3 ms·

> Feynman caliber instructor Feynman was brilliant, and I have a set of both his lectures for freshman and the ones he did on gravitation. But he was not a gif

by eah13 13y ago

> Feynman caliber instructor Feynman was brilliant, and I have a set of both his lectures for freshman and the ones he did on gravitation. But he was not a gifted teacher. He was a gifted learner. Those of us who can follow him can see an amazing mind at work. But gifted teachers will look into students minds and help them build new understandings.

jrs99 13y ago
The feynman lectures were aimed at the smartest students at caltech to keep them interested in physics. You have to consider who the audience was. If Feynman made a series of lectures for physics 101 where the majority of students had no physics experience (or a physics 101 for the general public), then he would make the material different. You can't look at one set of materials by Feynman for one group of students and conclude that he isn't a gifted teacher. There is a reason he is called the "Great Explainer." There is a reason people called him the Greatest Science Teacher while he was alive. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXtnYnoutKk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXtnYnoutKk
- eah13 13y ago
  Don't get me wrong; as I mentioned above I've found his lectures on both introductory physics and gravitation to be extremely enlightening, as did many of the Caltech students he taught (who were, by the way, just normal intro physics students, albeit at a selective university). His teaching can be highly effective when matched to the proper audience. But that's just my point: there is no 0 to 100 scale of 'goodness' in teaching. And Feyman, regardless of his brilliance, doesn't sit at the top of hierarchy of teaching excellence. It's about fit between the student and the delivery the instructor. The Feynman lectures in video form can not be the pinnacle of physics instruction because they're fixed, not adaptable to the needs of different learners.
  - jrs99 13y ago
    How am I getting you wrong? You said above that "he was not a gifted teacher." You said "his teaching can be highly effective when matched to the proper audience." I disagree. He famously could teach extremely effectively to any level of audience. You said Feynman "doesn't sit at the top of hierarchy of teaching excellence." Many people would disagree. Many people consider him the greatest physics teacher ever. In terms of just the Feynman lectures in video form, Yes, I agree that they are limited. But I brought up Feynman because I believe a feynman caliber instructor alive today with the existing possibilities in software and video would definitely be able to make something very adaptable to many learners and easily more effective than the average teacher.

by eah13 13y ago

jrs99 13y ago

The feynman lectures were aimed at the smartest students at caltech to keep them interested in physics. You have to consider who the audience was. If Feynman made a series of lectures for physics 101 where the majority of students had no physics experience (or a physics 101 for the general public), then he would make the material different. You can't look at one set of materials by Feynman for one group of students and conclude that he isn't a gifted teacher. There is a reason he is called the "Great Explainer." There is a reason people called him the Greatest Science Teacher while he was alive. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXtnYnoutKk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXtnYnoutKk

eah13 13y ago
Don't get me wrong; as I mentioned above I've found his lectures on both introductory physics and gravitation to be extremely enlightening, as did many of the Caltech students he taught (who were, by the way, just normal intro physics students, albeit at a selective university). His teaching can be highly effective when matched to the proper audience. But that's just my point: there is no 0 to 100 scale of 'goodness' in teaching. And Feyman, regardless of his brilliance, doesn't sit at the top of hierarchy of teaching excellence. It's about fit between the student and the delivery the instructor. The Feynman lectures in video form can not be the pinnacle of physics instruction because they're fixed, not adaptable to the needs of different learners.
- jrs99 13y ago
  How am I getting you wrong? You said above that "he was not a gifted teacher." You said "his teaching can be highly effective when matched to the proper audience." I disagree. He famously could teach extremely effectively to any level of audience. You said Feynman "doesn't sit at the top of hierarchy of teaching excellence." Many people would disagree. Many people consider him the greatest physics teacher ever. In terms of just the Feynman lectures in video form, Yes, I agree that they are limited. But I brought up Feynman because I believe a feynman caliber instructor alive today with the existing possibilities in software and video would definitely be able to make something very adaptable to many learners and easily more effective than the average teacher.