It’s become a truism: culture is accelerating. In our constant state of change, the youngest generation (now labeled Gen Z) is the least moored to the past. They’re natives to the changes that revolutionized the lives of even their Millennial parents. With Gen Z now entering higher education, the question needs to be asked: has our pedagogy kept pace?

Norman Eng has written an immensely practical book that explores various techniques to effectively teach college students. He approaches the subject with a background in two fields: K-12 education and marketing. From the marketing world, he urges teachers to develop a student-centred approach rather than a myopic focus on the material. Eng explores the various ways to ‘touch’ students (an unfortunate choice of word!) including discussion, debate, small group, surveys, and more.

Eng’s background in the K-12 education world is just as helpful. After all, today’s first year college students have just spent thirteen years being trained in the K-12 system. Eng’s suggestions from this field are plentiful and perhaps counterintuitive to those used to a traditional lecture-style of teaching. However, if the goal of higher education is student learning rather than the mere information-transfer, teachers should use every tool at their disposal to reach their audience.

To round out this book, Eng provides links to a variety of online resources and templates. This is a helpful resource for anyone teaching in a higher education setting.

Eng, Norman. Teaching College: The Ultimate Guide to Lecturing, Presenting and Engaging Students. Norman Eng, 2017.