The Importance of Planning and Prep
Being prepared ahead of time plays the dual role of projecting your professionalism to the students and building confidence in yourself as a responsible educator.
I agree. Being prepared is something that your students will notice. If we lead by example, they are more likely to follow suit.
Hi Shannon,
Congratulations on a great job of planning your course content and instructional delivery. Your comments show the value and benefits of being organized and prepared. New instructors can really benefit from your model because they will be confident of their abilities while knowing they are ready to teach. Thanks for sharing with your method with us.
Gary
I am a planner at home and at work. I make my lesson plans for work weeks in advance so I know what will be coming up. I try to give some time to adjust my plans if the class seems to need more time with a subject matter. I make sure I give my students as much as I can to help them learn. I have each class in a binder in the order we are covering the material. I enjoy doing the prep work for my classes and I put my heart and soul into my work trying to give my students a really great learning experience.
Being prepared is a very important skill I still need to hone. Not only should I be prepared for my job as an instructor, I should be prepared ahead of time in my personal life as well.
Hi Melissa,
I agree with you about the need for planning as an instructor prepares for class. You can't plan too much.
I have seen as I would imagine you have instructors that do not plan and try to just "wing" it during class. This is unfair to the students and I am sure uncomfortable for the instructor.
Even with precise planning there is always plenty of opportunities to have discussions, small groups and other activities based upon how the class develops that day. So by having a good plan you can have the discussions, etc. while knowing you can bring the class right back to where you want them due to your planning. A good feeling for sure.
Gary
While I'm a big believer that there should be room for some improvisation or spontanaiety in the classroom, I cannot imagine a valid or professional instructor arriving to a course without a thorough understanding of what they expect to accomplish in the class, which generally requires significant preparation and planning. The more I plan and prep for a course, the more comfortable I feel in presenting the information to the students.
I agree with planning ahead it shows to the student we are ready to go with the lesson, but also if we are prepared before hand it helps with maintaining our credibility.
I agree. I too have added review materials, case studies and group projects to my classes. I have found that the students do much better with the extra material
It allows you to evaluate the text material, supplemental materials, and the need to develop or create additional materials. You are able to select materials at the correct level of difficulty for your students.
Next it allows you to write clear and concise objectives.
Good lesson plans give you a roadmap for success with your students.
I agree, it gives you the opportunity to make changes to the original plan depending on how well the class is learning the information. Adding review material, case studies, or group projects to re-enforce learning not memorization.
