Teacher Duties and Responsibilities

Teaching

The 200 people who make up the teaching faculty teach in small classes and exercise great authority in academic and disciplinary matters. The predominant pedagogical method is discussion oriented—12 students and a teacher around a Harkness table. In this setting, discourse among students and instructor becomes the primary teaching method and means by which students learn. The typical course load is four classes that meet four times per week in 50-minute periods (more with labs or intensive courses). The standard teacher load is 50 students, with an average of 12 students per class. As members of a residential community, Exeter teachers work to realize excellence not only in classroom teaching but also in their dormitory work, their advising of students, their coaching, and their wider involvement as a constructive force in the lives of students.

Dormitory

Ordinarily faculty reside in a dormitory for 10 years. In a dorm, faculty and proctors work together as a team to make the residential experience one in which students can learn from one another. Dormitory duty usually involves one to two weekday nights of regular duty, one or two nights of backup duty (while a student proctor is on duty), and weekend duty every three or four weekends, depending on the number of faculty members working in the dormitory. If not a resident in a dormitory immediately, a new faculty member is affiliated with a dormitory or small house and generally does dorm duty one night a week, plus one weekend per month. Most faculty, whether living in a dormitory or not, are assigned student advisees. As advisers, faculty are the main liaison between parents and the Academy.

Coaching

Ordinarily a faculty member coaches either two out of three sports seasons at the club level or one varsity or junior varsity sport. In some instances, other activities are substituted for coaching.

Committee Work

A faculty member is appointed or elected to committees, standing and ad hoc. Committee work is distributed as evenly as possible among faculty members and according to individual interests, if possible.

Student Activities

A faculty member volunteers or is asked to serve as an adviser to a student activity, again according to interests and workload.