All most every where number of research publications gets the top priority.
There exists at least a method to judge the research status of a candidate from his/her publication list. There are agencies that give journal rankings and thereby it is possible to almost quantitatively compare the research achievements of two candidates. However there is no such method to judge the teaching capabilities. In higher educational institutes like universities no pedagogical training is necessary to become a teacher.
Since the University administration are normally run by top people from reputed research institutions they can not appreciate the amount of knowledge necessary to become a good teacher. A researcher when deals with a problem needs to understand it so that (s)he can arrive at a solution. For this purpose it is sufficient for him/her to understand any one explanation of the same. A teacher on the other hand needs to know almost all possible explanations of the same topic so that (s)he can tailor his/her presentation (lecture) suitable for the target group of students. This information remains almost invisible to the higher education authorities who have come mostly from research institutions. Unfortunately we the teachers could not suggest a quantitative measure to judge the teacher’s quality.
Situation now has become even worse. In most of the scientific subjects there are standard simulators available. A researcher therefore need not do any mathematical analysis and/or practical measurement. What is needed is to map the problem into a standard simulator. There are journals that will accept such work and publish taking a moderate “handling charge”.
In an interview for the post of Assistant Professor a candidate claimed that she was working on antenna arrays. When we asked her about the feed structure she said “ in simulation studies such detail is not necessary”.
In a recruitment notice it is specified that the institute is looking for excellent academic faculty with strong fundamentals, teaching capability, research expertise and industry orientation with student friendly approach. The selection will be based on academic and research experience, communication and teaching capability and team building capacity followed by personal interview
There exists at least a method to judge the research status of a candidate from his/her publication list. There are agencies that give journal rankings and thereby it is possible to almost quantitatively compare the research achievements of two candidates. However there is no such method to judge the teaching capabilities. In higher educational institutes like universities no pedagogical training is necessary to become a teacher.
Since the University administration are normally run by top people from reputed research institutions they can not appreciate the amount of knowledge necessary to become a good teacher. A researcher when deals with a problem needs to understand it so that (s)he can arrive at a solution. For this purpose it is sufficient for him/her to understand any one explanation of the same. A teacher on the other hand needs to know almost all possible explanations of the same topic so that (s)he can tailor his/her presentation (lecture) suitable for the target group of students. This information remains almost invisible to the higher education authorities who have come mostly from research institutions. Unfortunately we the teachers could not suggest a quantitative measure to judge the teacher’s quality.
Situation now has become even worse. In most of the scientific subjects there are standard simulators available. A researcher therefore need not do any mathematical analysis and/or practical measurement. What is needed is to map the problem into a standard simulator. There are journals that will accept such work and publish taking a moderate “handling charge”.
In an interview for the post of Assistant Professor a candidate claimed that she was working on antenna arrays. When we asked her about the feed structure she said “ in simulation studies such detail is not necessary”.
It is very important for entry level teaching position (Instructor 1, in our university). We require teaching demonstration from the applicant.
Interesting question. I think I see in which direction the discussion is heading. Although for entry or lower level teaching and faculty positions, teaching experience or skills are important... for mid or higher positions unfortunately, research may play an exaggerated role. In my opinion, other factors should also play an important role: teaching quality, personal skills, life experience, other work experience, a positive personality, and so on.
They are of equal importance I think: capable to teach well and enough publications
There need to balance between teaching and research. A good researcher may not be a good teacher.
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