Barry Westling

Hi Mike: Good decription of one way to appropriately use PPT in your instructional delivery. Regards, Barry

Hi James: Great self analysis commentary. I like the axiom you used, "less me". It really is about the student. Regards, Barry

Hi Paul: Great points. I would add that in math-oriented sessions, having individual students demonstrate their work to the class can help strengthen the students confidence, reinforce their understanding, and provide a degree of leadership and mentoring to weaker students or those having difficulty with selected equations. I'm sure you use this technique when applicable. Regards, Barry

Hi Craig: Absolutely - any kind of assessment (quiz, test) for that matter, anything that's graded has to be fairly applied to all students. Students lose respect for instructors they feel play favorites. Regards, Barry

Hi Craig: Ah....the beauty of a well planned back-up plan. Regards, Barry

Hi Craig: It sounds like you've found an effective method to reaching your students, with or without PPT. I think there's a way to use PPT without it dominating the students attention and too many instructors either rely on it too much, over use it, or deliver poorly designed slides. Darn, it's hard to have too much PPT all at one time! Anyway, good that you've weaned yourself away from too much PPT. Regards, Barry

Hi Carol: Yes, which underscores the point that just being knowledgeable about a topic doesn't necessarily make for a good instructor. Regards, Barry

Hi William: What a great idea. The students work at learning in a fun and interesting way. And you still get to clarify or emphasize important points that may have been missed. Terrific! Regards, Barry

Hi Craig: Great - critical thinking ultimately helps the student much more than just feeding information and rote memorization. Your natural tendency towards Socratic methods should be a benefit to your students. Regards, Barry

Hi Carol: Well, it's good to know what works and does not work for you. We all have preferences. The key is to find the media that will work the best for the student. Regards, Barry