So, I'm winding down my first quarter of instruction for the Business department. It's been so fun and I have to say, I've employed Royce Ann's deck of playing cards to determine group members. The students thought I was going to play solitaire while they worked on a response. I have also taken my Collaborative Teaching and Learning Techniques book out. I am hoping to use more from that book next quarter. Another great tool is contracting for a grade. If it sounds like I'm too excited about this idea, well, it's because I am. I allowed my communications class to contract for a grade on a writing assignment and figured maybe a couple of them would seize the opportunity. Out of 18 students, 16 contracted for an A. It was pretty incredible. Before I began teaching that class there was another professor in there. She had the students write something. I carried it around all quarter and finally gave them back yesterday. I told them to read their assignments and think about what they learned about writing. Many of them commented about how poorly crafted their response was. It was nice to see and hear how much they believe their writing has grown.

I've enjoyed some great discussions with colleagues about motivation, learning opportunities, learning theory. I know, sounds kind of dorky, but it's actually nice to have background information to share. I've found other educators are familiar with the ideas because of practice, but don't know how to articulate some of it.

In one recent discussion, we were discussing how we can take qualitative data- students can type better- and make it quantitative- gains in words per minute and accuracy. The administrator of that program doesn't have an education background, she's from the social services side of things. She writes grants and our program is reviewed by the state, so we need reports that clearly illustrate the gains our students make. It's fun to discuss her needs, what we've done, and how it looks on paper. The typing thing is easy to quantify, but how do we discuss students' attitudes about attending school? No idea. I guess through attendance records- when they're on a roll, they attend; when they aren't experiencing successes or are frustrated, they don't attend.

I will have a full load of classes next quarter- 2 business classes- those are pretty easy to teach because there is a curriculum and the students are degree seeking. From a teaching stand point, I get to be more creative in the assessments, which is nice. I will continue teaching computers for English as a Second Language (ESL) students. Those classes are really rewarding and fun. That population doesn't stop to think about Theory of Margin- to them, it's just an excuse. They're very remarkable and if the tables were turned, I would have every excuse to quit. I will continue my low-income class year-round. The greatest challenge is engaging each person. It's an open enrollment set-up, so new faces roll in pretty much every week. They run the gamut from telling me they know how to use a computer to being afraid of computers. Another challenge is buy-in, many of them will tell me, "I've already done this so why do I need to do it again?" It's just another challenge and sometimes my answer is, "Because I said we have to."

That's about it for now. Time to work on some buy-in.

Theory of Margin

I haven't forgotten I was blogging about my experiences as a new Adult Ed. teacher. I have learned when someone is motivated, the theory of margin is not a real obstacle. Well, maybe it is, but my students make it happen. Many of my students work multiple jobs and many long hours, but without fail, they come to class and are excited to learn. What an incredible honor to work with them. They are eager to learn anything I ask of them. It is so exciting to watch them complete a weekly project because their excitement is inspiring. They don't ask when I will teach them something, i.e. attaching photos, buying plane tickets, or any of the other ideas they shared with me, they just want to learn. They are so hungry to learn Word, Excel, how to use the mouse, how to use the shift key, or whatever it is they don't know. And the greatest joy comes from their questions because once they learn how to do something, they run with it. I love seeing their smiles when they can save their finished file and print it. Tonight, one of my oldest students, a gentleman in his sixties, flexed his muscles when he printed his Excel budget. His smile was fantastic and it made me realize how lucky I am. He came over to me and shook my hand and thanked me for teaching him this. Imagine him thanking me? It's crazy how much they inspire me to want to be a better teacher, to be more creative, and to embrace my opportunities as much as they embrace theirs.

I could never have imagined how fulfilling and rewarding this is, but I am grateful for this opportunity.

Collaborative teaching/learning needed

My morning class is going well. I am enjoying the conversations my students are having with each other. I still think it's a little too much lecture and am trying to get away from that. Next week I will try and jigsaw the chapter and see how it goes. I'll have my groups each become experts on a part of the chapter and then mix 'em up...hope it goes well.

My night class is still going well and I love how motivated they are. It's fun, refreshing, and inspiring to be a part of. I've also been offered another opportunity to work with at risk students and need to start working on learning modules. It sounds like a great opportunity to develop the curriculum.

There's so much to soak up and I'm sure I will randomly remember many things. But I'm hoping as I adjust to adult learners and have a chance to get into the material, I will be more creative in designing learning activities. I am afraid of going to extremes with that and worry I will want to do too much and not actually cover lower levels of Bloom's. I'm sure if it gets to that point, the students will let me know it's not going well. I think it's a skill good professors possess- being creative, but not forgetting how to make sure material is learned. I also think I should be reading some type of scholarly journals and even some business journal type of stuff to bring in contemporary and relevant material. Maybe that's a reach for this time, but I'm hoping I get to try my hand at this again.

The one thing I'm seeing in post-secondary ed. is that it's like letting a fox loose in a hen house. There's not a lot of guidance and also not a whole lot of concern. I was given the textbook, some materials that were previously used, and then turned loose. I'm not sure if that's how it is everywhere, but I think there ought to be some sort of mentorship for new faculty. I also think it's probably because it's a community college and it might also have to do with being an adjunct member. I still think even an orientation would help. It just caught me by surprise.

