For these ‘future leaders’ in the classroom, it is more important to understand the psychology of certainty. Often, we believe what we want to believ… - David Franklin

On the whiteboard in Dan’s office, he has written in bold black marker the phrase ‘TEACHING ≠ LEARNING’. He believes that most lecturers pay too much attention to what they are doing in a class. Planning is important, and professors are right to spend time in advance thinking about how the class will be structured. One downside, though, is that professors will often evaluate themselves against what they said they would do in the plan. If they covered the material without tripping up, and gave the right explanations at the right time, they will be happy about how the class went.

The students are asked to rate their level of surprise on a five-point scale from ‘not surprised at all’ to ‘beyond shock’. Many describe feelings of total shock and numbness: a large majority indicate some level of surprise. He asks them: “Why were you surprised?

Maximising enjoyment All students want to enjoy their classes. This simple truth means that teachers who can make learning fun will, other things equal, be more successful. If the only way students can enjoy themselves is to ignore the class and play on their phones, then student enjoyment is a headwind that slows the boat’s progress. By making learning fun, teachers can adjust the sails to take advantage of the wind and speed the boat up. The progress it makes may not be directly towards our destination, but we can use the sails nonetheless to pick up speed and get closer to it than we would otherwise have done.