It is important to be aware that if one instrctor is bending rules to be the buddy the instruictor in a sense is making it hard for other instructors to enforcde rules

It is important to always maintain a combination of instructor stles the controlling is somtimes great beacuse you can use excessive rules with a wild bunch of students

The article says that allowing other students to grade tests is a good time saving method. However, it is time saving, FERPA prohibits teachers from sharing the grades and other private education related documents of another student (and rightfully so). The way around this is to have students write a reference number on the test that identifies the student who took the test -- the number can be kept a secret between the student and teacher. Personally, I don't use this method at all. However, it does save on grading time, it also factors in student grading error, and takes up valuable class time that could be used for more relevant class activities. I think a better method would be to switch to a scantron or online format for quizzes and exams. You can blend essays and short answers with a scantron or online format so that you only have to grade the essay and short answer portion of a test. I have used this format often, and it works for me. It saves paper, and it allows you to put full-resolution color diagrams if your school doesn't have a color printer. I find that I have to be more vigilant about walking around the room to make sure no one is peeking at notes for online tests though. If you're using a Mac, you can make sure they put Safari in full view, and let them know that they cannot leave that full view until the test is done. This way it's pretty easy to see when someone sneaking onto the desktop to take a look at some notes. The downside of online tests is that if you make the test inaccessible after they take it, the students don't have a study resource. However, most online portals allow the teacher to keep the test active even after it is taken. Some even allow the student to take the test again (un-graded of course) for extra practice.

The article says that teachers should avoid essay exams. While I don't completely disagree with the statement, I think that it is important to include essay questions when relevant on exams. I usually make 20% of my midterm and final exam essays questions because (1) it helps the student develop their writing skills and their verbal skills in terms of making strong points and (2) it makes the exam a stronger, more accurate assessment because you are not sticking with just one type of questions. I typically make sure my exams are a mixture of multiple choice, short answer, essay, and diagram questions. For example, on a history exam, the student may have forgotten the dates of a specific event and maybe even some names of important figures, they might still understand the underlying concept. A 3-6 sentence short essay might allow the students to still convey the message, even if they have forgotten some key points. Essay questions also help to solidify the students' own understanding of the topic. When I was college, seeing and/or hearing material didn't always help me learn and remember the material. Writing it did. on my midterms I often give my students the essay topics in advance, so they can do a little research on their own to prepare for the essays on the exam. I would rather a student research the topics, and learn and retain the material, than take an exam with essays blind, lose points on the essays, and learn nothing.

The topic that resonated most with me was: "Don't over-react to minor disruptions, but be sure to react." I have learned this with experience in the classroom that there are many situations where students will test the limits sometimes even unknowingly which is why it is so important to have an appropriate measured response to the disruption. I have found that having a disruptive student "table" their discussion for another time, usually makes them acknowledge their disruption (chatting with another student or talking out of term). I will definitely implement the "I" not "you" approach to recognizing the behavior and correcting it. That too makes it less confrontation and as stated before some students do not recognize their behavior as truly disruptive, and it will be appreciated over being singled out negatively.

I have teach students that do not engage in the class and look distracted but do very well in test and are excellent and on time in the homework and projects. So I approach them individually to let them know that his contribution and engagement would be of benefit to the rest of the class because they have so much to give.

What is hard to understand is how this students do not comply or try to shortcut what is require from them since they pay or borrow the money to get an education? I always tell them that if it was me I would take as much advantage as I can to make my investment work in my future.

In my opinion, the four steps mentioned in this model are maintained and gradually play a vital role in the classroom. These goals are growing steps in any instructors career. I have been in education for 12 years and these are all qualities that have grown and been instilled in me over my experience in the classroom. Does anyone else feel these qualities are attributes that help you grow in education and in the classroom?

give them an assignment to present to the class as part of the class

If I have two students that are having personal issues that do not actually pertain to school but rather to their personal issues, how do I handle this without letting it affect my relationship with either of them?

Sometimes these students ask very good questions making you realize you could present the material more clearly. This can also be a good opportunity. Make it a class effort. Ask the class how they could achieve a solution and coax the answer from them. Develop the problem solving and reasoning skills they need. A discouraged student may be inspired by this. It can boost morale and increase participation. It may also decrease the amount of times the chatty student raises their hand.

I believe Classroom Management is the key component in any educational setting. I believe that if students are in a safe environment, then learning can take place. This doesn’t necessarily mean punishing behavior problems but rather a combination of setting the tone in a class, preventing behavior problems with interesting and engaging curriculums and effectively including all students in the classroom so that their needs are met. Having the right environment for all students to learn is my major goal of implementing good classroom management. Without it the students would not be able to learn.

Always come prepaired

Dont make it over whelming while teaching

I try to have many real world examples for my students. I tell many of my own professional career stories to help them.

I find there is always at least 1 quiet student in a class. I teach programming which is a very hands-on skill. It is important to figure out how to help these students. Are they bored because they are already familiar with the material? Are they lost? Are they embarrassed to ask questions? Do they feel helpless or too far behind to recover? This is where the old-time psychology of the master-apprentice come in handy. Work with them side-by-side to show them how it is done. Give them an orderly process to accomplish a task and succeed. I find the "Like this, see!" method works well. This tends to make them a lot more comfortable, draw them out of their shell and begin to build confidence. They can see the complexity level is much less than their anxiety led them to believe. Does anyone have some other tips?

Stress is the number one factor that needs to be managed and overcome

I taught a class last month and realized that half of the class were getting C's and the other half,B's. Quite a few students approached me and asked why this is so. I made a huge mistake my telling them that the materials covered in this class are abstract and no one usually gets an A. It didn't took me long to realize that my remarks had a negative effect on their morale.

I have never caught any of my students cheating in an exams. However, school policy dictates that the students automatically gets an F and will have to repeat the course.

I know there isn't a shortage of challenging students in any given class. It can range from being disruptive in class to being a complainer regarding the grades they received for every test.I usually address these issues in the end to avoid taking much needed time away from the class.