Hello SSRL members — please see here an interview from this year with Dr. Bill McKeachie, performed by Garth Neufeld and Dr. Eric Landrum. Dr. McKeachie gives unique insight into various aspects of his life and career, which serve to help us further understand his contributions to psychology, and teaching in general. Some of the subjects he gives exposition on include:
- beginnings of his career
- how Teaching Tips came to be
- his softball passion existing alongside his career passion
- his friendship (and disagreements with!) B.F. Skinner
- stories about organizing ‘extracurricular’ activities at his department in Michigan
- on good and bad experiences teaching, “If you do well, your students come back and tell you… If you don’t do well they don’t come back!”
- recommendations for young teachers
- his story about becoming a Methodist minister temporarily
- his connection to music throughout his life
- his activities at the assisted living facility he’s staying at now
- bonus interesting topics after the official end of the interview
There are few individuals who have had the impact on academia as Dr. McKeachie, and we are lucky to have a particular connection to him here in the SIG SSRL, so it would certainly be a good use of your time to give a listen to this splendid interview. Besides the above and other information, there is a chance to witness his stunning humility and to hear his still-golden voice.
Studying and Self-Regulated Learning 