The books advise on subjects ranging from creating a syllabus, conveying ideas to students to dressing appropriately. In "The Art of Teaching", Jay Parini, a professor of English at Middlebury College, gives suggestions on how professors should dress. "'As a college teacher, it pays to think of clothing as a rhetorical choice, and to dress accordingly,"' he said in The Chronicle.
Professors at the College had mixed responses to reading books which give instruction on teaching; some would be interested in reading such a book and some would rather follow their own ideas about teaching and dress.
Professor of History and American Studies Frank Couvares doubted that he would take style advice from a book. Couvares said that he dresses to add a somewhat formal aspect to his causal teaching style. "I usually wear a jacket and tie because it adds an edge of formality," he said. "I think that helps the class be seen as something everyone takes seriously."
Professor of Philosophy Tom Kearns understands and appreciates the idea behind the books, the discussion of pedagogy with one's peers. "I certainly have enjoyed many conversations with colleagues over lunch when we talk about teaching," he said. "I think I might earlier in my career have bought such a book. Today there is a lot of discussion about pedagogy and there is team teaching at Amherst and that is fascinating to watch."
Students at the College encouraged professors to seek assistance, but one warned that professors should not seek help from books on being "cool." "When most professors incorporate something 'cool' into their teaching, they are frequently just making fun of it," said Gurun Juffer '08. "But there are definitely some professors who could use a dose of modernity, because they have an academic tone that makes them boring."
Kirsten Carleton '06 thought it was logical for professors to share their advice with each other. "It's professors' job to teach, and their colleagues all have that in common and presumably know about learning, so yes, it's a good idea for them to share information and give advice to each other," she said.
Ajanta Patel '05 agreed that these books could be valuable if the professors writing the books were professors who deserved to be emulated. "They [professors] need it, [but it] depends on who's making it."
Patel suggested that the books could help professors create effective syllabi by advising professors about the right amount of information to include on syllabi. She believes there is often too much information on the syllabus.