Recording History, Literally

December 19, 2011

The graduate teaching fellows (TFs) who work with Michael McCormick, Francis Goelet Professor of Medieval History, get regular “screen time” with him. That’s because McCormick often records their teaching sessions, then offers individual feedback on their delivery and content: “That’s really good. What did you mean here? Pay attention to eye contact.”

“When I gave my first lecture, I didn’t know what the heck I was doing,” recalls McCormick, now a seasoned scholar with a highenergy, narrative lecture style that reflects decades of thinking about his discipline. “I thought, ‘I’m not going to put them in this situation.’ I want to help my TFs construct their own teaching identities.”

“Professor McCormick is a ball of fire and energy and rigor,” comments Ryan Wilkinson, a fifth-year graduate student and one of McCormick’s TFs this year. “I’ve derived a terrific benefit from his passion and skill and feedback.”

In addition to classroom competence, McCormick nurtures his trainees’ roles as researchers and administrators, and involves them in major course decisions and exam design. “I try to develop the ability to build consensus, which is an important part of life in history departments,” McCormick says.

Graduate students represent an essential part of a research university, notes Faculty of Arts and Sciences Dean Michael D. Smith, John H. Finley, Jr. Professor of Engineering and Applied Sciences. “Our section leaders may include future Nobel laureates, U.S. secretaries of state, or academic department chairs,” he says. “Harvard cares about teaching and takes great pride in training this next generation of scholars and leaders.”