Eight Things I’ve Learned from 53 Years of College Teaching

Joe Hoyle, Associate Professor and Accounting Teaching Fellow at the University of Richmond, shares wisdom, perspective and advice he’s acquired over half a century in accounting education.

Joe Hoyle strongly believes colleges and universities should freely share as much educational material as possible. He says, “The world desperately needs substantially more high-quality education. Our planet’s problems are never going to be resolved unless we double or triple the number of well-educated people. Educators should avoid hoarding our ideas.”

We at Accounting Cafe couldn’t agree more!

Joe has spent the past weeks, months, and years working on a book about great teaching. The title is Transformative Education. Why? Because he believes that should be the goal of every course we offer.  

He is keen to point out that the book has nothing to do with teaching accounting but is about becoming a better college teacher, no matter the subject. While having little to say about FASB, IFRS or IFAC, Joe draws deeply from the words and work of Bruce Springsteen, Mark Rothko, Tom Hanks, Nelson Mandela, Raphael and Miss Piggy, to name just a few.

Listen here to eight things Joe has learned to create transformative education.

Joe’s presentation

Discussion

About Joe

Joe is a much-loved and lauded educator, winning multiple awards and accolades over his career. Here are some extracts from the biographical notes that Joe sent us:

I have been married to the same person for more than 53 years. She cooked for the first 50 years. I have cooked for the past three years. We have four children, two biological and two adopted, but I can never seem to remember which is which.

I own ten antique clocks that all chime or ring plus one cuckoo clock. My house, at midnight, echoes with a wonderful cacophony of sounds that I find to be ever so beautiful.

I taught my first college class in August of 1971. I genuinely hope that I did not do any serious damage that day. Like chess, college teaching is fascinatingly complex. In creating essays for my blog, Joe Hoyle: Teaching — Getting the Most from Your Students, I have always found that the number of topics to consider seems to be never-ending. I have authored and coauthored various accounting textbooks. 

At the moment, the best book I have read is The Scarlet Letter. My favorite musician is Bob Dylan. My favorite artist is Raphael. My favorite movie is Casablanca. My favorite comic strip is Calvin and Hobbes.

Resources

Hoyle, Joe. Transformative Education: How You Can Become a Better College Teacher. Midlothian, VA: Joe Hoyle, 2023. Available at: https://scholarship.richmond.edu/bookshelf/375/ (Accessed: 16 November 2023)

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