You also have to take into consideration your own emotions and mental well-being. If teaching the same thing gets too repetitive for the instructor, his delivery will suffer. I try to see if I can come up with different ways to present the same material to spice up MY life.
when you teach the same course continually it does get easier but then again your always trying to improve your delivery and content. So the amoount of work you put into developing is far greater than the teaching portion of your time
Hi Earl,
You make a very good point. We need to keep through the different methods the course content so our students can get "it".
Gary
I've found that no matter how well I think I know the material, I learn so much more. The second time through the class I'll reread the text and pick up on things I missed the first time through. And I'll have those things in my notes, they just didn't register the first time. Imagine how hard it is for students hearing and reading all the information for the first and, sometimes, only time. It reinforces why we sometimes seem to be just repeating the text.
Hi Chiarina,
You are right about the dynamics changing with each class. I have to take a number of different approaches each time I teach a new group of students based upon how they come together as a learning group. This is both the challenging and fun part of being a teacher.
Gary
Annie,
Stay motivated. It gets easier and easier every time you teach the same course. The only difficulty is when there are updates to your industry. You want to make sure you stay current. Sometimes the world of academia is far removed from the practical work force!
This is true. But I have found that a lot depends on the audience. Sometimes the students are a nice mix of adult learners from different backgrounds and other times there is a predominant generation group. The course content in the same, but the questions differ very much sometimes!
Hi Jane,
Thanks for sharing this formula with the participants. This is really beneficial for new instructors to know, since for many of them they don't know if they will be able to keep up. This gives them hope and they will get control of their schedules and will be able to devote more time to refining their courses after a few phases.
Gary
Hi William,
This is a good point. We need to strive to get better and better each time we teach a course. Some courses I have taught for years and I like you try to incorporate a little twist here, a new strategy there just to see if it will improve the course. This also keeps me excited about teaching the course since I am trying something new.
Gary
You've hit the nail on the head...the first time I teach a course, I schedule ten hours of prep time for every hour of class. The second and third time, I usually need about five hours of prep time for every hour of class, due to refining my delivery (and replacing or refining those activities that didn't go over well). When I am pleased with the course, I usually need about one hour of prep time (making handouts, reviewing materials, arranging the class) for every hour of class...and one hour of "post-class" time for grading, tutoring, etc.
I do find the more often you teach the same course the more refined the course becomes.
afetr teaching a course several semesters, I end up always changing a few things trying it to get just perfect
Hi Annie,
Right you are about draining the mind. There is a lot of pressure on instructors as they try to deliver content, keep the class organized, manage student behavior and provide instructional support. Working through the content the first time is hard but as you say the next time it will be a breeze. The next time you can spend time focusing on areas that you want to improve because you know how the course is going to go in its' present state since you have already taught it.
Gary
