I completed an Independent Study where I used the two Classes I had to teach to Perspective RA Candidates as a mode of exploring college teaching in further detail.
Reflection on the Class:
Teaching HI ED 302 was an extremely beneficial professional development opportunity for me. I learned that I really do enjoy teaching and working with students in the classroom setting, especially in small classes where collaborative learning and discussions can take place.
I also was really excited about the development of the class and how much I had learned and was able to apply between CSA 397A and HI ED 302. I think taking HI ED 546: College Teaching offered a great opportunity for me to examine what aspects make a great professor. I think that the professors attitude and teaching style are all important in making the class successful, but what I gained most from HI ED 546 was a knowledge of tools and resources that can make my teaching style more effective (such as Classroom Assessment Techniques, tools for assessing prior learning, utilizing technology into the classroom, encouraging students to take an active role in their learning and in their education, time management, etc).
For HI ED 602, I was able to ask the students in my class to provide a formative assessment of the class and to reflect on my teaching style and how it helped them to understand the course material. Because of the nature of the class, SRTE’s are not completed so I sent emails out to students asking to provide me with feedback on HI ED 302.
From the student feedback in the class, I learned some important lessons.
1) The Environment is Important.
First and foremost one of the biggest things I gained from the students feedback is the importance of the environment on learning. Many of the students talked about building a community within the classroom and creating a non-judgmental environment where students were free to share their thoughts and express their opinions without fear of ridicule. Other students mentioned that the class created a respectful environment where people could explore and understand their own faults through discussion and conversation. I think that this is really an important lesson for any facilitator for any class, workshop or presentation. Students need to be invested in the group in order to engage and become a part of it. Students also need to be able to feel respected and that they can have their voice heard. And lastly, students need to be comfortable with being able to bring up an idea, topic or thought and explore the challenges behind it. It is through these open and honest discussions where students can make decisions about if that thought or opinion is really representative of the students thoughts.
At the beginning of the class, I encouraged students to create a set of ground rules to help guide discussions. Over the course of the semester, I would remind students of these ground rules and be mindful of the conversations that they were having. I also reminded them that it is okay to have an honest debate or genuine discussion about their feelings as long as they recognized that does not necessarily make someone a bad person. The ground rules for the class can be found here.
In order for a student to learn, they must feel safe and comfortable. This falls into many different theories, but most importantly into Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. If a student fears retribution or fears consequences for their opinions they are going to be less-likely to participate and engage in discussion.
2) The attitude of the facilitator is important.
In any job that we have, it is always important to keep a positive and upbeat attitude. There are always going to be frustrations with our job, with people we interact with, and with the process of just living (that is a part of life). However if the facilitator in the class is not engaged, not enthusiastic and not upbeat about the topic, it is really going to show for the student. How can a facilitator expect a student to be excited about a topic or engaged in a topic if the facilitator is not interested in the topic. Coming in upbeat and excited to talk about the topic and showing passion for the information is extremely important to facilitating a class. The students made many comments about the positivity in the class and the upbeat attitude that made the class worth coming to every day.
This also means that the facilitator is engaged in the class by providing new and exciting ways to present the material and offering engaging opportunities for students. Instead of lecturing, giving students the opportunity for hands on learning is important. Coming up with activities and hands on engaging opportunities can sometimes be more difficult and time consuming, but wanting to be positive about the material and have the passion to present it in ways that a student will engage is extremely important.
3) Feedback, advice and Rubrics.
From the feedback with the students, it is very clear that the students want feedback on their assignments and they want to know what is being expected of them. Providing fair feedback on the student’s work is important to let them know how they are doing and how they can improve. Throughout the class I made sure that the students received feedback on their assignments in a timely manner and that the co-facilitator and I were actually giving valuable feedback on the assignments. We also performed to performance evaluations with students. These performance evaluations were one on one opportunities to discuss with the student what we were seeing in trends on the students participation and engagement in the class and on the assignments. Also it was mentioned that the students were happy to have rubrics in advance of the assignments so they could know what I was specifically looking for in their work and what was expected of them in their work. The students also expressed that they liked it when I gave them advice and tips on completing their assignments.
