Time Management
What time management strategies do you use to ensure that you are “keeping pace†with your lesson plans?
When planning lessons, I feel that it is always important to stop periodically and check for student understanding, rather than waiting until test day to realize that students are not understanding the material. Students will also not feel comfortable interupting to ask questions, so it is important to provide the opportunity for questions to be asked throughout the lecture, rather than just at the end of the lesson.
Jennifer ,
Thank you for your post. It is important that instructors create a relaxed classroom environment, in which the students can feel comfortable with participating in discussions. As an instructor, I have periodically provided the students with quick, "ice breaker" activities
(prior to the lecture), which have assisted in the level of student participation during the lesson.
Tremayne Simpson
I do concept checks throughout the lesson. I also plan for half an hour of time in the class period for students to work on things that are assigned when I am available to answer questions. If it appears that a lot of people are not getting it, we can review certain concepts as a class.
Jane,
This is a great method for assessing student comprehension. Actually having the students complete assignments in class, gives the instructor an opportunity to see if the student is able to appropriately apply learned concepts. In addition, "teachable moments" can be created based upon the types of questions or concerns that the students have with the assignment.
Tremayne Simpson
My strategy for time management is to always have lesson plans. this way i am able to keep all coursework on track.
Bruce,
I agree that lesson plans can naturally improve an instructor's time management. However, in most cases, there are deviations (usually generated by intriguing class discussions) during a lecture that may alter the planned lesson. With that in mind, it is important that instructors allow for flexibility in their lesson plans.
Tremayne Simpson
I totally agree Jennifer, I do the same thing. In addition I always like to take a little of today's lesson to review what we did the day before and try to find a way to segue between the two. Really anchor what we talked about the day before and then connect it to what we are about to discuss. Usually only takes a few minutes and can help immensely.
Jeff,
I agree as well. A daily lesson review provides the students with a proper transitional period, before they are introduced to a new lesson. Also, it is a good way to see if the students have retained information from the previous class discussion.
Tremayne Simpson
our classes are three weeks long so we must stay on track. I have found on the first day if i tell the students how the course is laid out and that i start ON TIME. i like to hit the ground running. i let the students know how much we need to finish that day/week and any extra time after we have finished can be used for working or testing their own cars. they seem to work at a better pace this way. i also watch for any holidays and the weather forecast that might leave us a day short with all that days work still needing to be done. to keep the class moving when you have a student who wants to side track the class i tell them we will "park" the question until the end of the day and if time permits talk about it then and if needed i will stay after class. this will sort out the questions quickly if they are not willing to use their time as opposed to class time for their questions it could not be that important to them.
I do a pre-lecture lecture to myself. I can judge off of that how long it will take and get an idea of how many course related stories and experiences I can share as I go.
after teaching a course for a length of time, you learn where you can add in real life examples, when teaching a class for the first time i write down exactly how the lead instructor managed the class, then follow that as my guide.
Using the course Syllabus and after the first couple of Days you get the feel for the class and then planning can be made accordingly .
John,
This is an effective method for assessing the time that it takes to deliver a lecture. In addition, it enables you to review the content and add additional questions, depending on the amount of time that is taken.
Tremayne Simpson
I try to stay on track as much as possible according to the syllabus. If I stray, I have to be flexible and fit in that particular objective elswhere. I always try to leave myself a cushion of window of time though.
Crystal,
I agree. It is important to leave time in the schedule (typically towards the end of the course) to allow for discussion of missed learning objectives. "Flex time" also provides us with the opportunity to "check-in" with students for retention of information and how they will apply the information in the future.
Tremayne Simpson
I often engage students in active discussion sessions pertaining to the topic.
using a time table laying out when each section should be presented will help keep things on track
Experience with the material is the best. I also know that I have to finish and try to save questions til the end.
Hello,
I try not to overwhelm students with too much information. Three is a number that works for me. I usually cover three main topics. I always have extra related material in case I need to utlize more time, but this rarely happens.
Carol Myslinski
