Letter: Facts on figures 2

Encouraging academics to apply their intellect beyond discipline research to their teaching is much more than "learning new tricks" as your headline implies ("You can teach an old don new tricks", THES , March 22).

Would lecturers welcome 200 tips for nuclear physicists or 50 tricks for microbiologists or sociologists? Tips may be helpful but improvement of teaching demands intellectual and emotional intelligence and open-minded inquiry.

Roy Cox
Higher education consultant
London NW5