Being a younger instructor, I was struggling in the beginning to capture the attention of my adult students so they can take me seriously. I have taken on the roll of being the GUIDE and it has been wonderful. They respect me a thank me evryday for understanding them and being their cheerleader of sorts in the field.

One stressor is having to response to questions on materials that were just covered in lecture. I have come to accept the situation that no matter how well and clearly I think I have covered the material, there will be students who did not 'get it' and therefore I must re-address the topic. This acceptance keeps me calm and not uptight

I am a former public school teacher who recently made the transition to higher education. In the public school system, the fact that I had some visible tattoos was a non-issue. I am certain that some administrators frowned upon my tattoos being visible, but it was never something that came up. Here in the college setting, however, I've run up against the opposite. It is expressly forbidden to have visible tattoos. I understaood that when I accepted the position and I keep my tattoos covered because I know that this is what is expected of me, but I wonder how others feel about the issue. None of my tattoos are visible. I have several pink ribbons on my upper back that are sometimes visible when I wear my hair up (I am a breast cancer survivor); I have a favorite line from a favorite novel on my left forearm; I have a Hebrew symbol on my right forearm; I have several dog paw prints on top of my right foot. Thoughts, anyone? Should tattoos be more easily accepted in the workplace provided they are not offensive? Or, is there a gray area in what one person might deem offensive and another deem acceptable?

It alwys better to have the students actively engaged in the learnng process. When I learned calculus back in the day, we were at the blackboard most of the time working problems. It worked great!

to help me with student names, I print out name plates for each student to give out, and have the student put them in front of their station – I also up date the name if the student goes by a nick name -- I use the name plates for the first few class periods

I talk to the student outside the class room and turn the situation around making the student the target of the disruption that he or she was doing, to show how this effectives the student and in turn how that action effects the rest of the class

I am a rather new instructor. No matter how much I review my material, I don't feel like I am prepared for class. The buggest fear I have is getting up in front of the class, and they think that "this guy doesn't know what he's talking about." Any advice??

I usually get this out first day of class. I tell students that I like to run a mostly informal class and I encourage a free spirited learning enviroment. BUT, I tell them if I catch them cheating, they will fail. I tell them that if they cheat in here (the classroom) the will cheat out there (in the world),and the last thing we need in the world are more cheaters. This usually works and I have no problems.

I have a couple students who I just can not read. They look at me with that blank stare. They insist that they undertand what was just lectured but I have a feeling that they dont. Any ideas on how to address this?

Every person wants to be included/accepted and part of the group. There appears to be a fine line relative to a students expectations of a teacher and teachers expectations of the student. In a learning environment, the task at hand of educating is first and foremost. Kindness and respect is very important, however; trying to be one's friend towards a student does not work. Objectivity is key.

I agree that it is best to integrate the silent student into various groups that allow their input to be heard.

Upon reading this passage, I have certainly run into many of these student traits and have found myself not only reflecting, but, attending other teachers classes to gain insights and their teaching techniques. I realized that one size does not fit all when you are teaching. Excellent examples and ones to incorporate.

I agree that by giving the student as much information about the class via a syllabus and providing them your clear and manageable expectations certainly voids any notion of ambiguous goals and objectives. So far I am enjoying this module :)

One of the most important aspects of teaching is to admit when you don't know something and that you will get an answer as soon as possible.

My experience working within my industry has given me many oppotunities to manage a wide variety of individuals and this helps me with my students.

My position in regards to challenging students is to try and get on their level and understand what is keeping them from becoming motivated to a career that they personally chose.

This module was very effective due to the fact that my classes experience students from a varied range of ages and education. I experience students that are not coimmitted to the course material and I must engage them at all times.

I found this particular information very helpful. As a new instructor, I have been observing in classes and have seen how some students like to be "center of attention" to the point of other students showing facial frustration. I plan on using these techniques when I begin my own classes in a few weeks and hopefully creating a balanced learning opportunity for all students. Stay Tuned!

I have had some difficulties with this issue. The difficulty is not so much to do with what to do with the cheater, but how to be sure that I am correct with my assumption. I have often been very suspicious that students are cheating, but do not want to embarrass them by a false accusation. I have come to the conclusion that elimination of the methods in which they might conceal cheating materials is my best solution. Again, I have to take control of as much of the situation as possible. Any suggestions?

The adult learner is a different type of student than many instructors have encountered prior. Many of the tactics used to control and engage younger students will not work with adult learners. Adults are much more independent and have been making decisions on their own for some time. Structure seems to be difficult. I like to allow seating to be the choice of the student. When it becomes a problem, I usually give a short break to initially stop the disturbance, and then upon return of the students, change the course of the presentation. This is when I would introduce the minute quize or paper, or break up into working groups. Often I assign working groups being careful to assign at least one of my attentive students to each group. The disruptive students are strategically placed into different groups. The idea of movement around the room seems to curtail what difficulties were occuring prior to break. Ownership of classroom control is on me, not the student.