As the second round of summer courses begin, the differences between how professors approach teaching summer and regular semester courses might become more evident.

Summer courses at Eastern are divided into three sessions.

“Summer 4” classes last four weeks and began May 14 this year and concluded Friday.

“Summer 6” classes began Monday and will conclude July 21.

“Summer 8” classes also began Monday and will conclude Aug. 4.

Since classes are compacted in to such a small number of days, class periods are longer and meet several times per week, explained Kip McGilliard, assistant professor of biological sciences.

McGilliard taught human physiology over the Summer 4 session, and his class met for 3 hours and 20 minutes five times a week.

He said because classes are much longer than during the fall or spring sessions, it can be a challenge to keep students interested and participating during the class.

To cope with this challenge, McGilliard tries to keep his students active and create a variety of activities that challenge his students in different ways.

“I lecture for a while, then we might look at anatomical models, view a film or have a discussion, and then go back to more lecture,” McGilliard said.

Chemistry professor Mark McGuire also tries to vary the activities of his students so they will not be “bored to death.”

McGuire explained that he challenges his students to work together on projects in class so that they can be productive while also being social.

The student-student interaction allows for a break from constantly having to listen to an instructor lecture for hours in front of the classroom, he said.

McGuire also takes advantage of empty classrooms during the summer by moving his class to another room for a change of venue.

“We try to break up the monotony,” he said, also saying that breaking up classes and moving rooms allows students to think differently than they would in a regular fall or spring course

McGuire has taught chemistry at Eastern for 25 years and said he has changed his approach to teaching summer courses within the last five years.

He said he used to teach summer courses similarly to how he would fall or spring courses, but he noticed that the challenges of summer courses needed a new angle of thought to both challenge students while also making the experience bearable.

Sculpture professor Jeff Boshart takes a similar approach as McGuire’s by breaking up his lectures, allowing students to discuss with him their personal interests and passions for art.

Boshart taught art appreciation as a Summer 4 course and will teach multicultural aesthetics as a Summer 6 course this summer.

He said it is essential to keep his students involved and active both physically and mentally for them to do well.

“How can you lecture for an hour and 40 minutes to students and not have them go, ‘Oh, God, I want to get out of here?’” Boshart asked.

Tim Deters can be reached at 581-2812 or [email protected].