Time management seems to be an ongoing problem on our campus. Either the instructor has packed too much information in a lesson plan and students start to shut down or there isn't enough and there ends up being free time at the end and students get's restless. I appreciated the suggestion to have some alternate activities planned to either review info and think about it in a different way when there is free time. Due to the time constraints of our clock hour program it will be difficult to fix the situation when there is too much information being covered when that almost NEEDS to happen in some cases.
James,
Good deal. I have found if I put the daily agenda on the borad along with any resources the students will need, it helps me and them be ready. In reality, it's only a plan, and more often than not, things go crazy or not as expected. So my plan is just a guide for "best intention's".
Barry Westling
Trying to cram too much into the class. Content must reflect the course offerings in the catalog, however, this is usually the basic level. I have found that as I teach, I am made aware of how realistic the goals are and make adjustments as I can.
You should have student learning outcomes which outline exactly what the goals are. Ensuring that your course material covers this, by matching the SLO's with the chapters, allows you to figure out what the base line is and anything else you can add is more icing on the cake.
Juan,
Well, a good back up plan is always useful. That said, our confidence to present and deliver, and our competence to do it it consistently and accurately is what we are paid to do.
Barry Westling
Instructors benefit by having a text book and students have the capacity to refer to the course or lesson plan.
In my case we don't have a textbook and that can get very "interesting", I have to review the lecture plan in it's entirety a couple of times to feel comfortable with the content and expectations of the class. This is the time that I have to have the plan "B" that we refer to.
Leon,
Good examples. Of course, "been there, done that" is a remembrance of things to avoid in subsequent classes.
Barry Westling
Too advanced for that stage of the course.
Not matching the level of instruction to accomodate for various learning styles.
Not matching the content and sucession to match the experiences and prepartion of the students.
Leon Guendoo
Mary,
Yes, giving unrealistic expectations usually leads to frustration, alienation, and perhaps a diminished respect for the teacher (if done repeatedly).
Barry Westling
also not giving them enough time to complete an assignment or not giving them enough work for the time allowed to complete the assignment
Kelsey,
A good rule to follow I've learned is to stick to the objectives and usually I'll be OK. But it true that sometimes, a lesson will take longer or there may be more questions. In these instances, my experience has been to plan a topic in segments, so if one segment runs longer or shorter, I can adjust the one following it accordingly. In the end, all the objectives are met.
Barry Westling
Biting off more than they can chew! Trying to cover too many concepts or points in too short of time. I have found that I need to focus on the most important concepts for discussion and just briefly highlight the less important concepts.
Mary,
Good answer. I think a great way to avoid this is to make sure the teacher stays close to the course objectives and meets the student learning objectives for the course. In doing so, there will hardly ever be a question of not providing enough information.
Barry Westling
not enough information is provided for student to answer certain questions
Maurice,
As far as selecting curse content, I feel we are safe if we stick close to the objectives, keep things as simple as possible, and try to look at our presentations from the students perspective. This will tend to make sessions more enjoyable, interesting, and of course, educational.
Barry Westling
I feel some mistakes are made when some instructor's fail to care about making a difference in the world
Jason,
I see. And I agree that the teacher who basically tells "war stories" at the expense of planned curriculum is wasting everyones time. It may show a lack of planning, and may result in diminshed respect for the teacher too. Really, too much of anything (educational strategies) is going to get tiresome rather quickly. Thanks for your commentary and clarification.
Barry Westling
I agree that stories are incredibly effective when they are used at the appropriate junctures. My point is that I've seen instructors use stories nearly all of the time which causes a general feeling of disaatisfaction and frustration among the students.
Thanks for theresponse!
Jason Fowers
Jason,
Stories are good to illustrate a point. Unless the class is about "storytelling", these behold asset and augment, not occupy the presentation. Stories are great to introduce a subject, provide an application of a work situation, or help clarify some difficult concept. Students appreciate stories because usually there is something there they can relate to. So, we are actually taking something they already know and merging it with something we want them to know.
Barry Westling
I find that instructors (myself included) can get into a lot of stories and go too long in their presentations so that they miss some of the more important points of the lecture. Being succinct with some anecdotal content is better than droning on only a few subjects.
Philp,
Good Points! The most valuable attribute we possess is the ability to assess where students need help, then be willing to help them by giving our time, and working with them to get them to understand. We might not be able to reach everyone everytime, but our commitment to trying separates the mediocre teacher from the exemplary one.
Barry Westling
