Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Dan, Albert Einstein said "keep everything as simple as possible, but not simpler". I've adapted that to my teaching to strive to not overcomplicate things and give just just what's needed. Of course I want students to prepare and to become active critical thinkers. So part of my daily instruction most days is allocating time for students to pair-share, or other group discussion activities. Reviewing (instructor and student) at the end of class helps develop these skills as well. Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Developing instructional backup plans

Dawn, The main thing is to be prepared when whatever happens that interferes with your regularly planned activity or lesson, or if time is left at the end of class. Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Making field trips and guest speakers a part of instruction

Dawn, Yeah, I have never had a poor field trip experience. Sometime, a guest speaker can be a bit less than dynamic. Sometimes, if I have a new speaker I haven't had before, I'll prep them as to what general topics I want them to speak about, or at least ask that they touch on a certain topic among the many topics they share. This helps me make sure the students get meaningful information from the speaker. Also, I usually ask the students to take notes and some times I'll quiz them about the information. I do this to make… >>>

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Making field trips and guest speakers a part of instruction

Cheryl, True! Students can get so inspired they may begin wanting to do better in their classes as they see the benefits or attributes present in their chosen career field. I feel these activities ought to be required in schools because students usually benefit so much by them. Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Informing students of status in course

Tammy, Electronic grading and use of portals that provide student information arte great. Along with that, I think personal time to chat about grades and performance in addition to the information the students find on their own is worthwhile. It shows we care and helps build trust and respect. Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Mistakes made when selecting course content

Tammy, Of course one way is to allocate class time for study. Some instructors feel there is not enough time yet students benefit from a supervised, in-class study group activity. Review at the beginning and near the end of class can help identify where some students are still having difficulty. by checking for understanding continuously, an instructor can determine where the students learning is at and where more emphasis may be needed. Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Making field trips and guest speakers a part of instruction

Tammy, Yeah, I find it's common for students to hear information they've heard before and hearing it from another just goes to reinforce the importance of the information being shared. This just brings them closer to their ultimate goals of graduating and securing employment in btheir chosen field. Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Informing students of status in course

Marco, Right on the mark. Student success depends, in part, on their knowledge of where their performance is at in relation to the course objectives and perhaps, the instructors expectations. Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Using pretests as planning tools

Marco, I like pretests to learn where I can put my most important emphasis, and perhaps find where less emphasis may be needed. Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Informing students of status in course

Mike, Perhaps so in some cases. From a practical standpoint, if we are interested in our students doing their best it is only natural we would provide feeback as to their progress, and also give them helpful suggestions for improvement. At the least, offering our support and encouragement is a reason to chat about the students progress. Barry Westling