Barry Westling

Sharon; Thanks for affirming the good deeds you already do. - Barry

Hi Lakiesha: One of the ways we can help them want to do better is give advice, offer suggestions, but also give support and encouragement in thoughtful, caring ways that suggest we as teacher sincerely care about their successfulness. It's a great opportunity to make a good connection with our students. Regards, Barry

Hi Sharon: I like the building process that's the basis for your model. I would guess that shortcomings can be worked on in between practicals in order to maintain the highest levels of achievement, as measured by your escalating practical appear to do. Regards, Barry

Hi Lakiesha: Good. If the curriculum is headed one way but the students need more emphasis in another area, a pretest can identify that early on and allow the teacher to make adjustments as needed. Regards, Barry

Hi Dominic: Great. It's a simple but effective technique. And it helps you keep control and attention of you class too. Regards, Barry

Hi Ruth: Good points. I like to just see where my students are beginning from, then compare that to the end of class as a measure of both their learning and my teaching. Pretesting is a way to give an expanded example of the objectives I'm going to cover. Regards, Barry

Hi Cathryn: As teachers learn more about themselves they are better prepared to deal with their students in a positive and inspire motivation. Regards, Barry

Hi Lakiesha: You're right, a good teacher will prepare so that even if the subject is unfamilar they will be able to be confident in their delivery of the material and provide an effective lesson. Regards, Barry

Hi Lakiesha: Being ready does take preparation. Well prepared classes run smoothly, teacher and students are calm and relaxed, and the entire learning session is more enjoyable and interesting. Regards, Barry

Hi Gary: Teachers use journals in different ways. Some are chronological records of daily events, some are more refelctive of personal thoughts. Still, others provide an ongoing dialog with oneself about observations, student behavior, actions, or performance, or ideas about how to add variety to the classroom and learning environment.Some will memorialize their physical environment and interaction with fellow teachers, staff and peers. I think journals can be very helpful and more teachers could benefit if they regularly and consistently used a teaching journal. Regards, Barry