Barry Westling

Fidel, Readiness for our classes is our job, so why anyone would never be fully prepared should be rare instances indeed. You're right, respect by students is one of the by products of preparedness. Students will appreciate their instructors who put in the time and effort to serve their educational needs. Barry Westling

Traci, Great! Segmenting lessons is a good way to keep interest and add variety to the lessons. Barry Westling

Tara, Very true. As an experienced worker from a particular profession, one way to get away from fumbling around when not prepared is to bring a story, case study, or past (good or bad) situation to share that relates to the topic. Of course, that's only when someone is not prepared, which really should never be, as this is our job. Barry Westling

Elena, I agree in certain courses, EC may have a role (however, should be small role). For me, in a medical education program, there is little wiggle room for students to be excused from demonstrating proficiency and competency in health matters and content that will ultimately be used in patient care settings. And in the work setting of most jobs there is no EC. That said, I know each instructor and institution has to decide what works best for them. Barry Westling

Elizabeth, Grading rubrics are good because they limit the degree of subjectivity in the grading process (but don't emliminate it completely). Evaluation should compare what the student has learned in relation to what we have defined as needed for succesful mastery of the material. So, it has to be fair, accurate, timely, and consistent with course goals and objectives. Barry Westling

Alana, Providing performance status is just as important as instructional duties. I think frequent and early on discussions in person work the best as I can share what I think are the strengths and perhaps weaker areas that the student needs to work on. Since I am the one giving the grades I feel like it's important for me to personnaly give the advice and encouragement that can assist student towards their personal and course goals of successfulness. Barry Westling

Kimberly, Yes, the pretest is a good tool for the instructor to determine what prior learning their students possess. It helps decide how best to provide "right-sized" instruction to match the level of the students. Barry Westling

Elizabeth, Good points all. Being aware of the recipient students ability to receive material in a meaningful and memorable manner is important to keep in mind. Failure to do so is a big mistake. We may be able to dish it out, but students can receive only so much of the same type of delivery and content. Variety and breaking the lesson into segments help keep material fresh and interesting. Barry Westling

Elena, I think there can never be enough time devoted to practice and review, so I gear my back-upplans towards that objective. This can be dicussion (small group, whole class, student-led, instructor led), pair share, white board, or flip chart. These activities can be planned to fit the time available or remaining. A good back up plan is one where the students may not even be aware that an unplanned activity is being used. Barry Westling

Judy, Sometimes, time dictates we have to break mid way, or finish a topic with time left in class. So productive back up plans that support the topic, help reinforce what has been taught, or prepare students for what's ahead. Discussion, worksheets, and review are particularly good for end of class activities as students main reaching their limit of taking in new material, but it's a way to keep them engaged the whole period. Barry Westling