The ‘Good’ University Teacher As Perceived By The Students

Abstract

A sample of 176 second year University of Zimbabwe students was asked to select the three most important characteristics of a ‘good’ teacher from fifteen characteristics presented to them. It was shown that students attached great importance to the teacher’s ability to stimulate intellectual curiosity and transmit knowledge, rather than according to the university criteria of research and publication. Results were also analyzed according to faculty and no significant differences were found among the four groups of students in terms of their choices of the three characteristics. The concepts ‘good’ teacher, lecturer, instructor and professor are used interchangeably in this paper.