Get Your Students Hired
As a new nursing instructor, I am very excited and passionate about teaching. As a nurse who has experienced burnout, what is the best way to prevent burnout and maintain my passion for teaching?
Patricia,
I wish you success with this strategy. Let me know how it works for you.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
thank you...that is helpful. I think the group method may work, and, perhaps, as you said a "case study". My class is Business Organizations -- it is law based, and it is introductory in the sense of teaching the students what the different types of business organizations that exist, and their role in a law office as paralegals.
Patricia,
Hang in there. This can and often happens to all instructors. You are already doing some good things in terms of trying to engage your students and help them get through the "dry" parts of the course. I would suggest you try to find alternative ways to deliver the content or show relevance. Can you use small groups to work on case studies? How about student presentations where 2-3 students present as a panel on some topic? Anything that will break up the flow of the class and give the students a break from straight lecture. Is it possible to create any types of games where the students can share what they have learned in a competitive format? As I am not familiar with your field in terms of how the content is presented I am just offering some ideas to get you thinking about how you can keep the focus of your students and not run out of steam completely. I wish you much success as you continue your efforts.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
How can I stay motivated with certain subjects that are "dry"? I am an attorney...some classes have nothing really excited. I do try to make it relevant to their lives and use current examples and different methods of relaying the material....I'm losing steam...Need help.
Michelle,
Good strategy for you to follow as you can quickly become bored and in a routine when teaching multiple sections of the same course. This August I will be teaching three sections of the same course and I am already working on ways to make each class different in terms of engagement so I can keep my passion for the content and enthusiasm for teaching at the highest level possible.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
What I try to do is connect with each class, their learning stlye, goals and challenge myself to creat a custom version of the lesson plan (while still keeping true to the course objectives and requirements) to challenge them and give each lesson relevance to their "end in mind". This make each class unique and allows me to feel challenged even though I am teaching the same material again and again.
Kelly,
Good question that many educators ask as they work with students at different stages of their career education. I would focus as the learning leader on the components that you help your students learn about and become knowledgeable in this early in their educational efforts. If you can give examples of how what they are learning now will apply once they are further into their course sequence they will start to see that their are a lot of sub-parts to becoming a nurse that become over time and effort the total of what a nurse is to be.
Easier said than done is to try and leave their frustrations at school and focus on your life outside of the classroom so they don't overwhelm you by having you carry home their stress and angst. Concentrate on the positives that are coming out of having these beginners how you are impacting their career development.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I also struggle with the same thing. Mostly I get frustrated reminding the students that they are 1st term and they will not be able to put all the pieces together yet to be a nurse, that will come with time in your practice.
I feel like I am taking a lot of their stress and angst home with me at the end of the day. How do we remain engaged, enthusiastic, but present with good boundaries?
Lauren,
Look for how you can connect with your students, in other words the human factor. As your students will change each time you teach your courses you get a fresh start in sharing your passion for your field with them and helping to shape their future. By keeping this opportunity before you and looking for ways to expand your expertise as an educator you should be able to remain motivated for years to come. Another tip is not to take on the problems of your students as your own. If you do you will start to become overwhelmed and burn out will creep in.
I wish you much success in your new career and I know you will impact the lives of your students for years to come.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.