Study Prof

You’d think that college profs would be able to teach, wouldn’t you? You’d think they would actually have to prove their merit as teachers before sticking them in front of 200 freshman paying $90 per credit hour each for the privilege. But most of us know better.

In fact, your average high school teacher is a much more capable and well-trained educator. HS teachers get waaaaay more training in good pedagogical methods than do college professors, and they often teach the same subjects over and over, not only to multiple classes in a single day, but year after year. Practice makes perfect (at least in theory). High school teachers are also directly concerned with how well you learn the materials. Not so for your average college prof.

Don’t get me wrong. I’ve had some college professors who were truly inspiring educators, and I’ve had high school teachers who couldn’t have taught a toddler how to drool. In both cases however, they were the exception.

Enter AcademicEarth.org – video lectures from some of the best college profs around the country. If your current prof, errr… sucks when it comes to educating you about stellar mass black holes, why not check out Dr. Bailyn’s lecture on the subject to his Yale students. Or if your prof’s lecture on modern-day Russia focused on video clips of Dolph Lundgren in Rocky IV (“I vill cruush you.”), try Dr. Bradley’s Princeton lecture.

Currently, there are lectures in everything from Astronomy, to Engineering, to Religion. Go peruse their offerings. Your grades may thank you for it.

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