Orginzation and Reflection
In any type of work environment, and in my opinion, especially teaching, being organized is very important. Organization ensures that the class remains on-task and does not have to stop for any unexpected delay.
Before I started teaching at the college level, I taught high school, where organization is key. I found it very important to have the entire 9 weeks planned out and all assignments ready. I was able to take this organization and apply it to 10-week terms at the college level. When producing the syllabus for any one class, it is important to know what information is to be covered and in what amount of time. I find when starting a new term, I reflect back on the last term to see what worked and what did not. I may have to re-organize the assignments and the time length in which to give the students to work on them. By having everything organized in a binder broken down by weeks, I am able to view the material and go from there.
In order to help my organization of class materials (handouts, readings, PowerPoint presentations), I find that taking a 10-15 minute reflection after each class helps. I keep a notepad at my desk where I write down what worked and what did not; what I want to add to the course next term and what I want to take out; and even write notes and comments on responses from the students to that days lesson. By reflection on the class, it helps me to stay organized and be prepared for future classes.
Hi Laura:
Relection and journalizing are similar tools that are simple, easy to to intiate, and can provide valuable inforamtion about the persoanl dynamics of a class, how the teacher feels about it, and perhaps methods that could be improved on.
I think the module touched on the power of day-dreaming, in the sense that it's healthy to sometimes let your mind just sort of wander about, and related to this post, reflect on how things were planned, how they went, how they could be better, or most important, what the teacher response is. These are good times to reinforce "I really did a good job with xxx" or I'm glad I thought of doing xxx". Good teachers put so much of themselves into their classes and students, it's important for self talk to be positive. Planning time for this positive self talk is part of the preparation process, as you mentioned in your post.
Regards, Barry