Also, as I walk around the halls and get a chance to look into classrooms, it's kind of sad. There's a lot of chalk and talk and glazed over eyes. Maybe it has to do with the content, but I feel like not many people are really fostering life-long learning. I don't know if that's how it's supposed to be, but I feel like learning involves activity. I don't want to talk for 50 minutes. I'd run out of things to say. I think interaction is really important, it helps develop communication skills and the ability to work as a team.

So I am thoroughly enjoying myself and really trying to figure out ways to engage the students through activities. I'm glad to have collaborative learning book. I am going to keep that book handy as I develop lessons.

More to follow.

there's that "C" word again

Context. I met with my new class this morning, actually I'm the only new part of the class. I'll be the instructor beginning next week. I was able to meet with some of the students during a group activity and discuss a little of the exercise with them. It was all about context. Actually, their class sounds fun and I recognized a lot of the terms they were taught this week from some of the grad school classes. But it really was all about context today and I almost wanted to laugh a little. It should be a great time in this class. I'm looking forward to getting started.

Next up, another teaching opportunity for a new class in about seven weeks.

But for now, I'm just enjoying how many times I thought of context and used the word in my discussion with the groups.

Learning versus Product

Last week I had the opportunity to sit in on another professor's course and it was incredibly beneficial for me. I have to admit it took such a huge weight off my shoulders. I spent part of last week worried about what measurable outcomes my students produced. I guess part of it is the secondary school teacher in me, needing proof of life to earn my check. I digress, the class I visited was more advanced computer users and I was able to see sometimes things don't go as planned. The advanced computer users struggled with the lesson and my colleague showed me indirectly it's okay to slow down. So with my new understanding and outlook I can relax and have my students genuinely learn what we have done. The measure is their learning and not the pretty document at the end. It has really helped me not obsess with the "What are we producing" mentality. I am helping my students learn about computers and that is what I am seeing each night.

So we have slowed down or rather my students have shown me that we need to slow down and it worked. We are learning and class is more fun.

Also, I asked my students to complete a survey about their needs, which was really insightful for me. Many of them expressed an interest in the internet- jobs, travel, email, etc. I thanked them tonight for sharing their ideas with me and also explained that we will learn about that stuff, but we have to walk before we can run. They became so excited when I told them we will learn what they want to learn. Maybe they thought I hadn't read the survey answers and perhaps I needed to address that earlier. But now they know I value their ideas and it was nice to see them smile and become excited to know where we are going.

Another aside is that I am working at developing a rapport with my students. It was almost an effortless thing in the past, but probably only because of the length of the school year. Now I have eight weeks to go from zero to sixty and then we're done. I am trying to keep our room open and inviting. I am trying to keep them interested, but challenge them at the same time and also develop individual relationships. I don't know if it's necessarily the right thing, but it is how I operate. As a learner, I like to have a sense I know my professors and I know when I "knew" my students, instruction was fun. In developing rapport, the language and cultural barriers exist here more than before. But I think overall, there is a certain level of comfort in our classroom that makes everyone less apprehensive.

Part of me still worries that a product is necessary and at some point in my professional development I will find a better balance for demonstrating for others how I have spent my time in the classroom. But right now, I have a deep sense of appreciation for how willing my students are to try and learn this new jargon and how to use the computers. They don't become discouraged, they seem to become more determined. It's inspiring.

When the sky is the limit...

So, I've learned that teaching something with which we are so comfortable isn't as easy as I thought. The first night of class was a struggle for me. I had no idea what my students knew and my first syllabus is now history. When the sky is the limit, it's a far fall back to Earth.

I'm not a computer whiz by any means and other than English, I don't speak computer. I am only qualified because I've tinkered around on computers here and there enough to be comfortable using common programs for word processing, presentations, etc. It was a shock to realize what I know how to do is so far from where I must begin teaching. Baby steps seem too grandiose right now. Simple, slow and just when I think we're ready for something new...take it slow again.

As if teaching basic computer stuff to computer-phoebes is not the worst of my challenges, I must also realize it's not just a second language, but a third language. On top of struggling with making things simple, i.e. how to log on, double click, and move the cursor, I have to be concerned with whether my learners acquire this new lingo.

When I think we've become accustomed to a double click, I sometimes see the "I'm going to tell her anything she wants to hear, just so she'll leave me alone" look. How do I cope with this? Humor. Laughter is perhaps the greatest disarming medicine ever. A joke about not being able to do that myself or simple encouragement not only from me, but also from the other students helps a lot.

Additionally, I have a few learners who are ready for some serious challenges- Word, Excel and then...Social Networking. I'm working on trying to develop plans that will enable all of my students to develop skills that meet their needs. It's been slow this week and tonight is another night.

On a positive note, I asked my students to complete a survey and did receive plenty of information about their proficiency, but more importantly what they want to learn. I was able to broadly categorize their needs into about three areas. I'm hoping to use their needs to guide the lessons and hopefully in the end, everyone walks away with at least a minimal understanding of what they wanted to learn.

This is by far much more challenging than trying to motivate a bunch of preteens and teens. I definitely appreciate my learners' motivation. So, we'll see how it goes tonight- a lesson on Word called "Garbage". I hope it's an easy way to teach some basic skills that are helpful in word.

That's it for now, I'll reflect more later.