Joshua Petersen

Joshua Petersen

About me

Activity

Mindmapping is the concept of taking a central point, demonstrating branches of a topic, and elaborating concepts. I first learned about mindmaps in a leadership training I facilitated. It was used as a review technique for participants but I have since tweaked the approach so it fits as a pedagogy in my class. I begin the class by presenting the "key" concept for the day and place this in a circle or box. I find this works best on a whiteboard. From this central concept, I facilitate discussion and add appendages and topic bubbles. I generally wait until the class… >>>

I have found that PowerPoint is overused and presented poorly in instruction today. There are so many other ways to teach. I like to use mindmaps, discussion trees, guided worksheets, and case studies to teach my classes. By varying how I present the material, I am better able to keep the students engaged and keep the class fresh.

I find that ice breaking activities are helpful the first day. Unfortunately, we (teachers) often fail to continue using activities to create group cohesion and togetherness. Imagine if you are in a class that meets once or twice a week. By the time your next class rolls around, you've already forgotten most of the people in class and you may be experiencing apprehension anew. I find that a quick 3-10 minute activity really helps accelerate class cohesion. Doing this for the first two or three class periods streghtens the group. Taking a few minutes out of class is a small… >>>

Discussion Comment
I have taught in corporations, public universities, career colleges. My experience with planning and preparation has been different depending on the venue. One of the consistant parts of planning is making sure the time allotted for class matches with the current material presented. Students can tell if I am stretching or streamlining material. That is why I feel planning and preparation is so important as an educator.

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