Get Your Students Hired
The instructor is, in fact, the key to retaining our students which means that they, in their person, are able to provide a secure, comfortable and trusting learning environment. It's great to have the best looking classroom with state-of-the-art equipment. It's works well for the admissions process, the tour the applicant takes. But all the student really wants is to know that they are being given the freedom to learn in a non-threatening atmosphere. We train our instructors on the Friendly, Firm and Fair theory. We simply refer to it as the three F's. This can and probably should be modified to include 'Consistent'. These traits not only help guarantee success for the student but for the instructor as well.
Les
I believe that your contention about the physical environment is absolute true. A quality instructor can rise above most any situation if they are prepared and dedicated to providing quality learning opportunities.
The finest environment staffed by an unqualified instructor will only be a fine environment, not a focal point for learning.
The key issue of the physical environment is for you as the instructor to see the environment through the eyes of the students so you can see how you might improve the physical setting so it is not a distraction. This might mean a coat of paint, clearing clutter up or rearranging the lab stations. These simple things can keep the physical environment in a secondary setting rather than letting it become a source of student complaints. I have taught in some real difficult physical settings, but by helping the students to make the learning site their own and doing some basic maintenance I was able to have very successful classes. It as you said quality instructors with quality attitudes make the difference.
Gary
The physical environment plays an important role. However it is my contention that the instructor is key in setting the climate and that is most important.
Give me a great instructor in not the best physical environment and we can still have great success. I do not believe the converse is true.
Obviously we want the best of all worlds!
Many instructors don't really understand how important the learning environment really is to their students'success. They just assume that the class will unfold by itself and everything will be fine. Keeping in mind that many of our students are returning to school for the first time in many years and are very nervous about their chances for success. In addition, with the time delay from when they were last in school and the present their academic skills may have become rusty so they are very concerned about such items as notetaking, test taking, and report writing.
A friendly supportive learning environment just as you have outlined will do much to relieve many of those concerns. The environment is not only physical but mental as well. Instructors have to work hard so the students will "feel" comfortable in the classroom and "feel" that they have many options available for course success.
Classroom management is a must for instructors as you have mentioned and there are many different ways that they can maintain control. The simple fact is that if the instructor doesn't maintain control the students will. We all know that it is a hole lot easier to be the one in control, but I cannot tell you how many times I have seen the students running the class to the frustration of everyone. These types of classes require some quick interventions to regain control or those types of instructors are going to be gone very shortly. In most cases this is sad because they have experiences and content that needs to be shared they just can't manage the learning environment.
The learning environment is key to the instructional process. Adult learners need to have an environment which allow for learing in a controlled yet caring environment. Many of the adult learners, that are in our classes today, need to have a learning environment in which the instructor keeps control at all times. This includes but is not limited to: allowing for interruptions of fellow classmates, keeping discussions on track and related to the subject matter, yet allowing all students equal time for an exchange of ideas. The instructor must manage the environment in the classroom if the objective of the class is to be reached.