David Altland

I had a student that was a high school graduate, but had practically no actual education. He did not understand the concept of what the zeroes at the end of a number did to that number. (A 1 or 10 or 1000 were nebulous in his mind.) He was in an Electronics Engineering Technician course. What I taught him as new information he grasped immediately and had partial understanding of what it meant and how it fit into the course material. However, anything that required previous knowledge to grasp was difficult of not impossible for him to understand. I slowed… >>>

I have had mixed success with groups. When I allow students toform their own groups they choose their friends and unvariably there are one or more students that are not picked. I find it far more conducive to group dynamics to assign group members so that the weak are put with the strong so that all students participate and learn. But this can also be disasterous. I had one group where they allowed the "stronger" student to write the program for a microcomputer for their final project. He went onto the internet and copied the program. This caused his dismissal… >>>

I have taught my classes in approximately the same manner since i started teaching. I have my game plan in mymind and follow it as closely as possible, allowing questions from the class to lead me in the direction that particular class needs even though I continue to present all the subject matter. As time has passed,I have been accused of not being prepared for class. I have been told that I should take a notebook with the lesson plans with me to show that I do have an agenda, but with or without it, I am still accused of… >>>

tudent who had several drug offenses and then a thefe from motor vehicle charge. In all cases, he managed to get away without jail time. It gave him a sense of authority in that he felt that he could do whatever he wanted whenever he wanted to do it. No matter how I listened to him or tried to tell him that this was not the way things would go forever, he just assumed s smug, silly smole signifying that he was right no atter what. Eventually, at the Program Director's suggestion, I began giving him things to do whenever… >>>

I had a class last term that attended the first day, then six of the fourteen were absent the next three days. When I reminded them of the attendance requirement, they told me thay had been told that they did not have to attend class. When I enforced the requirement, they decided that I was a lousy instructor. We have student surveys at the middle of each term and they gave me a very poor rating. I have them again this term and they gave me one of my higest ratings. I have not changed my instructional method or the… >>>