Book Review: Teaching at Its Best: A Research-Based Resource for College Instructors ZakrajsekTodd D.NilsonLinda B.. Teaching at Its Best: A Research-Based Resource for College Instructors, 5th ed., 2023, Jossey-Bass, 396 pp., ISBN 978-1-119-86022-8.

Teaching at Its Best is an excellent resource for college instructors.The content is sufficiently varied and comprehensive to be of interest to veterans seeking to enhance their teaching skills, new faculty to prepare for the classroom, as well as to graduate students preparing for a career in academia.The book is divided into five major parts, beginning with course preparation, continuing with course facilitation, and concluding with chapters about grading and assessment, including colleges' practices of evaluating instructors and ways that reviews might be conducted in as fair and unbiased a manner as possible.Chapters on the "human side of teaching" reflect contemporary concerns of inclusivity, incivility, and academic integrity.Updated facts are cited, such as 2020 data that "a jaw-dropping 32% of undergraduates…reported cheating on exams" (p.152).The section on detecting cheating is helpful, but unfortunately already in need of an update due to the absence of a discussion about artificial intelligence, which became widely available shortly before the book's publication.One of the book's strengths is the strong research base, as promised in the subtitle.Every chapter cites current research, and the reference section spans over 40 pages.The approaches and methods promoted in the book are not merely someone's experience; they are supported by contemporary research.Because of the research base, my antennae went up when I began the chapter on "Integrating Styles and Modes of Learning," given that "there is simply no evidence that [teaching in a way consistent with a student's dominant learning style] results in better learning" (p.272).However, the authors graciously addressed the "learning styles myth" (p.272) and provided evidence-based ways to foster student growth through various learning modes, without attempting to teach students in a manner consistent with their personal "learning style."