Great point on being early. Rarely do things fully go as planned. If you work ahead of the schedule, it allows you the time that is needed to regroup and adjust where needed. In many instances it may even be seemless to the student.
I have learned to keep a listing of the institutions and courses that are being instructed. Part of this listing is noting important dates and deliverables. If you are instructing more than one course, or for multiple institution you can quickly get lost in the work demands. By documenting your own activities, and the key deliverable dates you improve your chances of staying on top of the workload. Also you need to plan ahead. If you have other projects such as consulting engagements that your know will be starting, consider if it is the best time to instruct a course. You want to provide quality on all fronts, and this is not always possible if you are burning the candle from both ends.
Dave,
I definitely like to do thing a big earlier rather than later. I even provide content, discussion boards, etc. to students to allow them to see them earlier rather than later. Thanks!
Amy,
And, many times, it's not time management skills, but priority management. It's difficult, but important. Thanks for continuing to learn when you can.
Thanks for your input.
Be a little early for everything to allow for a buffer. Take a speed reading course (Institute for Reading Development headquartered in Bethesda, MD). Block out focused hours with no distractions.
As an instructor for three different schools and a course load of 6-10 classes per term, I have had to learn to parcel out time for each class over a daily/weekly schedule. I have learned to delegate a certain period of time for each class/element in an outlook schedule. Unfortunately, this does not allow me time to pursue my own education further.
