Remember your first semester teaching? The syllabus was hot off the printer, you weren’t sure how to curve grades, and someone just called you “professor” for the first time. The next generation of instructors is now feeling all of that, hardcore. This episode brings real talk from educators who’ve been there, survived that, and even enjoyed office hours. Maybe…

🎧 In this episode: Surviving flop assignments, balancing feedback, and remembering that even Slytherins need support.

Brought to you by Macmillan Learning

🎓 Key Takeaways

(01:11) Be One Day Smarter:  Start small and build confidence. 

(03:10) Don’t Take It Personally: Student feedback is about growth, not perfection.

(05:48) Find Your Inner Goldilocks:  Balance change with consistency.

(09:11) Just Pick One: Incorporate new tools gradually.

(10:53) Teach Like It’s Still Hard for You

(12:18)Teach with Confidence And Help Students Build Theirs

(014:01) Not Everyone Got Sorted Into ‘Loves School’ House, And That’s OK

(16:00) Don’t Do It Alone. Seek collaboration and support.

(18:36) Plan Like a Pro, Reflect Like a Rookie. Continuous improvement is key.

(20:37) You Will Make a Difference. Impact often comes without applause.

(22:05) It’s a privilege to teach. Kindness isn’t optional, it’s foundational.

📌 Featured Educators Find out more about our amazing featured educators Betsy Langness is the Psychology Department Head at Jefferson Community and Technical College, where she has worked for more than 20 years. She currently teaches general and developmental psychology courses in a virtual, asynchronous environment. Previously, she worked as a counselor, taught as an adjunct and also worked as Senior Academic Advisor for the Honors Program at the University of Louisville. 

Dr. Ryan Herzog is an Associate Professor of Economics, Program Coordinator, and Faculty Fellow at Gonzaga University, where he has been teaching for 16 years. His work focuses on macroeconomics, financial markets, and public policy.

Dr. Kendra Thomas is an Associate Professor of Psychology at Hope College. She has been teaching human development courses for 12 years. She is a mother of two and researches adolescents’ perceptions of justice and how hope changes over time.

Dr. Jennifer Ripley Stueckle has spent the past 17 years as a Teaching Professor and Non-Majors Biology Program Director at West Virginia University. While her expertise centers around toxicology and fish physiology, she has taught introductory biology, immunology, and human physiology, in addition to creating and directing the biology courses offered through dual enrollment at West Virginia high schools.

Dr. Mike May is the lower division coordinator in the department of mathematics and statistics at Saint Louis University, where he has taught for more than 30 years. During that time he has looked at how to effectively incorporate numerous technologies into effectively teaching mathematics. 

Dr. Derek Harmon is an Associate Professor – Clinical in the Department of Biomedical Education and Anatomy at The Ohio State University College of Medicine. For over a decade, he has taught anatomy to medical, graduate, physical therapy, and occupational therapy students, medical residents, and practicing clinicians. His research is focused on the impact of immersive technology on anatomy education and medical simulation.

Jennifer Duncan is an Associate Professor of English at Georgia State University’s Perimeter College. She has been teaching English literature and composition for twenty-five years and specializing in online teaching for fifteen.

Adriana Bryant is an English and Developmental English Instructor at Lone Star College–Kingwood in Texas. She teaches courses of different modalities, and strives to create an engaging environment that helps foster her students’ growth and desire to learn. She also contributes to professional development within her department and college community.

Dr. Amy Goodman is a Senior Lecturer in the Mathematics Department at Baylor University, where she has taught since 1999. In addition to teaching, she is also a course designer, OER author, teaching mentor to other faculty and graduate students, and learning analytics researcher. Her pedagogy is founded on the belief that all students be successful at mathematics.

Julie Moore has been teaching writing, literature, and writing center pedagogy in Higher Education for 35 years; presently, she works as a Senior Online Academic Advisor and First-Year Composition Instructor for Eastern University’s LifeFlex program. The author of four collections of poems, Moore has recently won the Donald Murray Prize from Writing on the Edge and several notable prizes for her poetry.

Mary Gourley is a psychology instructor at Gaston College with over 16 years of teaching experience. She also teaches gender, human sexuality, and social psychology courses at New Mexico State University’s Global Campus.

Resources: 

What the Best College Teachers Do 

Macmillan Learning

☎️ Join the Conversation

🔗 If you found something helpful in this episode, pass it along to a colleague—or that one friend who still starts every semester saying, “This time I’m staying ahead on grading.” You know who you are.

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