Angela Zaugg

I really enjoyed the information on perspective, evaluating our beliefs about adversity, and focusing on having an internal locus of cotrol.  In regards to taking control of one's own health to reduce stress, the simple changes that could be implemented in each of the 4 areas, nutrition, sleep, exercise, and meditation, might best be tackled one, 21-day challenge at a time, so that you don't feel like you have to improve or change everything all at once.  I've really been focusing on this over the past several months since the Covid-19 pandemic created so much added stress to all of… >>>

In this module, I learned about effective time and stress management strategies to improve my productivity and quality of life, providing me with more time and energy to be a good instructor.  The suggestions for healthy coping mechanisms are all helpful and easy to incorporate, especially sharing, breathing, stretching, and getting adequate sleep.  If I re-conceive exercise to be a 15-minute walk, instead of something extra that I have to schedule into an already bust day, I think I can easily incorporate that coping strategy into my day, also.

In this module, I have learned about how to make more time in my schedule by streamlining course preparation, grading, and performing organizational and clerical tasks. I especially appreciated the resource information for making quizzes, etc. and how to change how I check my e-mail so that it isn't so distracting and time consuming.

I am a big fan of using To Do lists.  It really keeps me on track.  This module gave me some good ideas about how to indicate priority tasks on my list that I will incorporate into my lists going forward.

I, too, find that over-preparing helps to markedly reduce any "first-day jitters".  It also addresses the Bermuda Triangle issue of running out of class activities prematurely, by having back-up ideas if you do get through the planned material faster than expected.  

All of the suggestions for managing the behavior of specific types of students, provides me with a helpful resource to refer to when challenging student situations arise.  I really valued the discussion about remaining calm and not taking any student behavior personally, so you can provide an objective and supportive response.  I think it is also vital to ensure that the expectations are discussed from the beginning and outlined clearly in the syllabus.  It is also important to document all student interactions and meetings so you can clearly justify all of your decisions in regards to actions taken to address… >>>

I really appreciated reading about the various types of "problem" students and the concrete examples of strategies that can be used for each type.  I think it will take a lot of increased awareness and intentional use of the strategies at first, until they become a natural part of my teaching repertoire.

This module emphasized for me the two most important things to address on the first day of the course: starting with an icebreaker activity to address social skills immediately and improve comfort levels, as well as decrease first-day anxiety, and clearly reviewing the syllabus so students can grasp what the expectations and requirements are.  Through this process, I want to bear in mind the WIIFM Model, and clearly state the benefits to the students of taking the class, so I can get buy-in right from the start, as well.

I learned that with adult learners, it is best to tap in to their prior knowledge and experience, understand what motivates them/what their goals are, identify their learning style/learning preferences, provide support in organizing the information taught, provide opportunities for self-direction, and most importantly, activate, enhance, support and maintain learning throughout the curriculum.

All of the brain-based theories indicate the need to provide a variety of educational experiences to successfully teach because everyone learns differently.  I was familiar with the theory of dual psychology and Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences, however, I found the whole-brain concept to be interesting, especially the importance of tapping into quadrant D by using games and creativity during the learning process.