Hi Timothy,
Good point about how to lead effective discussions. As you pointed out if they are not done correctly they can quickly go a different direction and the real topic becomes lost in the process. This requires good direction from the instructor so the students will remain engaged during the entire discussion time.
Gary
My personal Instuctional Style of course varies by the type of courses which I am instructing. Some courses are limited by the type of courses and the campus requirements and time limits of the course work.
For instance, when I teach keyboarding course I don't tend to lecture through out the course. The program the campus uses does most of the instruction and grading of the course work. What I do is be available to each student to help them when the instuctions are not clear or give types to make the task easier to complete or understand.
When I teach say an accounting course I do a mixure of activies such as lecture, hands on exercies, and having the students do problems on the board.
Most important is that at the beginning of each course I let the students know my limits (such as learning disabilites and health issues) this is to show them I did it so can they. I still have students from former terms coming back to me for help in other courses. To me this shows me that I am doing my job correctly.
One of the most important pieces of a instructor led group discussion is the topic! It has to be something that all students have knowledge of or personal experiences. That way any student can feel confident enough to participate and you as the instructor can call on any individual in the group to contribute to the discussion. I use this method to bring the shy students out of their shells so they can gain some confidence in their own ability and knowledge level.
Hi Timothy,
I like this method as well. I get really good input from my students. Have you found this method to draw out the students that are shy?
Thanks.
Gary
Hi Patricia,
Good plan for professional growth. The more input we have the more we have to work with in terms of improvement. I wish you much success with your students and your helping them to achieve their career goals.
Gary
Hi Jaimie,
Good strategies for enhance the retention of content by your students. The more repetition and application the higher the retention is going to be and it sounds like you have the procedure well developed for your students.
Gary
Hi Brianne,
I agree about the overuse of PPs. If used too much they become a distraction rather than a compliment to the instructional process.
Gary
I enhance by instructoinal style by keeping current on changing technology, going to seminars , taking lots of webinars,and in services .
Speaking with my peers and getting new ideas from them as well. Often I will observe other instructors and see what they have done in the classes to enhance their style.
Power point can be very effective in a classroom, especially for visual learners. The risk you run is what we called in my previous career, is "death by power point". Why don't you try to use the slides as a launch point into discussion instead of just reading to the classroom what is on the slide? Keep the slide information in bullet format with just enough information to trigger your learning objectives or topics for discussion. This will give you more variety in your instructional style.
This is a great option. I also like to observe other instructors indirectly and in doing so, I learn about about other instructional delivery options.
One of the instructional Styles that I really enjoy is using guided discussions. I this style for a couple of reasons, first it requires me to really know the subject matter well and to anticipate student responses for follow-on questioning and secondly I think it is a great way to get everyone involved in the class and also share ideas about the topic.
I continue to develop my instructional style by observing other faculty members and their classes. I also participate in various instructional webinairs on student retention, instructional style and other courses that provide me various topics that will enable me to improve my skills and style.
I often ask my students to evaluate me by asking them what they have learned and their understanding of instruction. I have received mostly positive feedback, but negative I do take into consider and learn from it.
I regularly observe other instructors and try to take the best that I see and encorporate that into my own style. I also read articles relating to my field (and feedback from educators) and attend conferences where teaching forums and competitions are available.
I do the same thing too. How I deliver is based on the course content and the audience. If the course content is lengthy and boring, I change the structure of the class and engage the audience in more group activities and games and it seems to work. I also like to bring up the teaching materials 3 x promote learning retention.
Yes, I agree. And on that note, what you can observe from other instructors can help you to realize what styles and techniques don't work as well!
I try to stay current with Health Care News and updates from the CDC. I think it's important to be knowlegable as to whats currently happening so as to relay information to students that might be useful
Being prepared for the days lecuture, engaging the students and encouraging them to participate in class by asking direct questions to students. I would also like to take more courses on teaching styles and education in general. I am a new teacher so any supplemental courses would be helpful.
I would like to integrate more hands on in the classroom. Also I use a lot of powerpoint, but would like do lecture without powerpoint as well. I think some students learn better without the powerpoint.
Hi James,
I agree with you on this and that is one of the reasons I have stayed in teaching all of my career. I saw a bumper sticker one time that said "To Teach is to Learn Twice" and I really agree with it. Thanks for your comments on this.
Gary
