When I was a student, I figured teachers just had a syllabus and that was that -- one size fits all. Not so! With each new cycle of students, I find things I can do to my syllabus to make it more useful to both me and my students. It's also a chance for me to look at what worked, what didn't and what I can do better. Unfortunately, we don't always have time to do that; but when it's there, use it. Don;t wait until you change textbooks to rework that syllabus. Just my thoughts ... John

Early on in my teaching career (clear back a year and a half ago! LOL), I think I tried too hard to be "one of them" and not be the teacher, per se. Funny, too, that I am not your typical just-graduated-from-college 20-something, but rather I am a mid-50' veteran of the newspaper wars. So I think my efforts to be "cool" can be attributed to the age factor. Now, I am finding it much easier to be their fiend in a teach-appropriate way without crossing that line of being their "pal" but it took me a few cycles of students and a couple of bad experiences with students who were a bit too clingy (needy) to see where that appropriate line is to be drawn. I find these days if you take even a few minutes just to get to know them, to learn about their problems and their hopes and such, that's really all they are looking for from you, the teacher. They need to know that their partner in their educational adventure is on board and there for them, not that they are there because they got tirted of going to work every day and teaching is just easier (there actually are fools out therte who believe that!) ... I love teaching, and it is my relationships with my students that make my job so rewarding. Just my thoughts ... John Bryan

Teaching the same information in many different ways to determine the best or most effective way to educated the special needs student.

WHAT IF....The topic happens to be a topic that you are less informed on and the students even seem to be more informed than yourself?

I am a instructor in a technical school. Many times students are enrolled who are very limited in reading and speaking English. I cannot hold the class back for them, but where is the line drawn between their needs and the rest of the class?

I have found that in Classes today with multiple cultures you realy need to be prepared for anything. Some times going one step ahead of the regular class preperation. You have to prepare or should I say be prepared at all times. If your not then you have just lost some of your class due to waiting on the additional materials you need to help them and this may just cause that one student to drop out of your class.

I Have seen this happen too often in the past. The student becomes pals with an Instructor then when the student doesn't perform and starts to fail, the Instructor is the one the student will blame for their misfortune. As a professional our standards must be set higher than the student level. Dress,Language and Conduct lead to better role models,managers,and motivators.

I give multiple choice tests as well as practical tests. I will give the multiple choice test first and then grade them together as a group so we can discuss the correct and wrong answers as they come up. I want to correct the porblem as soon as it occurs rather than sending them home thinking their wrong answer was right.

I teach a six-to-eight week technical certification course. During the first class, in addition to many of the items on the To Do list, I often lecture on the first chapter in our text. This is not a necessity, as there is plenty of time to get through the material - I do it to give the students a feel for the "theoretical" portion of the course. Do you think this is too much for the first class?

I believe soft skills are very important and are often over looked by instructors. I teach my students as if each day is a job. I inform them at the beginning of the course why I expect them to be on time, prepared and have a good attitude. They are required to clock in and out at the beginning and end of class as well as for lunch. If they are more than ten minutes late, they have to makeup an hour. They can bring up their whole grade by the evaluation of their team work. The students will complain, of course, at the beginning; but I have had many students thank me for teaching them a good work ethic in addition to the course objectives.

To help students that are too shy in class to speak up, I will put the students in discussion groups. I will then ask a question and give them time to discuss it among themselves briefly. Then one student can answer for the group. I find that this sometimes allows the shy student to build up their confidence first in a small group before they are ready to respond to the whole class. I have found that as the class progresses, that shy student tends to participate more as a whole.

How does the learning style of the instructor influence their teaching style? I wonder if the learning style of the instructor is Visual, is it harder for them to teach in an auditory method? I am a visual person but I tend to lecture more to my students.

I teach applied electronics at a career college, I've noticed that many students like my classes because they are hands-on. But there's is always a number of students that prefer more theory and I would like some suggestions on how to integrate more theory in a hands-on course.

I have never been in a "classroom" but I have been a part of helping students throught tutoring and homework. After going through this module regarding assessments, I have a much, much better view on how I can further help the students I tutor. Now I know how I can see if they actually understand and learn what I am helping them with. Just makes it easier for me to help them. I am really enjoying these modules. I'm sure glad I took them!!

I admit that I under-dress for class. That being said, I teach a technical certification course where the students are predominately young adults dressed in jeans, tee shirts, and flip-flops. As I dressed professionally the first few weeks, a line quickly appeared. This line was clearly erased around the third week, when I started to dress as they did. My point is that, as in life, every situation is different. By my breaking protocol, the students better related to me; yet, in my opinion, I was still able to be a successful model, manager and motivator. Does this indeed show a lack of professionalism, as this module would have you believe?

With such a variety of students that enter the classroom, teachers need methods that allow all students to learn as effectively as they can. Howard Gardner's theories on multiple intelligences will help teachers understand how students learn, modify and provide various methods of teaching, and develop a positive learning environment. Each class should provide the students with several methods in which they are able to learn and participate. Provide the students with tactile, spatial, verbal, written, and logical activities to help them all succeed. Also, students can be grouped by their M.I. so they can really express themselves. How do you know what intelligence a student is? There are several short tests available and you can have them do the test during their first class meeting - it can even be used as a get to know you activity.

Something that I'm starting to do is take my classes to our library (we have a small campus, and it's literally just across the hall). We have researched topics for papers, and even tried out a website to help my students learn how to cite sources. This is especially good around 9pm when they're starting to nod off.

If you want improve your classroom management, there are several things that can help you. Being prepared for the first day of school is one of the most important attributes needed for successful classroom management besides being consistent. Having planned out the course, looked over the textbook, and created your quizzes, tests and assignments will assist in you having a full understanding of the learning objectives and of how the assessments and learning activities correspond to each objective. We also need to have our gradebooks ready by the first day, so we can learn and practice students' names before we meet them. It also assists us in taking roll the first day - why wait until 5 minutes before class to get a class roster?. This will also make learning students quicker, which in turn helps to minimize undesirable behavior in the classroom. Besides planning for the course, we need to develop a syllabus that describes the course, objectives, policies and procedures, course outline, and a little bit about you. Make sure you go over the syllabus with the class so they know exactly what they will learn, what they need to do to succeed, and how you manage the class. This will be a time for them to raise any questions or concerns they have about the course. The syllabus also helps to re-enforce the policies and procedures of the class and school; incase a situation does arise, you have the syllabus to refer to. This will help you be fair and consistent with each situation. Furthermore, to help make classroom management easier make sure that you are ready for the first day. Have copies of the syllabus and handouts ready, classroom organized and clean, arrive to class early, meet each student prior to the start of the class (if possible), start your class on time, be dressed appropriately, and set the example from the second the students walk through the door because you are the one the students want to strive to be like. One last thing, don't try to be their friend; instead, be their teacher and help them grow.

I've taught for a while, and always felt a little guilty about the getting-to-know-you activities I do with the students on the first day of class. I guess I felt like it wasn't really "necessary". So it's good to learn that not only is it o.k., it's a desirable way to build rapport.

I'm wondering how much supplemental material can play a part in Gen Ed classes such as Prep English or Math 101. Do any of you have ideas you're currently using? So much of what we do is limited by the abilities of our students, in addition to the time constraints of the course.