Best Teaching Practices for Developmental Students Presented by: Jennifer Perkins

Remember when… All these ways of teaching and learning are antiquated and no longer the best teaching methods. The best way to reach your students is…

Before class starts…  Prepare, prepare, prepare  Update your Blackboard shell by reading through each tab, assignment, due date, instructor information, etc.  Create a new syllabus using the previous semester's syllabus, but update all important and relevant information such as start date, 10% date, withdrawal date, school breaks, final exam date, office hours, etc.  Write your students a welcome letter that WELCOMES them to your class and invites them to share in this learning process with you the instructor and their future classmates.  Remind students of when and where the class will meet, the textbook information, and the importance of attending the first day of class.

First day of class…  Ice breaker activity!!  Go over syllabus and classroom expectations  Discuss requirements of the course to be successful  Consider a group ice breaker Create teams that start connections from Day 1 Have students exchange contact information

Group Ice Breakers  Lost at Sea-Teams work together to identify items that will aid in their survival at sea.  Students discuss not only what items will aid in their survival but what will attract attention for rescue.  Builds on teamwork, creates peer connections, promotes communications skills and establishes rapport between classmates THE LEADERSHIP CENTER AT WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY D:\MyDocuments\Websites\lead\library\resources\RESO URCES\Teambuilding\Lost At Sea.doc  Crayon Game-Individuals choose his/ her favorite color and create groups with those who chose the same color.  Then each group finds a commonality that goes beyond their group color.  Establishes a bond between group members, works on their communication skills, strengthens relationships

Policies and Procedures… From Day 1, clearly explain the classroom policies and procedures. Go over your expectations and requirements. If there is a steadfast policy against cell phone use in the classroom, then let students know. It is imperative for the success of the class that are clear guidelines from the instructor. My one and only classroom is…

The Importance of Intervention  In order to do our jobs, and do it well, we need to prepare for those students who consistently miss class, come to class late or struggle in the classroom. Those students may need an intervention on their behalf.  Using your school’s early alert system, take time to notify students who do seem to be struggling or need the extra help. Often times, students truly appreciate when an instructor takes time to reach out to them.  Find at your school where there is an intervention tool where students can be referred to counseling and advising for academic counseling or personal counseling.

Learning Style and Personality Types Learning Styles:  Visual learners learn best by seeing. They need to see it to understand it.  Auditory learners learn best from what they hear. They prefer a lecture over reading a textbook.  Kinesthetic learners learn best when they are actively involved. These students find it difficult to sit still for long periods of time. Personality Types:  Extrovert vs. Introvert- This is where students will focus their energy.  Sensing vs. Intuition- This is how students gather information.  Thinking vs. Feeling- This is how students make decisions.  Judging vs. Perceiving- This is how students relate to the world around them.

Get to know your students… Take time to learn your students names and show a genuine interest in their well being. Strike up conversations before class starts and after class ends. Make a consistent effort to get to know each individual student. We want our students to feel valuable to the class. As educators, we are here to create productive working relationships with all our students.

Reach out to your students Weekly basis  Each week, make a point to update your Bb shell  Simply update your announcement page and click the box that sends the message out via and link it to any ongoing assignments Individual basis  Take time to respond to s from students in a timely manner (within business hours)  If a student misses two or more classes, that student and remind him/ her your door is always open.

Active Learning Strategies Ideas for active learning:  Role play or act out a problem  Peer edit each other’s work with directives to find three pluses and one piece of constructive criticism  Use clickers to randomly poll your audience or ask questions relevant to the assigned writing/ reading  Use large sheets of Post-its and put subject heading relevant to your curriculum for each person to add his/ her comments  Teaching in small groups-Learn content area as a whole group and then redistribute groups to learn new information  Create a one minute paper reflecting upon what was taught in class that day  Circle group as a way to share and discuss writing pieces, use rough drafts or final copies From Confucius, to Bloom’s Taxonomy, we learn best by doing, so incorporate the doing into your classes.

Midterms, Exams, and More  By halfway through the semester, students should be in a grove with the classroom policies and procedures  Give students with at least two weeks notice as to when and where you will give the midterm exam  Prepare for the midterm by holding an in-class study session or encourage study groups to form  Discuss what will be on the midterm, how to prepare, and why students should study  Conquer test anxiety and practice breathing and relaxation techniques  After the midterm, have students calculate their grades  Talk about midterm reports and the potential of bringing up a low grade

End of semester…  Remind students of any papers/ exams that will be due  Discuss when the last class meeting will be and when and where the exam will take place  Prepare for the end by reminding students to double check grades and point out any in discrepancies  Evaluate the final grading process as a whole class and make students aware of absences how they will affect their final grade

Best Teaching Practices, 2 nd edition