Barry Westling

Hi Mary: Great! I think there can never be enough general courtesy, friendliness, and general encouragement and support regardless how the students are performing. This reflects and conveys a sense the teacher cares about the students success. We may be able to adjust our personality somewhat to match different instructional requirements or roles (lab skills vs. lecture vs discussion vs.demonstration), but we can always be kind and patient, and students will appreciate that in any instructor. Regards, Barry Regards, Barry

Hi Tom: I really think field trips are a huge underused resource, along with guest speakers. Sometimes I will cue the tour guide or speaker about our current topics or ask them to reinforce certain aspects. But the main benefit is seeing the work setting they'll soon be involved with, or hearing success stories from current workers and work settings. This can so inspiring and motivate students to try harder. Regards, Barry

Hi Tom: Trust, perhaps. Respect and motivation, more than likely. All three traits are really related when the instructor takes the time to infor, share "how to improve", not just "why you didn't". Supportive words of comfort and encouragement along with assitance and helpful advice will contribute to the traits described above. Regards, Barry

Hi Tom: Right - pretesting does help the teacher plan. And students end up with better outcomes as the result. Regards, Barry

Hi Nancy: I agree - if students feel comfortable in their class, and the the teacher is patient, approacable, and tolerent of opposing viewpoints, there will questions galore. And the benefit to the student and his/her classmates will be a more robust and meaningful learning experience. Regards, Barry

Hi Gina: Right - no surprises. Our attention to frequent updates on performance is really needed - often the weaker students need more than the better performers. Kind and patients words of comfort, concern and caring demonstrate to the students their teacher cares about their success, and therefore, may be more willing to try harder. Encouragement with ""how to improve" anlong with ""where you're at" is essential. Regards, Barry

Hi Jo: Great way of summarizing what I think is the essence of our purpose as educators to our students. Regards, Barry

Hi Tom: Yeah, it's kind of a balance. Some students are very skill oriented, but theory weak. Then, there's the opposite extreme, book-smart but all thumbs. A great outcome would be competency and proficiency in both domains. Regards, Barry

Hi Tom: "Smooth and seamless", "comfortable and natural", and confident and patient". These traits are among the results of a prepared teacher. How nice to produce this kind of environment. Regards, Barry

Hi Nicole: This is a great idea and is actually part of one of the discussion posts for this course "Using Pretesting". Anyway, by getting an idea where the students are at, it allows the teacher to make adjustments if needed. Regards, Barry