Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

William, I do this too. I want to reinforce the correct material, clarify misunderstandings, and hopefully allow students to see their errors on their own. Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Organized and prepared to teach

Benny, A good example regarding answering questions is the opportunity to say something like, "great question, and that's covered on page xx in the text and we'll be getting to that in today's lesson shortly". Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Organized and prepared to teach

Geary, This is a good post, and also demonstrates the benefit of of good back up plans. Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Making field trips and guest speakers a part of instruction

Richard, Right. All activities should have an educational purpose and specific outcome. Otherwise, the instructor is just wasting the students time. Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Understanding yourself as an instructor

Michelle, Good observation. I think that if we are sincere, and are willing to be helpful to students, whatever our natural personality is will convey a genuine connection with students. Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Informing students of status in course

Michael, Keeping students informed is nearly as important as the instruction itself, as it provides a sort of compass whether the student is on right track or not. Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Using pretests as planning tools

Judd , That's the benefit of pretesting, helping the instructor plan where emphasis is needed (or not). Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Selecting instructional media

Michael, Good instructors use whatever works for them to get their point across. Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Role of instructor personality in delivery selection

Jona, Enthusiasm and passion are really hard to not become engaged. Some are natural at it, others have to work at it, but all of can perfect it. Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Preparing to Manage Your Class

Michael, Yeah, we can always get better through recognition of weaker areas, and be willing to diminish their impact with our instruction. Barry Westling