| Abstract | Mathematics faculty search committees frequently collect and evaluate information about candidates’ teaching experiences, skills, and philosophies, but relatively little research has been conducted to investigate how search committees do so. This poster presents the results (Bruff, 2007) of a survey of 156 mathematics departments that conducted searches for tenure-track assistant professors during the 2005-06 academic year. Search committees reported valuing teaching ability more than research potential or collegiality, although this result varied by type of institution. Letters of recommendation discussing a candidate’s teaching were the application materials rated as most useful in evaluating a candidate’s teaching effectiveness. Student evaluations were seen as less useful in this regard, but they were seen equally as as useful as most other application materials, including teaching statements and teaching portfolios. Search committees reported that successful teaching statements were those that connected the candidate’s teaching philosophy with teaching practices in specific ways, showed dedication to teaching, demonstrated effective written communication skills and thoughtful reflection about teaching, and conveyed a student-centered attitude towards teaching. These results are likely to be of interest to graduate students and others going on the job market, to doctoral programs preparing graduate students to go on the job market, and to faculty search committees interested in how other schools value and evaluate teaching. Recommendations for each of these audiences based on the survey results will be shared. |
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