Center for Teaching and Learning

"Award-winning Stanford professor of history Jim Campbell argues for the value of disciplinary training in the age of interdisciplinary programs. He uses Google Glass as a metaphor for the unique lens such training gives thinkers, the abilities needed to consider questions in the appropriate context. Campbell is introduced by Professor Emeritus Tom Ehrlich. Prof. James T. Campbell appeared May 8, 2014 as part of the Stanford Center for Teaching and Learning's longest-running lecture series, Award-Winning Teachers on Teaching, which invites faculty winners of Stanford's major teaching awards to deliver a lecture on a teaching topic of their choice."

Opportunities for students to be creative outside of arts classes are few. In Professor Hester Gelber's class, students engage with religious studies by creating their own short stories. They read science fiction and fantasy novels to explore our modern take on religion.

Stanford undergraduates are wonderfully smart and motivated. They are also often over-committed and time constrained. I’ll share some thoughts gleaned over the years for strategies to help engage such energetic, busy students in different aspects of learning, teaching, and research.

In teaching biology to undergraduates, I want them to discover the thrill of discovery. I'll talk about designing a large introductory research-based laboratory class that challenges students to create and share scientific knowledge.

Can your students learn what they need to know by just reading the book, or is there value added to also seeing the "movie"? Some thoughts on how I try to make it worthwhile for my students to actually attend my classes.

I’ll show how service learning course in health professions develop a student's deep understanding of the principles of effective and ethical public service.

A DVD of this lecture is available for the Stanford community to check out from the CTL Office.

A DVD of this lecture is available for the Stanford community to check out from the CTL office. (11/21/1996)

A DVD of this lecture is available at the CTL office for members of the Stanford Community. (11/18/1999)

Critical thinking skills, problem solving ability, effective communication, passion for a subject, leadership skills: Mentoring outside the class room provides unique opportunities to address these learning goals. I present some thoughts on what has worked for me. (11/1/2012)

In his 30+ years at Stanford, John Boothroyd has engaged in teaching at all levels - from undergrads to faculty-and in venues from the classroom to seminar room to lab. In this talk he'll synthesize the most important lessons he's learned about teaching in these many contexts, emphasizing the principles that are common to all.

A DVD of this lecture is available at the CTL Office for members of the Stanford community to check out. (4/13/2000)

Large lecture classes for beginning students are a fact of life. Their scale offers huge rewards, like watching a large group of people taking command of a new toolkit for thinking. It also offers (at least) three challenges: keeping students energized, drawing them into the stanford community and into the intellectual community associated with their major, and helping them command a new toolkit they will use in advanced classes. I discuss three keys to meeting these challenges, focusing particularly on the 21st - century students. (11/29/2012)

Whether in a lecture hall or on a ship in the middle of the ocean, Professor's Dunbar goal is to help students develop as interdisciplinary problem solvers. Integrating disciplines to expose new solution lies at the heart of interdisciplinary practice. He'll discuss how to develop this ability in students, as well as some of the rewards and unique challenges faced when helping students along this path.

Award-Winning Teachers on Teaching guest lecturer Professor Rob Reich, Political Science, speaks on the Socratic Method, what it is and how to use it in the classroom.

A DVD of this lecture is available for the Stanford community to check out from the CTL office. (11/7/1996)

A DVD of this lecture is available at the CTL office for members of the Stanford community.

A DVD of this lecture is available at the CTL office for members of the Stanford Community.

Robert Gregg discusses several ancient Christian canons and how to extract meaning from them by placing them in context. (November 11, 2004)

James Sheehan discusses how to teach introductory seminars for freshman and sophomores and explains what these classes should strive to achieve. (Feburary 13, 2003)

Luis Fraga talks about handling controversial and debated topics in the classroom and how to get students involved on both sides of the argument without discounting individual perspectives. (November 7, 1996)

Guenther Walther describes many of the learning materials and teaching tools he utilizes as an instructor. He explains how he operates in class and discusses many of the goals teachers should have when educating students. (January 26, 2006)

Joel Beinin shares his experiences on teaching a controversial subject like the Arab-Israeli conflict and how he approaches the topic. (January 20, 2003)

Mary Barth explains how she uses the case study method of teaching to promote student involvement and foster meaningful and interesting discussions. (April 13, 2000)

Deborah Gordon discusses how one can use research as a teaching tool through group projects and directed undergraduate research. (January 20, 2005)

Roger Noll discusses how to to design useful assignments in writing-in-the-major courses, especially in courses where the essay is technical. (November 13, 2003)

Brad Gregory discusses why it is important to communicate with students. He stresses the importance of building, maintaining, and strengthening connections inside and outside of class. (May 13, 1999)

Christopher Chidsey seeks to answer how peer learning, assessment driven learning, and active learning apply to introductory science courses. (January 22, 2004)

Robert Gray discusses what his former students have taught him about mentoring for careers in engineering, mathematics, and science. (January 22, 2004)

David Abernethy discusses how to deal with areas of controversy and long debate within the classroom. He explains how he operates in class and provides useful tips on dealing with any contention. (October 25, 2001)

Eric Roberts discusses some of the strategies one can use to encourage bright and motivated students to go beyond the standard expectations of the class. (November 18, 2004)

Mary Louise Roberts gives a talk on the ways that teachers can improve their classroom discussions. She describes how she operates in class and discusses many of the goals teachers should have. (April 22, 1999)

David Kennedy discusses how to give an effective and informative lecture and explains what these lectures should strive to achieve. (January 23, 1997)

David Freyberg discusses the feedback process and the problems he encounters with problems sets in trying to close the feedback loop and create a protected environment that encourages failure with lots of feedback. (April 25, 2002)

Scott Sagan explains his deeply immersive International Relations simulations in which students are assigned a role such as a diplomat, military leader, politician, or scientist and engage in conferences and negotiations. (May 13, 2004)

Robert Siegel talks about his path to Stanford, stories and experiences from teaching in different departments and classes, and the rewards, opportunities, experimentation, coincidences, and good fortune of teaching at Stanford. (May 10, 2012)

Seth Lerer examines the pedagogy of the English classroom as he debates teaching as an occupation and emphasizes the importance of teaching literature in an uncertain age. (November 20, 2003)

Joshua Landy and Lanier Anderson draw on their experience from team teaching to discuss the reasons to team teach, how to plan a course and run a classroom, and ten guidelines to team teaching. (February 23, 2006)

John M. Rick discusses his "love-hate" relationship with technology in teaching and how educators can best utilize new equipment and programs to engage students. (February 12, 2004)

Donald Barr talks about the history of interdisciplinary studies and how it has changed the academic landscape, his background as an interdisciplinary professor, and the disadvantages and exciting advantages of teaching. (February 1, 2007)

Laura Carstensen takes an evidence-based approach to gender issues while still encouraging independent thinking by offering students varying theories and recent findings, and including discussion and research projects. (February 27, 2003)

Russell Berman discusses liberal arts education: including a self-study of the mandatory Stanford freshmen course IHUM and its implications for liberal arts, the benefits and costs of a liberal arts education. (February 14, 2008)