BRUCE W. TUCKMAN, well known for his group development theory and research on procrastination and college success, passed away on March 13, 2016. Bruce was a professor of educational psychology in the Department of Educational Studies at The Ohio State University and founding director of the Walter E. Dennis Learning Center. He served for six years as executive editor of the Journal of Experimental Education. Based on his contributions to educational research, he was named a Fellow of both the American Psychological Association (APA) and American Educational Research Association (AERA).
Bruce described himself as having a “strong practical interest in how people learned real information in real settings.” He was a prolific writer, and his practical focus was reflected in his scholarship. He authored 18 books, including Conducting Educational Research (with co-author Brian Harper), Learning and Motivation Strategies: Your Guide to Success (with co-authors Dennis Abry and Dennis Smith), and Educational Psychology (with co-author David Monetti). Students commonly remarked on how readable the texts were and how personably Bruce came across as an author. He also wrote more than 100 articles in such areas as motivation, cognition, instructional design, and measurement. Bruce was also an avid runner, having completed 33 marathons and three ultramarathons. His novel Long Road to Boston was a work of fiction with a marathon-running protagonist, and his autobiographical short story “Marathon Man or Marathon Moose” illustrated self-efficacy to pre-service teachers.
Bruce considered Robert (Bob) Gagné a major influence on his scholarly development. As a college senior completing his honors thesis in Psychology at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Bruce learned about the work of Gagné and sought him out as his graduate mentor. Working as Gagné’s research assistant at Princeton, Bruce received a Predoctoral Fellowship from the National Institute of Mental Health and completed two graduate degrees: an M.A. in 1962 and a Ph.D. in 1963.
During his time as a Research Psychologist at the Naval Medical Research Institute (1963–1965), Bruce coined the now-commonplace terms for phases of small-group and organizational development: forming, storming, norming, and performing. In 1977, he revisited the theory with Mary Ann Jensen and published a fifth stage: adjourning. Although his work was acknowledged as a citation classic by Current Concerns, reprinted in numerous textbooks and manuals, and treated to a 40-year historical retrospective by Human Resource Development International, Bruce remained gracious about his recognition. He was approachable to students on campus who wanted to chat about his findings, and he endearingly referred to these rhyming phrases as “my claim to fame!”
As a faculty member, Bruce's efforts centered on researching and taking action to support learning, motivation, and academic achievement. At Rutgers University he was hired as an Associate Professor of Education in 1965, was promoted to Professor of Education in 1970, and additionally served as Director of Educational Research from 1975–78. As Dean and Professor of the School of Education at Baruch College of the City University of New York from 1978–83, Bruce also held administrative responsibility for intercollegiate athletics, intramural athletics and recreation, adult continuing education, and student evaluation of faculty. At Florida State University, Bruce was Professor of Education (1983–98) while also serving as Dean of the College of Education and University Director of Teacher Education (1983–85) and Coordinator of the Educational Psychology Program (1992–98). In his final academic position, Bruce arrived at The Ohio State University in 1998 to design and direct a campus-wide center to teach students of all backgrounds learning and motivation strategies for college success.
Bruce's legacy at Ohio State is the Walter E. Dennis Learning Center, an academic support unit offering courses, academic coaching, and workshops to help students succeed in college. As founding director (1998–2012), Bruce would often recount with a chuckle his first impressions of the site: “It was a hole in the ground filled with water.” With signature creativity and a knack for helping individuals grasp and remember psychological principles, he knew what to do next: “Start with an acronym.” From there, Bruce worked with his graduate students and staff to develop a curriculum for teaching learning and motivation strategies for success in college. The active discovery and participation through technology (ADAPT) model taught students to use four strategies-for-achievement (stACH). This pedagogical approach helped instructors teach self-regulated learning skills in the student vernacular that were easy to comprehend and apply, yet did not talk down to students. With Bruce's tireless passion for student learning, this rainy construction site became the location of an endowed center whose courses and services reached thousands of students annually and whose curriculum he and graduate student Gary Kennedy empirically demonstrated as supporting students’ grade-point averages and rates of retention and graduation.
On a personal note, many university colleagues who knew Bruce were struck by his love for the Walter E. Dennis Learning Center and its mission to help students at Ohio State achieve success. He greeted everyone with a smile and lit up if you wanted to talk about studying procrastination or pursuing a doctorate. He excelled at conveying theoretical principles in common language, helping readers of his textbooks internalize complex concepts. Bruce's enthusiasm for scholarship in action was contagious, and the graduate students he mentored in teaching and research have moved on to faculty and administrative positions at postsecondary institutions across the country. Staff in the Center knew their work was important, useful, and always student-centered, and they thrived by working under a leader who encouraged them as lifelong learners.
In the final years of his life, Bruce fought a brave battle with dementia. Following a life of dedication to the academic community, his body was donated to The Ohio State University: his brain to the Department of Neurology for Alzheimer's and dementia research and his body to the Department of Anatomy for medical student education. The Bruce W. Tuckman Student Enrichment Fund has been established in his memory (give.osu.edu/Tuckman). We believe Bruce would be pleased to know that the support he always strived to provide to students will continue in his name through the fund.
Bruce was a wonderful person and will be missed dearly. We, along with countless others, will be forever grateful to him for the opportunities and guidance he provided; he was a true inspiration as an educator and person. We mark this adjourning with sadness yet also hope as we honor his legacy of scholarship and student support.