Barry Westling

Hi Rachel: Well, this is quite a laundry list of evaluation categories. I think many of these most instructors probably use to some extent. The one area that some may or may not assess an actual grade would be in professionalism. Although this is extremely important, some institutions don't allow these "soft skills" to be included in the grade. Personally, I feel they are quite worthwhile and I put a lot of importance on them. And my institution allows up to 10% of a course grade (can be less) to be weighted on professional development. But this kind of policy… >>>

Hi David: I think many teachers assume that using an approved curriculum along with textbooks and related resources they will be meeting the needs of the student. Actually, this would be better described as "curriculum-based", or even "institutional-based" learning system because the apparent focus is on meeting these needs, rather than the students. Of course we need solid curriculum with course objectives, student learning outcomes, assessments, and appropriate resources to teach our classes. Student-centered shifts the focus to what the student needs and how we can best provide that. Being creative with how objectives are covered is a good start,… >>>