Straying from the syllabus
Sometimes the speed of the students affects the way I follow the syllabus because I might slow down if necessary. I think this course outlays the importance of sticking to the syllabus
I like this answer. There may be times where current events may supercede or change the way a topic is viewed. I believe that it's good to allow some flexibility in the syllabus to take advantage of student's heightened awareness.
This is a great point! I have had to do this with my class. As long as the material is being covered, taking a little extra time to spend on reviewing is well worth it!
Hi Robert,
You make a very good point about how to keep the course moving forward. This is a must or you will get bogged down and not be able to cover all of the topics as needed. Good strategies for providing support students so they can keep up.
Gary
I agree that there are times students catch on quickly to the course content and other times they need more instruction to understand the concepts.
The syllabus is the content required to be instructed. If students get the information quickly you can enhance and go into greater depth to enrich the subject. Give examles, explore the implications and ramifications.
However, it is not acceptable to sacrifice other topics to have one topic understood. To this end I recommend students study more carefully, seek tutoring and study in groups where members do understand the concept so as not to fall behind in content areas.
Yes, I think the syllabus works best when it can leave some room to be adaptive to the pace of the students / class.
Hi Joanne,
Good point. The "what really works" strategy is the one I end up using 90% of the time because there are so many variables involved in teaching.
Gary
Hi Wendy,
You might also want to inquire why the questioning is so constant from the one student. It may be that the student does not understand but it may be that the student is trying to establish him/herself as the class leader so they want to take as much of your time as they can. Just a heads up on trying to read the students.
Gary
There is always "the ideal way", and the "what really works this time way". In my profession, flexibility is the key.
Each class has it's own cadance, so pacing needs to be in response to the students, as well as the syllabus lesson plan. It is likely if one student has a question, others may also. If the questioning from one student is constant, I would talk with the student after class and perhaps recommend tutoring.
I agree. Sometimes I have students that catch on very quickly with the information I provide, however there are times when I get a class that I have to "think outside the box" for them to grasp the infromation.
Hi Mark,
Good point. A syllabus needs to be well planned and developed to reduce questions and concerns by students. In reading the class an instructor can and should make adjustments when needed to keep the class going in the right direction even it means a revisit to the syllabus.
Gary
One of the best teachers that I had noted that while the syllabus is a guide, it is *subject to variation*. In that class, if the teacher sensed that all of the class did not fully understand whatever concept was being discussed,h/she would stop and review until satisfied of the class' comprehension, even at the expense of the syllabus.
Barbara,
You bring up some great points we do need to understand the other variables in a students life and maybe a tutor or a study buddy or study group would be a great idea. It can be difficult at times when you want to include a current event or something interesting to make your class more dynamic when certain interest arise.
I would also look forward and see what you can breeze over if it isn't as relevant to get back on schedule. I have in the past use two of my classes more so as catch up points in the 1st and 2nd part of the course and then the 2nd to end of the class. This helps especially during winter months with snow closures.
Carolyn
You may suggest tutoring for a student, but they don't always take advantage of that service because of their own personal time limitations, ie. children at home, bus schedules (transportation), jobs, etc. Therefore, you have to be very cognizant of the timing of the syllabus. It also can depend upon the class makeup. Sometimes you have an accelerated group of students and sometimes just the opposite for which you have to adjust.
In most didactic classes the syllabus has the required objectives for the course and the time frame that we need to adhere to. If a student is requiring more time on an objective I encourage tutoring for the student so that we do not stop the flow of the class with the student that is having a hard time with a specific topic. If the whole class is having a problem then we may need to look at the objective in a different way and cover it in another way.
I believe that the syllabus should be a general guideline for the flow of the class. If for any reason you feel that you may need to slow down for the sake of properly instructing your students, then that is what should be done!
