Teaching Qualification for Doctoral Students

Abstract

Should doctoral students take a qualifying course in teaching in higher education? If teaching were standardized in universities one might be expected to be able to teach to the standard as a qualification for employment. The currency of that standard would have to be defined. Is the standard applied within a particular university, province, or nation-wide? This would affect any training program as if all universities have different standards then you must take a qualifying course tailored to those standards. Reasons for standardization include the notion that teaching needs to be homogenous both within and between institutions, that teaching quality is poor and needs to be improved, and that standardization across disciplines is necessary so that there would in effect be no difference in the practice of instructors regardless of their disciplines.