I have several older ex-military students in my classes. I find it difficult teaching these folks (they are more serious, having already had one career) along side my just-out-of-high-school students who have little understanding of what it is to be in the working world and an entry-level employee.

What do you do when there is a standard syllabus developed and published by the school (online)? To what extent should you prepare supplementary materials to go with it?

I feel that in an adult classroom evniorment it is alot of a balancing act. Getting all age groups to form together is sometimes difficult, but listening to them and taking the time out to have the group get to know each other I have found is a tremendious help and more often than not, sets them up for success as a whole unit rather than a few individual successes.

I have caught two students cheating on a test by texting each other. I had them stay after class to talk to them they said they did so I had them sign a paper saying this and gave them a zero on the test and I had the hole class keep there phones in book bag's.

I have students from 19 years to 60 years old in the same class. Sometimes I put the older student with a younger one this helps out the younger one learn off of the older to be more ready for class buy seeing how his partner is ready for class.

I have seen cheating in many different forms. I have started giving different test versions which helps to control this situation somewhat.

I pray to deal with stress.

I have very limited stress. I have learned to manage my stress well.

I manage my time very well. I ensure that I prioritize my time based on deadlines.

All instructors should manage their time based on their priorities.

First let me admit that I am "experienced" in that I have been teaching for a while, long enough to remember a time before the internet was in our pockets! I am seeing a trend of more and more instructors connecting with students on social media such as Facebook. And frequently it is there that a line really becomes blurred. As such, I will not accept students as friends on Facebook even if they ask. Once they graduate and get into the profession I will happily accept. I wonder how many of the instructors who are participating in this forum do accepts those requests and how to they keep those between professionalism and friends from blurring. And/or do instructor create a separate and distinct page for true instruction?

I do like some of the suggestions. I would also like the course to discuss stress from management and poor supervisors

I am finding the ideas and websites very helpful

I am happy to have found this topic, as this is always an issue on how to set priorities on topics to be done.

One of the very few things that brings relief to my unwanted stress is tending to my garden on a daily basis. Ten minutes of tending or a half hour of watering gives me time to unplug and relax, give it a shot. The harvest provides additional activities and enjoyment as well.

This section stated that there is no such thing as a healthy stress that helps with productivity; this is subjective. 1. Have you ever been shot at? 2. Have you ever played sports? Stress can cause a release of adrenaline and adrenaline definitely helps you focus and be more efficient at whatever task is at hand. I think that if we compare unwanted stress versus measured stress then we might come to a better understanding of the pros and cons of stress. Is it not beneficial to put yourself in a stressful situation or stretch your comfort zone to improve yourself?

It was mentioned in this section that the top two sources of feeling disorganized (stressed in my book) are a messy house or an unkempt yard. I believe this completely as I always feel a lot better after I finish cutting and trimming my yard, it's clean and organized and it makes me happy. I know that it's going to keep growing and I know that I'll have to cut it again but the feeling of accomplishment and calm after cutting the grass is a good one. This same sense of accomplishment is hard to achieve with other ongoing tasks because, I believe, there is not the same sensory reward at the completion of any other task. If you can't visualize a fresh cut lawn and the smell that goes with it then I feel sorry for you. Do you reward yourself for completing ongoing tasks at work or at home and if so, what do you do?

I had a boss that would bring a football to meetings sometimes. Only the person holding the football could talk. We had an agressive know it all, arguer and for the first time I saw him calmed down (as much as possible) However, intead of focusing on the meeting, he just kept trying to get the football, haha. This seemed like an effective way to control participation and break the monotony. Obviously, I would use it primarily for group discussions, but can anyone see any drawbacks or add anything to this idea?

There may be something about this in the forum that I missed, but I'm wondering how instructors have dealt with anger when it's students angry at another student for whatever reason.

The guide is the best style and it has a bit of essence of buddy and controller.