Day 1 Reflection

I have been thinking over the reasons why I teach the way I do. I seem to keep coming back to the idea that my methods all coincide with how I personally like to be taught. In all of my courses I require the students to complete a READIness document that was first introduced as I began my post-secondary instructor path. Among other things, this tool simply allows me to view a students preferred learning style and where the rank among other learning styles. in the IT world, it is interesting to me that most of the students are Aural and Logical.

Although all students don't fall into one specific category, I always try to make my course adaptable for the other learning styles. If I see a student works better in a team environment, I will usually try to pair them up with a more advanced student so they won't drag other students down. I am certain that this allows me to be a more effective instructor and is usually a foreign concept to my fellow instructors.

It is more difficult to transfer these things into an online environment because, unlike a classroom, it is easier to tell when students are not able to catch onto concepts or terms with facial expressions. Also, a lot of times roles are reversed - meaning that someone who may be outspoken in a physical setting is more reserved in an online environment whereas the publicly restrained student is more vocal online. I think that, as long as you meet the needs of the students and they are able to leave with more than the started with, you've been effective. Being flexible and accommodating allows for that.