1. Kansas State University
  2. »Division of Communications and Marketing
  3. »K-State Today
  4. »Sixth edition of education professor's book just released

K-State Today

February 6, 2012

Sixth edition of education professor's book just released

Submitted by Patrice Scott

Dr. Paul Burden

The sixth edition of a teaching methods textbook written by Paul Burden, professor and assistant dean for operations in the College of Education, has just been released with many important additions.

Published by Pearson, the first edition of “Methods for Effective Teaching” was released in 1994 and has steadily claimed market position as one of the top three of all books on K-12 general teaching methods. The fifth edition was also released in Chinese.

“I’m always looking at what’s emerging such as common core curriculum, bullying, student engagement, and response to intervention,” Burden said. “With every edition I want to capture important changes and get where the profession is going. The market will determine if it’s a good product.”

Burden updated information and made a real commitment to adding time-relevant content because that’s what future teachers need. “It’s satisfying to me to know I’m going to be influencing young teachers all around the country,” he said. “I just know this is the right material to give them as a beginning teacher.”

College of Education Dean Mike Holen brings a macro view of the textbook’s impact based on the author’s strengths.

“Paul's book has become a top seller because each edition is refreshed with new and vital topics to enhance teacher preparation,” Holen said. “He should be proud to know his scholarship will positively impact the learning of untold thousands of school children through the teachers influenced by his insights.”

In addition to content changes, the publisher completely reformatted the book to a larger size and added color and graphics.

“I think this new attractive format will really catch attention,” Burden said. “It’s just more visually pleasing.”

“Methods for Effective Teaching” has been chosen for two education courses at K-State. “It’s nice to know that my colleagues have looked at the other books and selected this one,” he said.

Burden has written two textbooks, the other is “Classroom Management” and the revised edition will be released in August. He has also authored two books for teachers, “Establishing Career Ladders in Teaching” and “Countdown to the First Day of School."