I teach in a field where when they have completed college they are to take a state and national exam. We need to move our students from memorizing the material for the test and forgetting it to actually having them retain the info. How are they planning on passing the board exams if they aren't actually learning the material? I have started to use cumulative testing and that is seeming to help with that.

Having taught computer networking at the college level for the last 10 years I don't think I have ever taught a class the same way twice. I am always discovering new ways of doing things, items that I would do differently, and just trying to learn from my mistakes and what works and doesn't. I think an Instructor has to always be flexible in accepting change. I'm always interested in how other instructors do things in their classroom. There are some classes where the whole thing just feels boring to me and so I have to mix it up. Sometimes students ask valid questions that take more time to answer than I planned for but I actually enjoy that. It makes for a much more active room and then I can bring it all back to how it relates to the original topic. Rod Wright

This module has inspired me regarding how students see me in classroom; the way I manage the class, present the material, including my body language. It is important to know myself and my intentions on teaching the materials, but more important, in my opinion, to know how my students perceive me and the material. I like to stop my lecture and ask for feedback from students. From there I may consider presenting material with different strategy or addressing specific concern from one or more of the students. Also, I am thinking of new method of evaluating myself; videotape one of my lectures and watch myself. I believe I will be able to see things that students see, but I never thought about. Some of them are worth changing.

I Try to teach and instruct by considering all the different type of learning styles. Implementing them into my class ensures me that no student is getting left behind. I also tell my students that if they are having trouble learning to speak with me so that I may approach a different way in delivering the material.

My college has gone to a standardized curriculum for 14+ schools in my field, therefore there is a standardized syllabus and point system. It can be very frustrating, especially after this course, to see areas where I have the skills and knowledge to make a better experience for the student yet I am bound not to make changes. Any suggestions for dealing with this? I've tried drinking when I get home, and it helps to a certain extent, but it's not very usefull when the guy that made this decision for me is 2000 miles away.

As a librarian, the tests I give are always practice, sometimes instructors give points, we tell the students this ahead of time. If, students are able to do my in-class quizzes correctly, the result is that they will do well on their research papers. If, someone is having trouble I offer them the solution of stopping in and asking for more assistance.

As, a librarian my tests are not for points while I am teaching but for points students will receive in their research papers for excellent citation and reference pages. So, all of my work is a pre-test. I first pre-test by giving the students an article on a powerpoint slide and ask them how to cite it. This, of course is after I have explained citation and how it works, and why it is so important. Then, I show the correct format, and ask for questions. After a couple of these types of in-text citation tries, I then have students work in groups citing an article from a magazine. This approach reinforces the learning and I of course explain that the library is open for questions, and there is not "stupid question."

I find that as a librarian that hands on learning helps students learn citation ruled extremely well. First, however, I must teach them the rules and I use PowerPoints coupled with lecture on the topic.

As, a librarian, I constantly encourage field trips to the library from classes, so that students will become expert users of library resources. If, students get to see what their field of work looks like outside of the class this helps them to become more focused on their studies.

What kind of rubrics do some of you utilize as your giving students extra credit in a project? Do you use their creativity?

What strategies have you utilized to get this accomplish in your classroom?

Instructors who are disorganized lead the students to believe that said instructors do not know anything about the subject matter.

I enjoyed this topic on powerpoints. I use powerpoints generally for all classes that I teach. Students seem to appreciate keypoints of the overall lecture. I agree that you must be careful with the audio simply because you want to keep the focus on the lecture and not to distract them with sounds.

I really enjoyed this topic. I was able to easily figure out what type of instructor I am. I am a very passionate person who cares about my students. Everyone single one. It is imperative for me to know every student involved in my program. I agree that is very important to take a look at yourself because we as facilitators should set the example for our students. This is something that instructors should do day in and out. There is a common saying "practice what we preach". It should reflect in our daily lives especially for our students to see.

Grades are a instrumental on evaluating class room material but hands on labs and soft skills are equally important

Once several tests and homework assignments have been completed and several class sessions have been recorded, I share the students grades with them. On the first day of class, I explain where the numbers come from. When they receive their grade they are usually surprised to see it is better than they expected having all the factors of the total grade considered. So even a student who is having difficulty with the subject and has not done well on test, can feel that their homework and class participation counts as well.

On the first day of class, I ask each student how much they know of or their experience with the subject matter. It helps to know where they are coming from. I also encourage students with prior knowledge or experience to tutor other students who are studying the subject for the first time.

I believe that field trips play an important role in giving a student a first hand look at how they apply what they learn in the real work setting. It also lets them see things in action and helps motivate them to do well and be successful.

Field trips enable students to visualize individuals operating in the profession.

i allow my students to earn extra credit in the first few weeks of class and in order to have it applied to their final grade they must have 90%attendance in the course