Concerns of Young Mathematicians

Volume 2 Issue 10
March 16, 1994

An electronically distributed digest for discussions of the issues of concern to mathematicians at the beginning of their careers.

Suggestion for Prospective Hirees:
Be Prepared to Teach a Class

Interview Suggestion

If you are applying to teach at a school where the main emphasis is teaching you will likely be asked to teach an actual class. It would appear obvious (but apparently isn't) that you should do the very best you can to do an exceptional job during that class. Three years ago, when I was interviewing, I taught a class. I had taught the material before so it was familiar to me. But I still worked very hard to prepare for it so I would not have to frequently look at notes and so it would be clear that I knew what I was doing. After the class I had several students tell me I had done a very good job teaching. A couple of the faculty observing said the same thing. The next day I got a call offering the job. I believe the work at teaching well paid off.

1. When you are told you are going to teach be sure to find out as specifically as possible what it is you are going to teach. Find out what book you are going to use.
2. Don't stray very far from the text. Students often don't like that and, remember, it is someone else's class.
3. Be prepared for questions. I was not told to ask for questions on homework but I had several students ask questions during the lecture and some were not easy questions.
4. Prepare ahead of time. If you have taught the material before you know what you need to do. If you haven't, get a friend or two to listen to your lecture. Encourage them to be honest with you. Last year I got to participate in this process from the faculty end. We had three people come in. Two did an excellent job teaching and the other did a poor job. Afterwards no one even bothered to look at the credentials (which were excellent) of the candidate who taught poorly.
5. Be yourself during the lecture. If you try to be someone else you will come off as fake. I like to use humor (or at least what I consider humor) when I teach. So when I was doing my interview lecture I did the same thing. The class obviously enjoyed it and I noticed the observing faculty laugh, too (fortunately at the times I intended).
6. If you don't want to work at a teaching-emphasis school, that will very likely come out in your presentation.

There are many other suggestions which could be made but these can help a lot.