I find university students' recent lamentations about missing classroom teaching, caused by the shift to online teaching due to COVID-19, quite interesting. Most students dislike classroom teaching (more on that below), but suddenly they see great value in classroom teaching. Why the shift in … [Read more...] about Get Real: Most Students Hate Classroom Teaching
The Back Story – Eliminating Waste in Teaching
This is the back story to the book Eliminating Waste in Teaching. For more than 15 years I have been a dedicated student of the history of management. The particular years of interest are 1890 to the early 1930s, a time known as the Progressive Era. It was during this era that a new system of … [Read more...] about The Back Story – Eliminating Waste in Teaching
My Contributions to Lean
Below is a summary of my significant original contributions to the body of Lean knowledge as author or co-author. My primary focus has been Lean leadership and Lean management, as well as Lean in higher education, Lean in supply chain management, and the history of progressive management. It … [Read more...] about My Contributions to Lean
Why University Teaching Rarely Improves
In higher education, the job of a professor is well-defined. It consists of three things: teaching, research, and service to the university and one's profession. Teaching involves three tasks: preparation (of the course), execution (delivering the course), and follow-up (guiding students' work, … [Read more...] about Why University Teaching Rarely Improves
The Rewards of Teaching
I have been a professor for close to 20 years now, after having spent the previous 15 years in industry where I worked in engineering, manufacturing, and supply chain management. There are many positives associated with teaching that I would like to share with you, as well as a few … [Read more...] about The Rewards of Teaching
Maintain Academic Excellence?
A new president of a public university has these four goals*: Increase student enrollment Maintain academic excellence Expand community engagement Develop additional sources of funding Notice anything odd among the four goals? It should be Goal 2, "Maintain academic excellence." Goals 1, … [Read more...] about Maintain Academic Excellence?
Creative Graduation Ceremony
My father, Cesare Emiliani (Dott., Ph.D), was a long-time chair of the Geology department at the University of Miami in Coral Gables Florida. He was a creative, outgoing, and fun person who applied his gifts to how the department would graduate its students. It was a separate ceremony that took … [Read more...] about Creative Graduation Ceremony
The Toxic University
John Smyth, the author of The Toxic University, talks about his book in this interesting article: "Author discusses ideas in his new book, 'The Toxic University'" (IHE, 12 July 2017) My key takeaway is that those responsible for pricing tuition and fees bear full responsibility for the toxic … [Read more...] about The Toxic University
Excellence in Teaching
Excellence in teaching? Not quite. The results of the U.K.s 2017 Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) have been released. Click here to view the results of the Gold, Silver, and Bronze university awards (official government results are here). The purpose of TEF is to "...shin[e] a spotlight on … [Read more...] about Excellence in Teaching