, syllabus (course policy) statements, citation guides, and classroom issues and strategies. 

The Instructional Technology Center at WMUx has created a series of guides to help you get to know Elearning and how it can help you in the classroom. On the bottom of this page, you’ll also find online Elearning workshops conducted by WMUx staff, covering topics like discussions, quizzes, grading, and more. 

Not sure where begin in building your next lesson plan? Try taking the process step by step:

• Consider the learning objectives.What is the topic for the day? What are the key ideas and skills that you want your students to understand and learn? Can you realistically cover them all in one class? If not, what could you skip or save for another class?
• Create a hook (or two). Recognizing that your class comes from varying backgrounds and experiences, you might want to begin with a raise-your-hand poll (or other device) to see who’s already familiar with the topic. Then, plan how you’ll introduce the lesson based on their possible answers. Try to come up with an interesting hook, such as a recent example from the news, a philosophical question, a hypothetical dilemma, or a personal anecdote.
• Develop a set of learning activities.You might, for example, begin with a short lecture followed by individual and/or group activities and a class discussion. This WMUx resource offers a veritable catalog of ideas about inclusive activities and engaging learning experiences. Estimate how long each activity will take and what time you’ll need to finish. 
• Assess. Now, how can you check to make sure your students have absorbed the material? Revisit your learning objectives and think of some questions you might ask to check their level of understanding. Will you ask them to write their answers or respond in class?
• Plan your wrap-up. Think about how you want to summarize what you’ve covered, and develop a short preview of what you plan to cover in the next class. How will one concept or set of ideas segue smoothly to the next?

Next to each activity on your lesson plan, write a note that indicates what time you expect to finish up. If you’re running behind, you can decide which activities and plans you’ll need to curtail. 

Keep in mind: you do not need to approach this planning process alone! If you’re not sure which activities to choose, how long they’ll take, or how to gauge whether they’re effective, talk to your mentor or contact WMUx and request an appointment with one of the teaching experts. 

No matter how well-planned your lesson or thoughtfully prepared your questions are, sometimes a discussion just flops. Students stare vacantly at you or down at the floor, waiting for someone to crack the silence and end the collective class misery. Most new instructors have endured at least one painful experience like this and in the process, learned new strategies to prevent a repeat occurrence. 

The Chronicle of Higher Education has issued an Advice Guide to help instructors learn why discussions sometimes fail and how they can adapt their teaching practices to promote more engaged discussions in the future. The guide recognizes two social norms—“civil attention” and “consolidation of responsibility”—that can drag down both the quality and quantity of student responses in class. Civil attention describes those times when students only make it appear as if they’re listening, and consolidation of responsibility refers to the common situation when only a handful of students feel the need to participate. The guide outlines seven strategies for disrupting these conversation killers.

 A few other resources to help you perk up class discussions:

• Student Engagement Techniques: a Handbook for College Faculty (2009), by Elizabeth F. Markley and Claire Howell Major. The full text of this idea-laden book is available online through Waldo Library. 
• “Creating More Engaged Class Discussions” (2021), by John J. Silvestro. 
• “The ‘Holy Grail’ of Class Discussion” (2018), by David Gobbler.

If you dutifully report for your Tuesday office hours and, after two hours, nobody has shown up, you can safely conclude two things: your situation is not unusual, and you may need to change your strategy if it continues. Professors have long lamented how few students take advantage of their office hours for valuable one-on-one or small-group assistance and advice. Some have tried different methods to encourage more office-hours visitors and discovered success. You can, too, if you’re willing to experiment. 

The term “office hours” itself carries an element of businesslike gravity that students can find off-putting. You might try rebranding that time as something more informal and friendly to the ear, like “visiting hours,” “drop-in Tuesdays,” or “Wednesday workshops.” Then, remind students often that you will be available at those times and that you’re eager to talk to them about whatever they want to talk about. 

You could also consider rebranding your office hours as drop-in tutoring. One instructor tried offering tutoring hours in addition to office hours, and she found twice as many students attended the tutoring hours as her office hours—even though students in both sessions came for the same type of help (e.g., to ask about the course material or seek exam prep assistance). 

Another variation involves holding your office hours in a communal campus space like a café where you and your students can chat over coffee. Public-space office hours can also help encourage groups of students to form regular gatherings where they can support each other in their scholarly pursuits as well as solicit help from you. 

It may take some trial and error to develop a cohort who regularly visit your office-hours, but the compensation it offers will justify your efforts. Research shows that increased face-to-face contact delivers benefits to both instructors and students by promoting active mentorship and thus increasing retention, helping students build self-advocacy skills, and encouraging underrepresented students to engage more. 

The prospect of a faculty member sitting among your students, watching you and evaluating your performance can feel unsettling, if not outright alarming. But it’s an unavoidable rite of passage for new (and sometimes experienced) graduate teaching assistants. (Faculty members feel the same way when they have a teaching observation.) Fortunately, you can take proactive steps to manage your anxiety and ensure that your observation day goes smoothly. 

