Wilbur LaRoche

When I became a new instructor, I had issues with wanting students to like me versus having them respect me. I realized soon that having that respect is much more important because they are able to see that no matter the relationship I had with them, I was fair with all the students and treated them the way they expected to be treated. I think that helped a lot with the students that weren't very open to me as a new instructor initially, but later warmed to me.

One of the first issues I ran into as a new instructor was how to deal with the many different and often-competing personalities of my students. I had to identify the ones that wanted/needed the most attention as well as the ones that weren't paying attention and were daydreaming. It helped to introduce different types of activities, especially ones that made students get out of their chairs and interact with me and with the other students.

One of the biggest concerns for me is making sure I have a complete lesson plan that not only encompasses the time in class, but also has some extra material in case we get through a lecture or activity early.

Good information. I can use most of these suggestions to help my students stay in class and to help me stay on task.