One of the students recommended suggestions was that sometimes I seemed indifferent about a student’s response to a question in the discussion and wished that I would have worked to have the student elaborate and expand upon their commentary. I think that there is an explanation about this. First, as you will read in the next section, sometimes I was very cognizant of the time. Trying to etch out time to allow everyone to voice their thoughts and opinions made it so that I felt I could not stop and reflect on every student’s comment. A good majority of my job is talking to students about diversity and challenging students to share their thoughts about it. However, it can also be extremely frustrating to lead discussions about diversity for fear of stepping on people’s toes. No matter how comfortable you are about speaking on important issues around inclusivity and diversity, having the topic in a group will always be challenging and frustrating. So I challenged students on their thoughts and opinions when I felt comfortable doing so, but there were some times where I did not feel comfortable doing it because of fear that I would say something that would offend someone. I recognize that I am not an expert on diversity and that I do not know every appropriate piece of commentary on all topics related to diversity and as my co-facilitator mentioned in her reflection, the class allowed people to explore their own shortcomings/faults through discussion and conversation. I made sure the class understood no one was an expert and that they all need to hold each other accountable if someone says something that might be offensive without recognizing the offense.
4) Time Management.
The students expressed that sometimes the class discussions would go off topic or that too much time was spent on a certain topic or activity. I think it is always important to be mindful of time management. With the class, there was a lot of information to cover and 1 hour and 15 minutes always seemed to fly by. However as the facilitator I made certain that if we were having a good discussion on a topic, I would allow students to continue to discuss that topics and then decide what I could cut out from the lesson or what I could push to the next week. I also wanted to make sure that every student had the opportunity to weigh in or chime in on a topic and so this also made me pressed for time. I did not want to cut a student off, however one thing I learned is that sometimes you have to cut the discussion to move on to other parts of the lesson plan.
5) Students want hands-on engaged learning.
Students do not just want to be lectured to or given busy work such as papers. They want the opportunity to have hands on learning through activities that are going to cause them to get up and interact with each other. I tried to offer as many opportunities for this as possible. The students expressed that they learned the most or that lessons stood out in their minds the most through engaging activities (Cross the line, Magic Shoes, videos, etc).
With this, I wanted to be honest with students about what to expect about the RA position. I do not think there is any benefit about sugarcoating the position. I informed students that the RA position was one of the hardest jobs on campus, but that it was also one of the most rewarding positions. I liked to offer many anecdotes and stories of my experiences as an RA and as a Coordinator so that they could get a better understanding of the job and a better understanding of the situations that they would be handling. It seems like these stories were a big hit for the students.
6) Challenge and Support
Students reflected that it was important when they were challenged on their thoughts and feelings about a topic. They also reported that they wanted me to really encourage students to expand upon their thoughts when they mentioned them in class. The students liked it when I encouraged them to explore themselves and others and to look at notions that they always believed in and challenge them to think outside the box and see if there was something they were missing. One student enjoyed the fact that i provided advice and tips, seeking to develop the students academically and personally. To me, learning is collaborative. Even though I was the facilitator of the class, I learned a lot from the students as well so not only did I want to challenge them, but I wanted them to challenge me and I think when there is an environment that allows for such a dialogue, built on mutual respect, people can challenge each other and feel comfortable about what they learn from that process.
Overall I noticed a tangible difference between when I facilitated CSA 397A and HI ED 302. Granted I had also worked at Penn State a year longer and had a better and deeper understanding of the class and the position and the job that we do so I felt more comfortable talking to students about the topics. I also think that taking HI ED 546 with Dr. Jackson helped me to develop my skills even more for facilitating a class. Having had the opportunity to read the student reflections and to reflect myself has also helped me learn, develop and cement more of my ideas of what makes a great facilitator. I also discovered through this whole process that I enjoy building curriculum, developing lesson plans and educating students. I am still a practitioner at heart, but I could see more opportunities for myself in the future in the classroom.
