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Selecting Instructional Delivery Methods

This is an everyday of selecting on every Methods of how you comunicate with students and on how you give them the instructions to them,be very motivated, be encouraging, and you will see the difference.

Preparing yourself to a classroom

In order to be prepared to a class room is , as an instructor ( me ) I start preparing what is going to be taught then have hands on work and go over the work then if they dont understand I will answer every question they have.

Being organized and have materials ready for the students.

Use colored paper for handaouts if possible because color draws the eye of the receiver and considered as visual learning to the students.

Don't underestimate the power of learning objectives!

When I started out teaching I was hesitant to incorporate listed learning objectives in the course because as a student myself I often look over the learning objectives and skip to course content. But as I have been teaching for over a year now I see how learning objectives are very beneficial. If learning objectives are clearly posted, easy to understand and are relevant to the students' success in their field they can have a major impact on students' success and memory retention. I am constantly directing my students back to our learning objectives while they are doing activities in lab and in class as it helps them make connections and see that what they are doing will help them be more successful.

Test Review

The day prior a test, I conduct a test review and make it a fun exercise. I divide the class in teams and either do a Jeopardy Game or any other type of competitive game. Asking questions from the class content, it is amazing how the students will be giving their 100% attention and seem to retain the content more accurately. I have seen a direct impact on the grade of the students and more importantly their understanding of the content.

Instructional back up plans

What are some of the back up plans that you have used in the past that seems to be the most successful?

Off the Bench

I am an adjunct instructor with fellow colleague who "created" the course of instruction we deliver. Basically, he is the lead b/c he has seniority and has been in the institution for a very long time and I am the new guy off the bench. He created the material and since I am the backup/Plan B, he expects me to deliver the same material in the exact same manner (to include the cheesy props he uses). Framkly, the way most of it is laid out does not really flow nor does the embedded media draw relevance to the lesson. I have seen him deliver this material, but for me, a lot of it just doesn't work. What should I do to "personalize" the material without taking any main points away and not upsetting the "silverback?"

Power Point Presentation

I use power Point Presentation as one way of media, it is important to have a well build PP to ensure that it will draw attention from the students. I have seen too many boring PP's in my career! What are some of the ideas that you can provide to enhance a PP?

Guest Speaker

I find that using guest speaker is a good way to provide the students with someone who is currently working in the field and discuss some important topics that will assist in the learning level of the students. It is extremely important to choose only guest speaker who are comfortable in the setting of addressing a large group and confident about their skills. What other techniques could be used to pick a valuable guest speaker?

testing

It's very important to have differnt exams for makeup exams.

chunking

Being able to break material into smaller pieces makes it easier to assess student knowledge.

field trips

Field trips are a great way to keep student retention...

Personality...

I thought it was a very interesting question in my interview process when my would be boss asked me "How to you think the students are going to react to your dry sense of humor?" At the time I remember thinking "Who the hell cares what they think?" Well, I learned pretty quickly that while "staying true to yourself" seems to be the motto that everyone wants to put on a shirt - Sometimes you need to adjust that. When your personality has the potential to be prohibitive to the learning experience, you need to consider how to change it.

Understanding Yourself

I found this particularly interesting as it relates to my teaching for one particular reason. As a Chef I have to slightly adjust "Who I am" when I am teaching compared to when I am leading a kitchen. I found out pretty quickly that students really start to balk if you try to be their "Boss" instead of the mentor. This has meant learning a little bit about myself and also, measuring my responses before giving them.

Know why you test.

When I make up a test I do not try to fool the students. I test to be sure they understand the material I consider to be important to know. I also grade my tests so that I can find out how well I traught. If I find certain areas that all the students do poorly on I must take some of the blame for not doing better in those areas.

make plan B as solid as plan A.

A back up plan is necessary and it should not be inferior to your original plan. It has been my experience that my back up plan ended up being my main plan for the next cycle.

demonstrate your expertise in your field

I can always get a students attention when I am able to demonstrate why I am the instructor. It gives a sense of to the student of why I am the instructor. It confirms your alpha status.

evaluating systems

sytem evaluation is very helpful to ensure that student/ teacher satisfaction

educational troubleshooting

troubleshooting education strategies can help ensure that each student comprehends and understands content being taught

media

using media is a great idea because it enhancess students learning ability