Full Description
Professional ethics require continuous self-improvement of professors, through writing, reading, and learning: no less than for students. Promoting excellence in scholarship, mentoring students in their research, and effectively teaching, are vital elements in our professional and personal growth. However, any one of these could be a full-time job in itself. To excel in each role, it is essential for faculty members to reflect daily on our work.
What is the role of comparisons, in this reflection? Though our colleagues' successes may suggest to us possibilities in our own work that we didn't know existed, there is a danger that our neighbor's "flowers" will always seem more beautiful than our own. We should let comparisons with others suggest new approaches to our goals, but never focus on comparing our outcomes (successes and failures) with those of other people. Instead, we should focus on steadily improving our own levels of mastery of skills in scholarship and in work with students.
In American academia, where both faculty members and students are ethnically and culturally diverse, such that we will often find our assumptions challenged, reflective thinking is even more essential than in a culturally homogeneous environment. Hence reflective, systematic approaches to daily practice in reading, teaching, and writing are powerful survival tactics, and are likely to sustain one's vitality and productivity as a member of the academy.
Contents
Foreword by Susan S. Klein
Foreword by Mary L. Spencer
Acknowledgements
Introduction
PART ONE: Japan—Forever in My Heart
The Reminiscence of a Feminist ProfessorThe Origin of My Scholarly JourneyConfucian Beliefs on EducationA Marriage of East and WestRe-examining the Japanese Mind AmaeThe Human Seasons and Higher LearningCommunication Manners of the Japanese Wider Availability vs. Better Preparation A Letter to My DaughterPART TWO: Thoughts at the Day's End
Achieving a Work-Life BalanceBorn to Be HumanStop Comparing Yourself to OthersPerspectives on AgingMy Future Is Here and NowThe School Called LifeThe Role of Language in Ethnic IdentityThree Mysteries of BuddhismCollegiality and Colleaguality The Power of WritingPhotographs of OurselvesA Continuing ChallengeDon't Panic! We Know It Doesn't WorkPART THREE: Bring Poetry to Life
How Poetry Emerges from DifficultyPoetry as Qualitative DataJapanese Language, Literature, and PoetryMy Interpretation of HaikuEnglish Tanka: A New CreationGuam Teachers' Reactions to English TankaThe Fascination of Haiku, Tanka, and SenryuThe Gift of TankaBook Review (1)Book Review (2)PART FOUR: Inner Reflection and Personal Growth
Our Neighbor's Beautiful FlowersThe 33rd Year: A Crucial Point in Adult DevelopmentThe Power of Throwing Away ThingsThe Work of a Book EditorIGI Global InterviewA Jungle Named AcademiaSpace Clearing: A Serious BusinessAnyone Can Do but Few Actually DoFaculty Leadership and Reflective PracticeOne Life to LivePART FIVE: Profiles of Men and Women Today
The Cinderella Complex"Two Lives" Some InterpretationsMen, Women, Work, and MarriageA New Trend in the College CurriculumPortraits of Today's Undergraduate WomenBook Review (3)PART SIX: Teaching—A Complex Human Activity
Earned and Not GivenWhat is Critical Thinking?Academic Experience and Critical Thinking: A ConnectionThoughts on Human LearningThe Internet and Online LearningA Never-Ending ChallengeMOODLE for Blended LearningCATs for Improving Teaching and LearningLifelong Self-Directed LearningQuality and SustainabilityJob Hunting SeminarsStudents Voices on Educational Technology Learning, Memory, and CognitionRethinking PowerPoint in the ClassroomPART SEVEN: Cultivating Integrity Day by Day
Attention is Basic for Any Human ActivityStand Up for MyselfPractical Applications in Everyday LifeSelf-Development and a Story about SaiInitiatives for Sustainable Living Small Brochure, Big AdviceIt's Good to Laugh Uncontrollably, SometimesOngoing Professional DevelopmentSilence Is Golden: An InterpretationAn Opportunity or a Routine?Golden Rules Applied to ProfessorsPART EIGHT: Sketches of Life with Cats
Attachment Comes with a CostThe Diary of Pumpkin and Her BabiesCommentary Essay
Tanka: Sharing Presence in a Moment (by Kyle D. Smith)
About the Author
