It is beneficial for instructors to share quizzes and learning resources. Other instructors can add new ideas, offer constructive criticism, or simply edit the original material. However, I feel more comfortable sharing resources with instructors I know rather than don't know. How would I know if the strangers are using my material correctly? At least with the ones I do know, I will be able to explain why certain questions and methods are used.
Sharing course materials with other instructors is a great way to evaluate and improve your techniques. Instructors should remember to change the materials so that it meets their particular style of teaching and course outcomes.
I think sharing resources can be very helpful, especially to new faculty members. We recently had an in-service. During discussion, we discovered that a new math instructor was not assigning projects to his classes and was changing the grade scale set forth in the company-wide syllabus. As as result of this discussion, I was able to share my information with him to get him on track with school policies and procedures.
Sharing these learning resources is of great benefit to both instructors and students. This is something I am starting to incorporate within our consortium so that all campuses have access to a variety of test questions.
Sharing resources among other educators is very helpful in keeping up to date on developing technologies because changes today are coming at such a fast pace it is almost impossible to stay abreast of what is happening across the country.
sharing is not an option, its a must especially if multiple instructors are running the same class.
you want to make sure that everyone is on the same page. you want fair play for all students.
Theresa,
We believe: "
“Knowledge is Power." Thank you, Sir Frances Bacon, philosopher and statesman of the Renaissance.
“And Meant to Be Shared.†It is believed IBM added this line to Bacon’s powerful quote.
(Hmmm… We once stated during an interview, “Knowledge is power and meant to be shared.†The VP with whom we interviewed was a former IBM executive! We got the job.)
We stress to students the importance of knowledge sharing. The classwork and labs that they do are based on this premise. Would it not seem appropriate that we, as an instructor, practice what we preach?
To gain a new perspective and discover how others tackle the same issues strengthens our abilities to bring the power of knowledge to the classroom.
I think it is a great idea to share quizzes and other learning resources with other instructors whether I know them or not. The more varied your course is, the better it is for all involved. Students will learn best if you use several methods that engage them. Instructors will also be motivated to share with the students the new and exciting material they have.
Sharing learning resources with other instructors is a great way to see new ways of evaluating course material or lesson plans to improve what you are doing in your course.
This should lead to improvements possibly not otherwise realized for both instructors and classroom execution.
I believe that sharing resources is a great way to broaden your teaching techniques and classroom knowledge. Picking up material or ideas from other instructors can only make someone a stronger instructor because it allows one to implement more into lesson plans.
In order to compile the best of the best resources, sharing material is the only way to do it.
Sharing of teaching resources helps the student and instructor both learn, an opportunity for continuous improvement for all.
William,
I agree! In my experience, the overall quality of the program improves when sharing of the curriculum is heavily promoted. You may want to visit the BetterLesson web site launched early this year January. The site features over 3,000 lesson plans, and promotes active sharing among instructors.
You can find the site by following this link:
http://betterlesson.com/mtp
Wishing you continued success in the classroom.
Theresa Schmitt
Hello Everyone,
Technology makes teaching new to everyone. The new tools allow Instructors and student to be one: learner. Technology makes an instructor a student and a student an instructor at some level, because with the sharing capability everyone has something teach or share.
Etienne
This would be fantastic! However, For profit schools must be careful where and how they develop new curriculum
One thing that constructivist teachers continuously do is integrate new learning models into pre-existing constructs. As we do not live or work in a vacuum, it makes sense to reach out to other professionals in an attempt to share and exchange ideas and techniques. I look to other colleagues as my own personal RSS feed, where they continue to nourish me and update me with new ideas. In this regard, I too continue to share my ideas with other instructors in the hopes of inspiring them as well. My use of Haiku has been something new that I have shared with others, and I am waiting to hear feedback.
Jean Guy ,
I agree. Considering the rapid pace in which new technologies are released, we are all learners!
Theresa Schmitt
Robin ,
Your comment about your own personal RSS feed is insightful- I never thought of it that way!
Theresa Schmitt
I have been in situations where I was the one doing all of the work. I then shared the quizzes and materials and didn't really benefit personally. I contributed and got little in return. I would however like to have a fair give and take of ideas, since it could spark my thoughts and help me to be more creative.
Michele,
Is your department chair or Dean involved in the process? Do you have regular meetings in which you discuss the curriculum and program outcomes as well as individual course outcomes? I believe that is the key to success. You need a team to play baseball.
Best,
Theresa Schmitt
