Knowing Your Topic
It sounds too much like common sense, but it's important that an instructor is very knowledgeable about the subject he/she is teaching and that they are able to clearly define any terms used that may be foreign to the student.
Jorge,
Two good elements for teachers to bring to class each time it meets. Passion for one's field and enthusiasm for teaching is a winning combination.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Real life experiences along with enthusiastic about teaching is a very powerful combination where students will immediately pick up and will not want to blink in your exciting class.... best of luck!
Lisa,
This is common sense yet for many instructors it seems not to be. They try to "wing it" without adequate planning and preparation and then can't figure out why the sessions don't go well. Clear and concise goals, objectives and lesson plans that come alive will move the students toward the knowledge they need to acquire.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Yes, I clearly agree with this....If an instructor is not clear on a subject matter how is the student going to be able to clearly understand the topic. Thus it takes time and research on the instructors part to be able to instruct on content clearly and concisely.
Samuel,
Plus you have many examples you can share with your students that will reinforce the content you are sharing with them. As a result they will see both relevancy and application to what is being taught.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Having worked in my field for 27 years.. field exp. Defiantly counts. It also creats topics..
Barbara,
I do to. In addition sharing examples from the career area increases the ROI for students as they start to see how they will be soon applying the content and skills they are learning.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I think it definately adds zest to the subject matter whenever the instructor is able to include real life experiences.
Bianca,
I believe the answer to that question lies in how you share your life experiences. I would suggest you take the key concepts that your students need to gain from your course and then select life examples that illustrate how the situations were handled or the problems solved. This will help your students to gain the key concepts while making applications of the stories that you share with them.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I have more of a question than a reply; In my area of instruction I tend to focus more on life matters; I have experienced differnt things in life, most of which has brought me to the place where I am today. My question is when relating my experiences to my students as a form of motivation to go a more sucessful route, would that also be classified as being knowledgable about subject matter?
Barbara,
Good point about common sense in relation to being competent and prepared. It certainly is true but sometimes instructors seem to focus more other aspects of instruction and forget their primary goal is the communication of content and student learning.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
