Reflection / Discussion 10

Many shared ideals ran through the words in chapter 22. I was intrigued to see that the concept of process vs. product can be found and applied to almost any situation. This scenario just happens to be climbing the professional ladder to becoming a full professor. In all the rungs of this professional ladder a common job description appeared over and over, to assist others in planning, developing, and executing their teachings in an effective manner.

In the context of chapter 22 process vs. product refers to how each individual valued their time in the professional world. The difference in approach corresponded with the country in which the university was located. The professionals working in Australian institutions valued the process or journey that was taken. These professionals were content with security and making the most out of each promotion. In contrast the American university professionals valued the product or final step on the ladder. These professionals had the ultimate goal and focus of making it to a full professor position.

I found it liberating to read that at all levels of higher education there is a desire to seek and help in improving for the sake of the overall faculty. At all the university positions there was a hunger to learn and teach in order to improve curriculum, student learning, and professor performance. It did not matter if an assistant was helping an associate or full professor or if an associate was learning from an assistant or full professor what mattered was that the faculty and students as a whole were benefiting from the sharing of design.

I believe our teachers and administrators could learn a lot from assisting each other in design development. I often hear or see young teachers dismiss advice or help given by a veteran teacher because the seasoned teachers are old and set in their ways. And I also see veteran teachers dismiss young teachers because they are new and lack experience. A new teacher may be full of unique ideas from college courses while seasoned teachers have techniques that have proven successful in the classroom. I think we all being valuable knowledge and perspective to the table. And we should embrace the opportunity to learn and teach from them.