Adjuncts

Ironically, the instructors who are often among the most liked by students are college teachers that will never be college teachers, the great underclass of academia known as adjuncts. Some of these adjuncts are professionals who like to dabble in the classroom, often as an ego thing ("Hey, I'm a college professor," or "I'm a successful professional who has pearls of wisdom to impart to the leaders of tomorrow."). Some adjuncts need the job (easy to spot, they call themselves "consultants."). Others have never been able to get a full-time teaching position, usually because they don't have their doctorates or sometimes because they are in an especially competitive field, so they make their meager living going from college to college (they are sometimes called "gypsies") teaching a class or two for $3000 apiece. And there are many that don't need the money or the ego stroke, they just like to teach and are usually good at it. But the over-riding theme is that adjuncts are a cheap source of labor (often exploited) for colleges and often carry a hefty portion of the teaching load at reduced dollars, one of academia's dirty little secrets. While adjuncts and teaching assistants may be the norm at research schools, particularly for introductory and lower-level classes, teaching schools are increasingly relying on adjuncts for economic reasons. But the question for this discussion is whether these adjuncts are good teachers.

While obviously a generalization, the answer is a qualified yes. Adjuncts usually are highly motivated and dedicated to doing a good job. They don't have to worry about scholarship or service (though those with "day jobs" often face time pressures), and usually enjoy teaching, despite being treated as second-class citizens by administrators. Further, adjuncts often receive higher student evaluations than full-time faculty. And therein lies the rub. Students tend to like adjuncts due to their "real-world" perspective (translation: they tell good stories), easier requirements and grading (adjuncts don't want to rock the boat nor receive low evaluations), and in many cases a greater devotion to teaching (it's not the money bringing them in to teach that night class). Full-time faculty tend to view adjuncts as a necessary evil, those that fill needs but are less qualified to do so (most don't have doctorates) and unable to provide depth to their subject (know the whats but not the whys, i.e., lack schooling in underlying theory and its application). Also, there tends to be a greater percentage of "rookies" that are adjuncts (no tenure, greater numbers, greater turnover), so a student is more likely to encounter an adjunct who has little teaching experience generally and for that class particularly. But adjuncts are there to teach classes that full-timers won't, and generally adjuncts do a creditable job.

Personally, I think that too many adjuncts lower the quality of a program in making it less rigorous and more vocational in nature. Yet I like our school to use a small number of adjuncts, as they bring a different and practical perspective to the programs, and adjuncts often bring a passion to teaching that energizes students.