Simina Vasilache

It's important to give truthful and accurate information, backed up by factual evidence. It's important to fot misrepresent the institution, program or program outcomes when talking to prospective students.  

So far, what I read made sense: be upfront, honest and transparent, respect one's choice of not being contacted. I have limited contact with prospective students and I communicate with current students through means of e-mails, MS Teams and LMS platform that they use for our institution.

It was interesting to see the seven types of intelligence listed and it makes sense that it's the combination of them that makes us unique and more (or less) able to be good problem solvers.  

"They just don't want to accept those answers so they call in hoping to get more palatable answers." - this reminds me of "people ask for an opinion hoping they can hear their own opinion but in a different voice."

Discipline, Questioning, Reasoning and Judjement are all important contributing factors to being a good Critical Thinker and for survival.

Some of these have become "naturally challenging" areas for all of us in modern society. We have an expectancy of safety and of our basic needs to be met. We are more and more inclined to seek instant gratification and less willing to put forth effort and practice discipline. 

In many areas of life, and education is no exception, it's more about what we like and enjoy doing than it is about what's good for us and what brings results and… >>>

This is an interesting course so far. Critical thinking is an essential skill and, as with any other skill, it needs to be honed over time. Exposing students to situations where thery have to gather information, assess its accuracy and then draw sound conclusions based on the facts they gathered is something that will enhance their learning as well as make them valuable employees (and generally serve them well through life).  

Factors that affect motivations can be either intrinsic or extrinsic. Intrinsic factors are more long lasting. Extrinsic factors can be used to increase motivation until the intrinsic factors develop. These is some danger in overusing extrinsic factors when trying to motivate someone. 

Adult learners make decisions in almost every aspect of their lives. As a result, having an increased level of autonomy in their learning process positively impacts their motivation level. A feeling of security is also important and links to motivation. Fostering an environment in which students feel supported, understood, comfortable with making mistakes without having the fear of being "embarrased" in front of others or without immediate impact on their grade results in better engagement and better overall motivation. 

@gmeers :The human factor is very important. Several of my students feel like they have no other support system other than their instructors. Creating and environment where they feel trusted and respected as well as trust and respect me enables them to be more self-confident throughour their academic journey.

It was very helpful to go through this module. I try to learn the names of all my students and try to remember personal information they might have shared becuase I feel this creates a bond. I also encourage them to learn each other's names. I found that it helps to learn names in small groups. Our sessions are longer (270-300 minutes) and our classes smaller (20-25). I try to associate 5 names with faces from taking roll the first day, then 5 more names in the second hour of class and so on. By the end of the first… >>>

@gmeers :If you understand and remind yourself before each class what types of learners you are instructing you can mold your teaching style to better suit them. Sometimes it is a little bit of a challenge to figure out each individual learning style as not all are aware what is the way in which they best learn.