The line between?
Where is the line between Instructor help and carrying the students? Is there such a thing as too much help?
Hey Theodore,
There is a very thin line between being a strong instructor and caring to much. I recently had an adjunct instructor become way to close to the students and they were taking advantage of her. It posed a huge problem and had to be dealt with. She would baby them through the class so they started expecting it. She hindered them from performing their best in the classroom.
Philippe--
You are absolutely correct regarding the 'fine line'. Encouraging is not the same as doing it for them. Our job is to prepare them for the work-world, which means they need to learn how to perform.
Susan
There is a fine line helping a student and carrying a student. I kindly remind them that I am not going to do the work for them and that a big part of their learning experience is performing the task. Some students are afraid of failure. Some think that if they damage a training aid that they will have to pay for the repair. I advise them that failing at a task or damaging a training aid is part of their learning experience.
Sure you can do too much. The student needs to get several chances to complete a task before you step in and actualy walk them through it.They have to understand that if they do the task without your help the grade will be higher also.
What is a shame, is that there are instructors that don"t carry students , but push them thru with a minimum grade, thinking that it is a nice thing to do for the student if they try hard.
Student looses alot of information and understanding of the knowledge for which they will need in the feild.
Michael--
Great process. Yes, it is up to the students to make the effort. Sometimes they are shy about asking for help...for a variety of reasons. It is wonderful that you notice and take the first step when needed.
Susan
I feel the same way to a point. I always make the student take the first step, to show me they really do want to succeed. On day one I let them know I will give them all I have to help them get the most from the course but they need to ask me for it. There have been times, with a struggling student, that I have pulled them aside to ask them to stay for tutoring or ask them are you sure there is nothing I can help you with? but once they commit to the help so do I.
Thomas--
You make very good points. Students are paying us to teach them, which may involve showing them multiple times...but defintely requires they be able to do it themselves in the end.
Susan
It seems we are talking about two sides of the same coin. I work at an automotive learning facility. My job as an instructor is to not only deliver the material in as many ways as needed for a student to understand and learn, but to also instruct how or even show how to accomplish something in lab. If at the end of the day the student can accomplish said task on his own then I have done my job. I don't consider this carrying a student. The student is paying for training, if he gets through the course without learning how to complete a task, I have let him down. When he gets out in the real world of flat rate, he will then appreciate the fact that I took my job seriously and made him do things over until he got it right. The line you speak of between teaching and carrying a student is never straight or even clear. If at the end of training he can stand on his own and complete whatever task you ask of him, everyone wins.
sometimes the focus is shifted more towards grade rather than ability. This leads the students into a false sense of accomplishment. When the graduate with a 4.0 average can not do what is expected of them in the work place every one fails.
There is a fine line....
The instructor who does not challenge his students and moves them out of the way and takes over on even the simplest tasks has crossed the line and is now carrying the student to a good grade!
yes there is', when a teacher goes beyond the duties of her responsibility as a teacher meaning giving student more information than she should, she is enabling the student,which is not a goog thing
Michael--
You make a great point. Students are all different and need different levels of support. Our job in education is to help students learn the skills they need in the work place. That requires us to spend more time with some students than others.
Susan
I think it is different from student to student,in alot of cases they have to do the task over and over just to feel comfortable and confident with help befor they will attempt it alone.But I have seen students read the instuctions and go at and do just fine with no help,they just require a atta boy.If they don't have a clue and can do it in the end alone I don't think it is carrying the student.
I find that you need to be in tune with the physical cues that they will give. adjust your style and questions. If they dont understand, try to think of another way to explain instead of saying the same thing over and over and both the student and teacher getting frustrated. remember that different people learn in different ways. we have have to use all the tools available to us to be the best we can be.
Judy--
Great point. We definitely do NOT want to do the work for them. We won't be there when they are employed and their supervisor certainly won't do their work for them either. The classroom should be the place to make those 'errors' in an environment that is focused on helping them master the skills.
Susan
I feel it is the instructors responsibility to give students the tools and to show them how to use the tools but not to do the work for them. This would include some trial and error on the part of the student with correction and feedback from the instructor.
Maureen--
That is the key, to provide the level of support necessary for each individual student. We need to take them from where they are to where they need to be. Progress is measured individually.
Susan
Every instructor should take it as a personal challenge to take ownership of the success of every student. That includes time outside of class to tutor, designing alternate assessments to target preferred learning styles, and accomodations for students with documented IEPs such as extended time, removed distractors or test reading.