Teaching HI ED 302 was an extremely beneficial professional development opportunity for me. I learned that I really do enjoy teaching and working with students in the classroom setting, especially in small classes where collaborative learning and discussions can take place.
I also was really excited about the development of the class and how much I had learned and was able to apply between CSA 397A and HI ED 302. I think taking HI ED 546: College Teaching offered a great opportunity for me to examine what aspects make a great professor. I think that the professors attitude and teaching style are all important in making the class successful, but what I gained most from HI ED 546 was a knowledge of tools and resources that can make my teaching style more effective (such as Classroom Assessment Techniques, tools for assessing prior learning, utilizing technology into the classroom, encouraging students to take an active role in their learning and in their education, time management, etc).
For HI ED 602, I was able to ask the students in my class to provide a formative assessment of the class and to reflect on my teaching style and how it helped them to understand the course material. Because of the nature of the class, SRTE’s are not completed so I sent emails out to students asking to provide me with feedback on HI ED 302.
From the student feedback in the class, I learned some important lessons.
1) The Environment is Important.
First and foremost one of the biggest things I gained from the students feedback is the importance of the environment on learning. Many of the students talked about building a community within the classroom and creating a non-judgmental environment where students were free to share their thoughts and express their opinions without fear of ridicule. Other students mentioned that the class created a respectful environment where people could explore and understand their own faults through discussion and conversation. I think that this is really an important lesson for any facilitator for any class, workshop or presentation. Students need to be invested in the group in order to engage and become a part of it. Students also need to be able to feel respected and that they can have their voice heard. And lastly, students need to be comfortable with being able to bring up an idea, topic or thought and explore the challenges behind it. It is through these open and honest discussions where students can make decisions about if that thought or opinion is really representative of the students thoughts.
At the beginning of the class, I encouraged students to create a set of ground rules to help guide discussions. Over the course of the semester, I would remind students of these ground rules and be mindful of the conversations that they were having. I also reminded them that it is okay to have an honest debate or genuine discussion about their feelings as long as they recognized that does not necessarily make someone a bad person. The ground rules for the class can be found here.
In order for a student to learn, they must feel safe and comfortable. This falls into many different theories, but most importantly into Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. If a student fears retribution or fears consequences for their opinions they are going to be less-likely to participate and engage in discussion.
2) The attitude of the facilitator is important.
In any job that we have, it is always important to keep a positive and upbeat attitude. There are always going to be frustrations with our job, with people we interact with, and with the process of just living (that is a part of life). However if the facilitator in the class is not engaged, not enthusiastic and not upbeat about the topic, it is really going to show for the student. How can a facilitator expect a student to be excited about a topic or engaged in a topic if the facilitator is not interested in the topic. Coming in upbeat and excited to talk about the topic and showing passion for the information is extremely important to facilitating a class. The students made many comments about the positivity in the class and the upbeat attitude that made the class worth coming to every day.
This also means that the facilitator is engaged in the class by providing new and exciting ways to present the material and offering engaging opportunities for students. Instead of lecturing, giving students the opportunity for hands on learning is important. Coming up with activities and hands on engaging opportunities can sometimes be more difficult and time consuming, but wanting to be positive about the material and have the passion to present it in ways that a student will engage is extremely important.
3) Feedback, advice and Rubrics.
From the feedback with the students, it is very clear that the students want feedback on their assignments and they want to know what is being expected of them. Providing fair feedback on the student’s work is important to let them know how they are doing and how they can improve. Throughout the class I made sure that the students received feedback on their assignments in a timely manner and that the co-facilitator and I were actually giving valuable feedback on the assignments. We also performed to performance evaluations with students. These performance evaluations were one on one opportunities to discuss with the student what we were seeing in trends on the students participation and engagement in the class and on the assignments. Also it was mentioned that the students were happy to have rubrics in advance of the assignments so they could know what I was specifically looking for in their work and what was expected of them in their work. The students also expressed that they liked it when I gave them advice and tips on completing their assignments.
