William Meruvia

I am excited as I teach primarily for a veteran specific school that supplies veterans with post education to help transition back into civilian life so these strategies learned throughout this course will assist me greatly in that journey.

It is important to understand that even if you were in the military your experience might have been different than others. It is important to understand that students should feel invited into the classroom, and not feel that their background has a negative influence on their learning. In fact their background should be celebrated as a unique opportunity to provide diversity to the classroom.

Instructors need to understand specifically for the subset of students that are veterans that the job could have come with massive effects on them and this could influence the way that they participate in the classroom. It is essential to consider these aspects not only when designing content, but also how as instructors we communicate with all students.

Veterans are a unique subgroup of students that come to the classroom with unique perspectives that can enhance a classroom greatly. There is an understanding that needs to happen of what type of job veterans have and also how to best support them whether they are still in service or not.

From this module it has me thinking of my future classes, and how I can better prepare students for upcoming material. This can be providing learning opportunities outside of the course along with providing demonstrations or pre-work to help them engage before they interact with the material.

In this module I learned the importance of creating a classroom environment that promotes students from day one to be engaged with the class along feel comfortable on how to interact with new content.

Within the module the same discussion about preparation is made, but one of the most important things that I gained from this module was to really review the syllabus, and make sure that the correct rules, procedures, and policies are in the syllabus as it will serve as your anchor for the year.

I think what I took from this module is the importance of being prepared. Being able to effectively teach starts with the background work that is done along with clear goals of how we are instructors can improve throughout our teaching career.

Communication is such a valuable tool in the online environment. Consistent communication in clear ways can help students and instructors gain rapport with each other and over time this can develop into a sense of trust that learning is the most important aspect.

It can make a world of difference of students when you actively participate in the course while also providing feedback that is not only useful but shows that you are part of a learning community.