Cheryl Cassiano

I love these fresh and fun ideas to build skills with our students. I will definitely utilize these, especially the one on observation. 

Being prepared and overpreparing would be a technique that I would employ. It's better to have too much material then to be scrambling to fill empty time. Also, I currently get bounced around between different groups of students at times, and that makes it difficult to remember names. 

I like the idea of taking notes when a student has a complaint. It would make them feel that they're being listened to and take seriously, as well as documenting the interaction should further steps be necessary. 

Love the idea of rotating rows of seating so everyone can have an opportunity to be up front in the classroom. I also like the ideas for having a little more control over the students who like to talk. Having them be the observer is a great idea and allows them to have that center stage when reading the summary. I feel that when students hear the same information in different ways from different people, it helps set it into their memory. So win-win for everyone with that method. 

I like the idea of a more interactive/group process for the icebreaker. Also, the importance of reminders of due dates. 

Very useful tips on how to help students with learning disabilities. Have any techniques helped in the past? Auditory or visual enhancements. More time. 

Great information on how to assist students that English is a second language. From the bare basics of learning the letters and corresponding sounds, to putting the word into a meaningful sentence and all that falls between. 

Now I understand why at my previous job, for group activities, they would go through the room assigning each person a number, 1-5 (or however many groups they wanted). Then the groups were completely random and of equal size that were not too large. Makes sense now!

The pause after a question or important point. I had a professor who would color code his powerpoint lecture points and had a very distinct accent. He would stop and point at the important points, which were in red, "is this in red? is this important? could you see this in a test question worded like this? could you see this in a test question worded like that?" It was an accelerated course and we all passed with flying colors due to his teaching methods. You would literally hear his voice in your head while taking the exam and see… >>>

Grading can be very complex. As the clinical instructor, it seems a little more straightforward. Either the student can perform the skill, verbalize understanding of concepts/medications . . . or not. I like to pose questions that allow the student to elaborate on what steps they would take to problem solve or take care of a patient. I know what key points I expect them to touch on and give the points that way.