The Chronicle of Higher Education offers four suggestions to help instructors prepare for a faculty member’s classroom visit: 

• Establish a clear structure. Pre-plan what you will say at the beginning of class. For example, you might want to give a brief review of what you discussed during the last class and then segue into the day’s activities. Consider writing a brief agenda on the board to show you’re well-organized and thoughtful in how you approach teaching your class. Finally, write a detailed plan for how the class will wrap up—perhaps by giving a brief talk with concluding points or conducting a closing activity. 
• Arrange a mix of passive and active learning. This agenda could include a blend of lecture, discussions, and class activities. During the discussion, try to encourage contributions from a range of students. 
• Organize and quality-check your AV materials. Make sure your slides appear streamlined and clear, with relevant graphics. Did you proof your handouts?
• Read the room. Do the students appear comfortable and chatty with one another? Do they ask questions of you freely? Do you consistently address your students by their first names and allow time to visit with them before and after class? What could you do to create a more open and genial environment?

For more information and one-on-one help in preparing for an observation day, talk to your mentor or consider making an appointment with the teaching specialists at WMUx. 

Barkley, Elizabeth F., and Claire H. Major. Student Engagement Techniques : A Handbook for College Faculty, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2020. ProQuest Ebook Central, https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/wmichlib-ebooks/detail.action?docID=6173675.

Boysen, Guy A. et al. “Disliking Students: The Experiences and Perspectives of College Teachers.” College Teaching, Vol. 70, No. 1, 2022,             https://doi.org/10.1080/87567555.2021.1882374.

Carroll, Rita Cola. “Quick Fix: Reinventing Virtual Office Hours: Is It All in a Name?” College Teaching, 29 Aug. 2024, https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/87567555.2024.2397370.

Cavanagh, Sarah Rose. The Spark of Learning: Energizing the College Classroom with the Science of Emotion. First ed., West Virginia UP, 2016.

Darby, Flower. “We Still Think Online Teaching Isn’t Real Teaching.” The Chronicle of Higher Education, 9 Feb. 2024, https://www.chronicle.com/article/we-still-think-online-teaching-isnt-real-teaching.

Deans, Tom. “Yes, Your Syllabus Is Way Too Long.” The Chronicle of Higher Education, 20 Jan. 2019, https://www.chronicle.com/article/yes-your-syllabus-is-way-too-long/.

Glynn-Adey, Parker. “Public Space Office Hours.” College Teaching, 6 Nov. 2020, https://doi.org/10.1080/87567555.2020.1845599.

Gobbler, David. “The ‘Holy Grail’ of Class Discussion.” The Chronicle of Higher Education, 5 Nov. 2018, https://www.chronicle.com/article/the-holy-grail-of-class-discussion/.

Howard, Jay. “How to Hold a Better Class Discussion: Advice Guide.” The Chronicle of Higher Education, https://www.chronicle.com/article/how-to-hold-a-better-class-discussion/?sra=true.

Hughes, B. et al. (2010). “Using Case Studies to Help Faculty Navigate Difficult Classroom Moments.” College Teaching, 59(1), pp. 7–12, https://doi.org/10.1080/87567555.2010.489076.

Jackson, Lydia Eckstein and Aimee Knupsky.  “‘Weaning off of Email’: Encouraging Students to Use Office Hours over Email to Contact Professors.” College Teaching, 63(4), 183–184. https://doi.org/10.1080/87567555.2015.1052724.

Lang, James M. “How to Teach a Good First Day of Class: Advice Guide.” The Chronicle of Higher Education, 4 Jan. 2019, https://www.chronicle.com/article/how-to-teach-a-good-first-day-of-class/.

Lang, James M. “Small Changes in Teaching: The First 5 Minutes of Class.” The Chronicle of Higher Education, 11 Jan. 2016, https://www.chronicle.com/article/small-changes-in-teaching-the-first-5-minutes-of-class/.

Lang, James M. and Kristi Rudenga. “They’re watching you teach: How to put your best foot forward in a classroom observation.” The Chronicle of Higher Education, 31 Jan. 2025, https://www.chronicle.com/article/theyre-watching-you-teach.

Matejka, Ken and Lance B. Kurke. “Designing a Great Syllabus.” College Teaching, Vol. 42, Iss. 3, pp. 115-17, 9 Jul. 2010, https://doi.org/10.1080/87567555.1994.9926838.

Rudenga, Kristi. “6 Ideas to Perk Up Your First Day of Class.” The Chronicle of Higher Education, 5 Aug. 2024, https://www.chronicle.com/article/6-ideas-to-perk-up-your-first-day-of-class.

Silvestro, John J. “Creating More Engaged Class Discussions.” Inside Higher Ed, 17 Aug. 2021, https://www.insidehighered.com/advice/2021/08/18/two-strategies-making-classroom-discussions-more-engaging-opinion.

“Syllabus Components.” The Derek Bok Center for Teaching and Learning. Harvard University, 2025, https://bokcenter.harvard.edu/syllabus-design.