Been a while for me, but I am new to teaching at the college level. For me, dealing with students with poor work ethic has proved to by my most challenging task. Trying to teach Algebra to adults is a bit of a challenge when they have had years of life experience never needing to use it. It is a tough sell for sure, but I am working on it. Regards, Scott

Not everyone can be pleased. At the end of the day I am confident that I always do my best. I have come across students who vent in teacher reviews about different issues that they are having. I have found that you can be an excellent teacher and do well for most, but never all. Unfortunately I have no fix for this as I refuse to be all things to all people. Part of being a student in a professional career college is learning how to deal with different teaching styles. My end point is sometimes you have to agree to disagree and be respectful at all times to all people. Regards, Scott

I am big believer of being fair and firm long before I get any bit friendly with students. It is very important that they see me as a strong capable instructor. I want to deliver quality instruction and being the students friend usually takes away from the teacher respect. There is something to be said for a student being to comfortable with the teacher. It is always much easier to be less strict than to be more strict. Regards, Scott

As I do agree with the idea that the real world doesn't accept late work, within the college setting, I have found it a good idea to take late work on a case by case basis. Sometimes, you can do more harm than good by being to rigid in regards to accepting late work. That extra day or two might be just what they needed to stay on track. This is a common problem and I am amazed at the number of students that do indeed pay a lot of money to go to school and yet fail to get work completed in a timely manner. Regards, Scott

NO MATER THE YEARS TEACHING IS THE MOST HARDEST BUT THE RISK IS WELL WORTH IT.

CAN CHEATING TEACH ETHICS?

LOOSE THE IPOD BILLY!

INTERESTED STUDENTS AND A MOTIVATED INSTRUCTOR?

Some students complete lab assignments way ahead of the rest of the class. Sometimes I assign these students additional work or extra credit to "broaden their horizons" and prepare for higher level courses during their course of study. These assignments are usually "higher skill level" and are not required for the current course. Can this potentially make other students "jeolous" for not having the opportunity to perform extra-credit assignments?

I teach paralegal studies. Last term, I had an incident with two students who submitted the exact same project, word for word. When I confronted one of the students, she first stated "I did my own work." After I explained to her that it was clearly not the case, she stated "Well, you said we could work together." I told her that while I encourage students to work together to find information and resources, each student must submit their own original work. Also, if she and the other student thought it was a group project, why didn't they submit one paper with both their names on it?" The student then stated, "Well, I let the other student use my paper, but I didn't do anything wrong because you said we could work together." Needless to say, this drove me crazy. It has gotten to the point that I place a warning and/or disclaimer on any assignment explaining that one must submit their own work, if they choose to work with another student to find the information or "This is not a group assignment." Since when are things that appear so obvious have to be defined? In the nine years that I have taught at the college level, I have NEVER heard something like this in my life...either at a career college or a traditional college. Of course, being a former attorney, I know that the student is making excuses for what she did. But, she does not understand that giving a completed paper to another student to use is never OK. Has anyone out there encountered such a situation where guidelines, even those that are obvious, must be defined? How is that helping the student? And, is it an insult to the others in the classroom who do get it?

A mistake some new insturctors make is coming into the classroom thinking that they know everything based on the feild experience and the did not prepare before coming to class.

It has always bothered me to be in the middle of doing something that I'm doing, which usually needs to done and have to quit and start doing something else. I have my day planned out of what needs to be done and it makes me feel that I'm being thrown off course.

The streamlining grading is and efficient way to save time. I prefer multiple choice questions test which are quick to correct.

It is very effective when you meet with the inattentive student to discuss the issues and an opportunity to know them better.

I believe that new instructors make mistakes that can usually be corrected easily. Vocalization is a common issue, but instant feedback from students can spotlight the problem, and eventually lead to improvement.

I believe that making your course syllabus stand out can be accomplished through the use of color, rather than the commonly used white computer paper. That way students will be able to easily locate the syllabus each class meeting since it is an important element of classroom management as the operations manual. Additionally, separate key points through bolded headings, the use of bullets and numbers, different font sizes, etc.

We use "Beauty Bucks" as incentives for students to arrive on time, prepared and dressed professionally...At the end of the quarter we hold an auction and the students bid on items used in their profession...Those with the most "bucks" have the ability to "win" more items...

I have heard the comment, "I don't know why I have to take this particular course. I am not going to use this subject in the particular area that I am going into." As an instructor who emphasizes cross-training, multi-tasking and job diversity, I explain to the students with this concern that it is always good to have workable skills in other areas. With this added skill set/knowledge base, they can always have an avenue by which they can make a living in the event that an opportunity does not instantly arise in the immediate area of their choice. I also point out that they may actually find it interesting as they progress into the details of the particular subject. Further, I also point out that while they may not deal with the subject on a daily basis, it is definitely related and important in some way to their career choice.

One difficulty I have encountered is being faced with teaching a new course on a subject matter that I don't feel comfortable with. I prepare as much as possible, but I tend to feel I don't give my students what they deserve. The more I teach the course, the more comfortable I become with the material. At times, I feel the students can "feel" my uneasiness about the subject matter. Any suggestions?

I think each week my to do list must say that I need to organize my "piles." I don't have the insecurity problems with my desk, as I am one of those people who works better with stacks of things on my desk that are a priority. The problem comes for me when I move a stack to a far corner of my desk and forget about it. These stacks then begin to pile up, and before I know it, I have a teeny tiny work space. I need to make "having an efficient work space" a priority on my to do list.