Reinventing the Survey Course

In a recent advice post called “Reinventing the Survey Course” in the Chronicle of Higher Education, James M. Lang, PhD, discusses his reinvention of a literature survey course. He suggests some of the challenges associated with reinventing a survey course in any discipline: the investment in covering the breadth of the field in a few short weeks, the concern with covering the essentials, and the fact that by definition a survey covers more than one’s own specialty. The post announces a new book on this subject and offers a preview of several tangible ideas for beginning the process of reinventing your survey, regardless of the discipline you teach in.