If students have trouble with reading it will be impossible for them to comprehend the content of the information being studied and therefore application of the knowledge cannot happen.
Hi Jean-rene- Thanks for your post to the forum. Absolutely, when we know what our students are capable of we can adjust our teaching to meet the curriculum objectives while keeping general education skills in mind. Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
Hi Teresa - Thanks for your post to the forum. The need for writing/communication skills does seem pretty obvious, but many students just don't get it! Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
By assessing the basic education skills of your students you can design a curriculum that will complement their style of learning. In this way you can provide the best opportunities for students to gain confidence and success.
Hi Olmarys - Yes, the earlier that we can be made aware of general education skills problems, the better our chances of finding tutoring options. Susan
Thanks for your post to the foum. It is troubling to see how so many students have poor reading and writing skills. Being aware of these problems from the onset is essential!
Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career
You have to have general education skills to get and keep a job. Being able to think, write and communicate effectively are basic survival skills in the workplace, community and at home.
When assessing general education, we can often find problems that have not been addressed by previous education up to this point. We often find, in addition to language barriers, learning disabilities that need to be addressed before our specific skills & knowledge can be imparted.
I believe this will guide me as instructor to make me aware of each student's learning abilities
EVERY STUDENT NEEDS TO BE LOOKED AS AN INDIVIUAL IN HOW THEY LEARN SKILL LEVELS IN EACH GIVES US OUR START TO ACCESS WHERE TO BEGIN WITH EACH STUDENT.
It is how we help the student help himself. If we can assess the weaknesses of gen. ed. skills and get the student extra attention in those areas early on, we can make the educational road easier. If we don't make these assessments, we may be setting the student up for failure. That is the last thing we want to do.
It helps us to understand where are students are in the class and if they can understand simple instructions.
Being able to communicate with your "customer" and co-workers is so important. As an instructor you are going into a class to teach a particular topic and if the student does not know the basics that they should be building off of it makes it very hard. We then have to get those students up to speed in a way that will not leave the other students hanging.
Assessment of general education skills is extremely important as it gives the instructor a basis for what instructional methods to use in a class.
Hi Paul- Thanks for your post to the forum. The lack of basic skills is an ongoing problem across disciplines. We can only do the best we can to help those students. Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
It's imperative to have those basic skills. I work with nursing students who have forgoten the basics of writing a 5 paragraph essay. Can't solve a simple equation. Either the skill has been lost or possibly never taught.
In accounting the question might be "What good is a correct financial statement, if the owner doesn't understand how to read it." It may look good for the banks and IRS but the client cannot use it to make business decisions. The value we as accountants bring to the table is not being able to prepare the forms correctly but help the owner(s) understand how his decisons affect the bottom line. If we can not communicate these things, what value do we really have in the owners eyes?
It is important to understand the levels of learning your students have. Since students will have a variety of levels of gen. ed. skills, it is important to their sucess that your teaching/assessment styles are most conducive to their learning.
Hi Laura - Thanks for your post to the forum. Yes, unfortunately we see too many students in post-secondary education who should have acquired those skills earlier in their education but have not. All we can do is to do what we can...
Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
Students may not realize how much these basic skills are important in getting and keeping a job. I incorporate both written and oral communication in my coursework. I believe that writing helps students' thinking skills because they must organize their thoughts into some kind of logical and understandable manner. Oral communication is worked on so students understand how to speak in a professional tone. Assessment of these skills early on in the course will help me to know what areas students need the most help with, and if there is a student I perceive to need more help than the scope of my course, I can recommend them to appropriate resources at the college.
