Having achieved these two critical components, I do not have to make my classes interesting or entertaining or funny--that naturally takes care of itself. I am extremely lucky in that the material I teach is basic, yet highly sought after. In terms of approach, this strategy is simple: make the topics and information accessible via all means possible, and make them relevant and meaningful to people’s real lives. My job is actually quite easy because students have a natural tendency to want to learn about the world that is affecting their lives. Once I provide the structure to help them make sense of an unfathomable amount of information—thus, making it accessible—the students connect to it in their own personal lives—making it relevant.

Classes Recently Taught:

GEOG 1014 World Regions
GEOG 4054 Geography of Wine
GEOG 3254 Geography of East Asia
Geography of the Middle East

Recent Publications:

The Plaid Avenger's World: A Populist Apocalypse (9th edition, 2017) http://a.co/9gHWetv website: www.plaidavenger.com
Drink this Now! (2nd Edition, Jan 2010) (http://www.amazon.com/Drink-This-Now-aspiring-connoisseur/dp/0470610727/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1326147402&sr=1-1)
4th Annual Conference on Higher Education Pedagogy (CHEP), February 8-10, 2012, Blacksburg, VA
Title: Expanding Engagement to Thousands: Communication Tools for Large Classes
Full description of talk can be found at http://www.cideronline.org/conference/presentation1.cfm?pid=863
Boyer J., Byrd n., Doolittle P., & Pritchard K.; Learner-Centered Teaching in Large and Ultra-Large Classes. October 13, 2011 in 41st Annual Conference Proceedings of International Society for Exploring Teaching and Learning (ISETL), San Diego, CA
http://www.isetl.org/conference/ISETL11Proceedings.pdf
Conn S., Boyer J., Hu D., & Wilkinson T.; Scaling Large-size Undergraduate Classes at a Top Research University via eLearning Strategies: A Facilitated Model of Instruction using a Web 2.0 Paradigm. February 25, 2010 in the Information Systems Education Journal, Volume 8, Issue Number 5
http://isedj.org/8/5/
The Plaid Avenger’s World ( October 2006 .)
website: www.plaidavenger.com
Teaching Excellence At A Research-Centered University. Chapter 7 John Boyer Keep It Real: Making Connections to the Real World. Editors E. Scott Geller & Philip K. Lehman 2007 ISBN 0-536-31227-3
Tony K. Wolf and John D. Boyer. 2003. "Vineyard Site Selection," Virginia Cooperative Extension Publication Number 463-020, online: http://www.ext.vt.edu/pubs/viticulture/463-020/463-020.html
Wolf, Tony K. and John D. Boyer. 2000. "Site selection and other vine management principles and practices to minimize the threat of cold injury." Proceedings of the Cold Hardiness Workshop, American Society for Enology and Viticulture Annual Meeting, June, 2000, Seattle, WA, Amer. J. Enol. Vitic. 51:(in press).
Boyer, J. and T. K. Wolf. 2000. "GIS and GPS aid the exploration of Viticultural Potential" in Virginia Vineyard and Winery Management, Nov/Dec. pp 48-54.
Boyer, J. and T. K. Wolf. "Development and preliminary validation of a Geographical Information System approach to vineyard site suitability assessment in Virginia." 11 p. In: Proceedings of the 5th International Symposium on Cool Climate Viticulture and Oenology, 16-20 January 2000,Melbourne, Aust. (2000).

Grants and Awards:

Students' Choice Award for Faculty Member of the Year, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011, sponsored by the Student Alumni Associates.
2005 CEUT Summer Faculty Fellow Award to develop new course, The Geography of East Asia.
National Council for Geographic Education Distinguished Teaching Achievement Award for 2002.
2002 University Sporn Award for Excellence in Teaching Introductory Subjects.
Virginia Winegrowers Advisory Board grant FY 1997-1998 for $11,000
Grant title: "Geoclimatological Classification Model Development for Viticulture Potential in Virginia."
North Carolina Grape Council grant FY 1999-2000 for $16,500
Grant title: "Geoclimatological classification of viticulture potential in North Carolina."
Boyer, John. 2000-2001. "On-Line Cross-College Student Exercises for Geography 1014." Funded by the College of Arts & Sciences, $12,430.