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MARSTON SCIENCE LIBRARY
WI 2 4 u
TLP 99-1
TEACHING AND LEARNING PAPER SERIES
I
The goal ofthe Teaching and Learning paper Series is to improve, enhance, and enrich
the teaching and learning environment in the department, college, university, and
profeion through the publication of papers on teaching philosophies and techniques,
curricular issues, and case studies. Papers are circulated without formal review by the
Food and Resource Economics Department and thus the content is the sole
responsibility of the faculty author or co-author.
"UNIVERSITY OF
SFLORIDA
Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences
Food and Resource Economics Departent
University of Floida
Gainesville, FL
AN INTRODUCTION TO THE TEACHING AND
LEARNING PAPER SERIES
by
Gary F. Fairchild
Teaching and Learning Paper TLP 99-1
December 1999
An Introduction to the Teaching and Learning Paper Series
by
Gary F. Fairchild
Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to introduce faculty, students, and other interested parties
to a new paper series designed to improve, enhance, and enrich the teaching and learning
environment in the Food and Resource Economics Department, the College of Agricultural and Life
Sciences, the University of Florida, and the agricultural economics profession. An explanation of
the motivation for the series, and a delineation of the subjects and types of papers considered
appropriate for the series is provided.
Key Words: teaching and learning, teaching philosophies and techniques, curricular issues, case
studies.
An Introduction to the Teaching and Learning Paper Series
Gary F. Fairchild
The core business of an academic department in a university is the business of teaching and
learning. In colleges of agricultural and life sciences at Land Grant Universities, federal and state
mandates and attendant funding for agricultural research and cooperative extension programs tend
to capture the majority of time and attention for most faculty. While it is appropriate for a faculty
with a majority appointment in either research or extension to devote a proprotional amount of time
to research or extension activities (research, analysis, written and oral communication, etc.), the
result often is that the minority teaching appointment receives little time or attention beyond
reading to stay abreast of subject-matter developments, lecture preparation and delivery, class
discussions, student advising, and grading.
The non-classroom output appropriate for a teaching appointment, whether it be 10 percent
or 90 percent, often becomes a victim of the enormous time commitment necessary to generate the
publications and presentations expected of faculty in support of research and extension
responsibilities. Thus, it is the teaching- and learning-related publications which often fall through
the cracks. Examples include publications which address changing teaching philosophies and
techniques, curricular issues, and case studies. Perhaps the generation of such publications is never
considered due to a lack of perceived outlets for such endeavers.
Gary F. Fairchild is a Professor of Food and Resource Economics, College of Agricultural and Life
Sciences, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida.
It must be remembered that the core business of academic departments in colleges of
agricultural and life sciences at land Grant Universities is still teaching and learning, just as in any
university, public or private. It is perhaps the foundation reason for being, upon which research and
extension programs are built. If this is true, then it seems reasonable to expect published output
generated by academic departments to reflect some appropriate level of publications oriented toward
the teaching and learning function. Traditionally, there have very few publications dedicated to
teaching and learning subjects in the Food and Resource Economics Department. But again, given
the dominance of the research and extension responsibilities, this should not be too surprising.
It must be noted that the faculty in most academic departments in colleges of agricultural
and life sciences, and other non-education colleges also, are not trained to be teachers, but rather
trained to be basic and applied researchers. While this training often transfers well to the analytical
and information-generation and transfer aspects of the extension function, it does not transfer so
well to the teaching function. Thus, many agricultural economists may not feel confident in
addressing teaching-related topics, often in spite of considerable teaching experience and success.
Again, it is possible that a contributing factor is the lack of appropriate outlets for such writings.
Thus, writing on the subjects of teaching and learning is, at best, not encouraged, and, at worst,
discouraged by the lack appropriate publication outlets and support for such endeavors.
Given the situation outlined above, and the continuing increase in emphasis on the teaching
function at both the college and university level, a new publication series is being introduced
specifically to provide a publication outlet for and focus on teaching and learning. The new series
is entitled the "Teaching and Learning Paper Series" to reflect not only the importance of teaching
activities, but also the importance of learning activities and the fact that the facilitation of student
learning is our ultimate objective. Our hope is that this publication series will encourage and
stimulate thinking, analysis, and writing on subjects which support the teaching and learning
function, which has become an increasingly important part of the department's overall mission at
both the undergraduate and graduate levels. This is certainly compatible with the increased
offerings in recent years of teaching and learning workshops and programs in the college, university,
and profession.
Our belief is that sharing ideas, insights, and experiences will serve to raise the quality of
teaching and in the process facilitate an increase in the level of learning. Thus, the goal of the
Teaching and Learning Paper Series is to improve, enhance, and enrich the teaching and learning
environment in the Food and Resource Economics Department, the College of Agricultural and Life
Sciences, the University of Florida, and the agricultural economics profession through the
publication of papers on teaching philosophies and techniques, curricular issues, and case studies.
Papers are encouraged which explore teaching methods, styles, and philosophies, including
observations on what works well and what does not work so well in the facilitation of learning.
Sharing experiences based on experimentation with new teaching ideas and approaches gleaned
from teaching workshops, seminars, and readings may help others improve their teaching and
perhaps avoid costly mistakes. Experiences with active learning and other activities which are
designed to support student-centered learning are also encouraged. As faculty gain more experience
with the various forms of distance learning, others can certainly benefit from publications which
address the opportunities and challenges associated with this new format for teaching and learning.
Faculty who are relatively new to the teaching function should benefit particularly from this
series, but seasoned teachers should also benefit from new perspectives and ideas. This publication
series provides all faculty the opportunity to increase their publication visibility in support of the
teaching function, and also the opportunity to improve their teaching effectiveness and thus the
student learning environment.
Papers which address curricular issues are also encouraged. Ideas for program improvement
are often generated by individual faculty as well as small groups of faculty. Articulating and sharing
curricula-related ideas in this series may generate broad-based discussion and result in continuing
program improvements at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Papers written for
professional publications and presentations would also be considered appropriate for this outlet.
Finally, the Master of Agribusiness (MAB) program will be generating papers written by
students, with the assistance their advisory committees, often based on internship experiences.
These papers normally will be written as case studies and designed not only as a learning
experience for the student, but also as a learning opportunity for other students through individual
or classroom application. Thus, the Teaching and Learning Paper Series will serve as an ideal
publication outlet for these papers.
Other types of papers which support the enhancement of the teaching and learning activities
of the department are also welcome. It is believed that this series will complement the other
publication formats in the Food and Resource Economics Department which focus on research,
extension, and international subjects. It is believed that this publication series will improve both
the quality of teaching and facilitation of learning and thus strengthen the core business of our
department.
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