Audience Considerations
This large collaborative project serves a wide audience. Readers vary in their levels of familiarity with educational concepts, their professional roles, and the types of institutions and academic disciplines in which they work. Educators commonly want information that has solid theoretical backing and they want guidance on practical application. They want support and encouragement from colleagues, and they seek to advance their own performance as well as that of others in education as a second discipline. Given this audience profile, authors should assume that readers may be unfamiliar with background knowledge in education or in the author’s particular academic discipline.
Anatomy of a Section
The Faculty Guidebook is intended to be a comprehensive albeit non-redundant and non-overlapping set of individual modules that are grouped by topic into different sections. Sections have a common predictable architecture.
An overview introduces the educational principles that underlie the section; it is usually written by the section editor. The bulk of each section is comprised of different types of modules written by different authors. These modules may focus on theory, concepts, or application, or they may outline methodologies or offer tools. The overall pattern of a section begins with a discussion of foundational principles of teaching and learning. Later modules may describe effective teaching practices, instructional design, institutional assessment, and/or professional development. Each section concludes with an annotated bibliography that documents seminal works germane to that section. Annotated bibliography modules are generally written by the section editor.
Modules are either two pages (900 to 1200 words including references) or four pages (2000 to 2400 words including references), depending on the scope of the topic. When planning for the length of the article, one should keep in mind that charts and diagrams usually occupy more space than does text.
Anatomy of a Module
Although modules vary widely in purpose and type, all conform to a basic structure. All modules begin with an overview statement, followed by the body. A “Concluding Thoughts” section follows and often offers recommendations for incorporating the module into one’s teaching practice. A list of references is included at the end. The style of organization of the body of each module depends on its type. The following are common types of modules found in the Faculty Guidebook:
Overview module: defines the scope of that particular section; it is written by the section editor; it appears as the first module in that section and its title includes the title of the section. It is written in the third person. An example is 2.1.1 Overview of Learning Theory.
Theory module: discusses a key educational paradigm, defines its principles, and outlines its implementation. Theory should be written in the third person (they). An example is 2.3.3 Classification of Learning Skills.
Application module: illustrates a specific implementation of an area of education theory within a particular context. Application should be written in the first person (I, me, my), should be up front in making assertions, and should use illustrations to show the application of research. An example is 3.3.7 Effective Use of Office Hours.
Methodology module: defines steps that make up a process and discusses how these are implemented through an example. An example is 3.1.3 Methodology for Creating a Quality Learning Environment.
Tool module: gives a detailed description of how to apply a pre-established instrument in a specific context. An example is 3.4.2 Designing Teams and Assigning Roles.
Annotated bibliography module: lists key resources that apply to the topic of a specific section and which, taken in total, address the topic in adequate breadth and depth. An example is 2.1.6 Annotated Bibliography—Learning Theory.
Module Outcomes
Each module should have four or five learning outcomes. Section editors must approve these before the author develops the module. Learning outcomes should focus on what the reader will be able to do as a result of reading the module. Special attention should be given to impacting daily teaching/learning practices in addition to elevating understanding about the teaching/learning process. Outcomes for each module should be unique, complementing other modules in the same section while avoiding overlap. When more than five outcomes are defined for a module, the author and section editor should consider narrowing the scope or initiating a companion module.
Overview Statement
This brief section at the beginning of each module engages the reader and introduces content and learning outcomes for the module:
It is concise; a single paragraph, 100 to 150 words long, with no more than five to seven sentences
It previews module content with a broad perspective
It explicitly states the learning outcomes of the module
It justifies why the module is important and tells how the content relates to other modules in the Faculty Guidebook
It stands alone; the reader should be able to skim the entire Faculty Guidebook and get an accurate idea of what the book contains just by reading overview statements
It poses questions that encourage the reader to be an active participant rather than a tacit listener
It does not include references to outside sources
Body
Material in the body of the module may consist largely of discourse, or it may include charts, diagrams, or tools with very little writing in paragraph form. Ideally, material should be presented concisely; it should point readers to outside reading or to other modules to provide more depth and breadth; the limited space within each module should be used to explain concepts, using illustrations or examples to clarify them. A typical module references two to five other modules, and references five to ten outside sources.
Modules that contain more theory or discussion or that are otherwise word-heavy need frequent headers or graphic elements to break up the text. Text may also be broken up using bulleted lists, boxed material, or highlighted definitions.
Graphics and tables, such as charts, matrices, pie charts, or graphs, are to comply with the demands of the module, size-scaled and proportionate to text. They may range in size from a quarter column to one or more pages, but they must fit within the four-page module size limit. They must be in black-and-white or in shades of gray. Authors who want to use complex or unusual graphics should contact the graphic designer.
The Faculty Guidebook is not intended to contain teaching institute activities, nor printable versions of classroom tools for direct use by students.
Concluding Thoughts
This short, one or two paragraph section sums up the “take-away” points of the module:
In contains no more than five sentences
It introduces no new data; it reinforces what the title says and parallels the overview section in that it encapsulates what is essential from the module
It summarizes the module in the context of the Faculty Guidebook using the “corporate voice” of the author/editorial team
It highlights the implications of the module, suggests ways for further exploration, and/or encourages the reader to implement what is learned from the module
References
A module must include a list of references to outside sources. Most modules include one to ten of these, and may include books, articles, or web sites. These should be cited at appropriate locations in the text, adding authority to key statements. All references cited in the text must be included in the reference list. The reference list should not include material that is not discussed or cited within the module.
Module Outlines
The initial planning discussion between the author and section editor should result in an outline that can be used to guide research efforts associated with the module and serve as a reference document for assessing intermediate drafts of the module. The format for module outlines is given in Table 1. Outlines address audience background, outcomes for the module, links to other modules, terms for the glossary, references for exploration, ideas for module layout, a list of unresolved issues, and a preliminary overview statement. A sample outline is also provided (Table 2).
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