Jennifer Evans

Think about how you are communicating with your students- be specific, break tasks down.

The IEP only applies to the K-12 educational system.  It is hard for college instructors to identify teaching strategies that work due to limited time with student, but review of strategies from previous IEPs can help.

I learned about the challenges of adults with high functioning autism.  As an instructor of adults in a fast paced and challenging technology training program, adults who have challenges in organization, planning, understanding abstract concepts, retaining information, managing time, and central coherence may need more support in order to succeed.

I learned that the current diagnosis of Autism is based on communication/interaction and restricted/repetitive behaviors only.  I learned about the characteristics of autism and will be more conscious of them if they are exhibited by students.

You must transform your content in order for it to work in the online classroom environment.  It is important to use techniques to increase student engagement in the online learning environment, such as welcome letters, engaging in online discussions, and providing synchronous engagement. 

Student engagment and timely and effective feedback are critically important factors in achieving high student outcomes.

An organized and effective pattern of teaching (e.g., communication tools, content delivery system, assignment submission) is important to student success.  Students must understand the learning objectives or they may feel lost.

I learned that in order to engage students and maximize student learning it is important to understand your teaching style, match the appropriate teaching tool to the learning objective, and reflection and feedback is important for continual improvement.