One of the students recommended suggestions was that sometimes I seemed indifferent about a student’s response to a question in the discussion and wished that I would have worked to have the student elaborate and expand upon their commentary. I think that there is an explanation about this. First, as you will read in the next section, sometimes I was very cognizant of the time. Trying to etch out time to allow everyone to voice their thoughts and opinions made it so that I felt I could not stop and reflect on every student’s comment. A good majority of my job is talking to students about diversity and challenging students to share their thoughts about it. However, it can also be extremely frustrating to lead discussions about diversity for fear of stepping on people’s toes. No matter how comfortable you are about speaking on important issues around inclusivity and diversity, having the topic in a group will always be challenging and frustrating. So I challenged students on their thoughts and opinions when I felt comfortable doing so, but there were some times where I did not feel comfortable doing it because of fear that I would say something that would offend someone. I recognize that I am not an expert on diversity and that I do not know every appropriate piece of commentary on all topics related to diversity and as my co-facilitator mentioned in her reflection, the class allowed people to explore their own shortcomings/faults through discussion and conversation. I made sure the class understood no one was an expert and that they all need to hold each other accountable if someone says something that might be offensive without recognizing the offense.
4) Time Management.
The students expressed that sometimes the class discussions would go off topic or that too much time was spent on a certain topic or activity. I think it is always important to be mindful of time management. With the class, there was a lot of information to cover and 1 hour and 15 minutes always seemed to fly by. However as the facilitator I made certain that if we were having a good discussion on a topic, I would allow students to continue to discuss that topics and then decide what I could cut out from the lesson or what I could push to the next week. I also wanted to make sure that every student had the opportunity to weigh in or chime in on a topic and so this also made me pressed for time. I did not want to cut a student off, however one thing I learned is that sometimes you have to cut the discussion to move on to other parts of the lesson plan.
5) Students want hands-on engaged learning.
Students do not just want to be lectured to or given busy work such as papers. They want the opportunity to have hands on learning through activities that are going to cause them to get up and interact with each other. I tried to offer as many opportunities for this as possible. The students expressed that they learned the most or that lessons stood out in their minds the most through engaging activities (Cross the line, Magic Shoes, videos, etc).
With this, I wanted to be honest with students about what to expect about the RA position. I do not think there is any benefit about sugarcoating the position. I informed students that the RA position was one of the hardest jobs on campus, but that it was also one of the most rewarding positions. I liked to offer many anecdotes and stories of my experiences as an RA and as a Coordinator so that they could get a better understanding of the job and a better understanding of the situations that they would be handling. It seems like these stories were a big hit for the students.
6) Challenge and Support
Students reflected that it was important when they were challenged on their thoughts and feelings about a topic. They also reported that they wanted me to really encourage students to expand upon their thoughts when they mentioned them in class. The students liked it when I encouraged them to explore themselves and others and to look at notions that they always believed in and challenge them to think outside the box and see if there was something they were missing. One student enjoyed the fact that i provided advice and tips, seeking to develop the students academically and personally. To me, learning is collaborative. Even though I was the facilitator of the class, I learned a lot from the students as well so not only did I want to challenge them, but I wanted them to challenge me and I think when there is an environment that allows for such a dialogue, built on mutual respect, people can challenge each other and feel comfortable about what they learn from that process.
Overall I noticed a tangible difference between when I facilitated CSA 397A and HI ED 302. Granted I had also worked at Penn State a year longer and had a better and deeper understanding of the class and the position and the job that we do so I felt more comfortable talking to students about the topics. I also think that taking HI ED 546 with Dr. Jackson helped me to develop my skills even more for facilitating a class. Having had the opportunity to read the student reflections and to reflect myself has also helped me learn, develop and cement more of my ideas of what makes a great facilitator. I also discovered through this whole process that I enjoy building curriculum, developing lesson plans and educating students. I am still a practitioner at heart, but I could see more opportunities for myself in the future in the classroom.
