Recommended Reading
           
       
    Okay, every once in a while we have to make a trip to the bookstore or library and read a book.  This page is meant to serve a central location for these low tech information sources. 

I have to admit that this is a rather awkward headings as there are many topics covered here.  I've done my best to group the books under subheadings, but no system is perfect.  I'm stretching the definitions of teaching a bit as I think there are some very useful job search references on the shelves.  Many of these books not only tell you how to land a job in academia, but they also tell you what you'll have to do once you get there. 

 
     
Classroom practices 
Teaching Introductory Physics- A. B. Arons:  This book may be considered the closest thing the Bible for physics teaching.  The latest edition has sections with suggestion on explaining nearly every aspect of physics and sample problems.  It can be a very helpful book when searching for another point of view when preparing new material. 

Peer Instruction: A User’s Manual- E. Mazur:  Lately, this has become of the more popular books for instructors in the physics department.  The book describes a "new" method of lecturing that was used at Harvard.  Basically, peer instruction relies heavily on instructor- student and student-student interaction to cover material.  There is also a collection of conceptual physics questions. 

Teaching Introductory Physics: A Sourcebook- C. E. Swartz & T. Miner:  Like the similarly named book, this is a reference and tutorial book that covers all areas of physics.  It is extremely complete, almost to the point of being a physics textbook itself. 
 
Turning the World Inside Out & Why Toast Lands Jelly-Side Down- R. Ehrlich: The subtitle of one of these books explains it best- Zen and the art of physics demonstrations.  These books are filled with simple (but elegant) demos you can perform with little prepation. 
 
 
Physics Textbooks 
Conceptual Physics- P. G. Hewitt: This textbook is very non-calculus based and can be a nice resource when you have to explain the physics to students. 

How Things Work- L. A. Bloomfield:  If you’re ever looking to make physics more relevant to your student this book may do the trick.  Each chapter covers a different item from everyday life (vacuum cleaners, CD players, etc.) and examines the basic physics involved. 
 

Academic Job Market  
A PhD Is Not Enough!- P. J. Feibelman:  Okay, this one is kinda depressing.  Feibelman feels it is his job to preach to grad students the message that academia is not the holy land.  Some of the advice is useful, but the book's value comes when it forces the reader to question their motivations. 

The Academic Job Search Handbook- M. M. Heiberger and J. M. Vick:  This one is very handy.  It covers every step of the application and hiring process. 

The Academic's Handbook- eds. A. L. Deneef and C. D. Goodwin:  Do you really know everything your advisor does?  Do you know what your really in for when you land a job at a college?  This book will tell you.  It presents a fairly complete picture of  life in the ivory tower. 

Tomorrow's Professor: Preparing for Academic Careers in Science and Engineering- R. M. Reis:  I'm going to ahve to admit that I haven't spent enough time with this one to pass judgement, but it looks very apealing.  Like the other books listed here it covers both the application process and the life of an assistant professor, but focussing only on the sciences. 
 
 
Misc. Pedagogy 
They're Not Dumb They're Different: Stalking the Second Tier- S. Tobias: This is a collection of case studies from the students' point of view. Each student goes through an introductory course and reports one the effectiveness of the various teaching techniques. It's amazing how the physics chapters sound like the courses here (and everywhere). The main theme is that not all students learn the same way, so why should we keep using the same teaching techniques?

 
       
 
tac@sun1.ps.uci.edu