Barry Westling

Alisha, Better classes and graduate outcomes will occur and be evident in courses where the instructor takes the time, effort and planning to prepare, both for expected and the unexpected. Barry Westling

John, You're right. And this is a very nice feeling when a student experiences it. Barry Westling

Kathryn, I believe all grading criteria should be presented and discussed at the beginning of the course, printed in the syllabus, and maintained without arbitrary adjustment throughout the course. Too many students can be tempted to substitute required work for EC work and expect to get credit. To me this doesn't seem fair to good students who earn all their grades honestly and as directed. Barry Westling

Kathryn, To address this particular situation, as much as possible I try to get the most important information covered at the beginning of the class (not always possible) to insure that if time goes over some or runs out, I will have at least taken care of the most important material I want to give. Barry Westling

Kathryn, Animated, enthusiastic and upbeat instructors seem to always get good feedback from their students. As I go on, I find it takes more and more energy, interest and focus to keep the level of enthusiasm up day after day. But the feedback I get makes it balance out at the end of a module. Barry Westling

Richard, A personal version of the journal is the diary. What's nice with a teaching journal is that is is personal and only for the eyes of the author. Comments and posts put in can be reflected on a later time to reveal reminders, or even show growth and improvements made over time. Barry Westling

Kathryn, It's nice to have a change of pace from time to time, and both activities are good ones to fill that task. A good experience can open eyes, shed light on lesser emphasized topics, or expand on areas perhaps not thought about. Few field trips or guest speakers I have scheduled have resulted in poor results. Barry Westling

Lisa, I believe every student comes to our classes with unique collections of past experiences and prior knowledge. I use pretesting when my information about prior knowledge is scant or absent. It serves as a barometer of what I might need to adjust, modifify, emphasize, or not spend as much time as I had originally planned. Barry Westling

Lisa, I think a good way to assess student goal attainment is evaluation of their readiness to enter the work force. Ultimately, the employer will be the final dtermination as to the graduates achievement of goals. I think if we focus on assuring the course objectives and student learning objectives are met, we will have provided the requisite skills, knowledge, and professional behavior for successful employment. Barry Westling

Jeff, Right. We all perform better when we have the necessary information to make decisons and act on our own behalf. When students have current information they are able to make judgements about how to cultivate the best strategies for study, improvements, or adjustments to plans towards the goal of successful achievement in the course. Barry Westling