I kid you not, since my last post in this "Teaching" section of the blog, I have taught two full semesters of BIOL 110. This means that 1) my teaching requirements for the Biology Ph.D. program are fulfilled and I most likely won't have to teach again in graduate school; and 2) that I have a decent amount of experiences to share with you all that will hopefully come in handy in one way or another. I absolutely loved every minute of being a teaching assistant, and hope to hear about some of your stories as I share some of mine :)
I thought the most useful thing I could do for you, my reader(s), would be to sum up my top teaching tips in one post and elaborate on some of the experiences a bit later on. I hope you'd all agree with my strategy here, but your approval doesn't really matter much anyway because you don't get to read this until it's finished...so yeah, on we go!
I thought the most useful thing I could do for you, my reader(s), would be to sum up my top teaching tips in one post and elaborate on some of the experiences a bit later on. I hope you'd all agree with my strategy here, but your approval doesn't really matter much anyway because you don't get to read this until it's finished...so yeah, on we go!
Tip #1: Be organized.
Before you think I'm copping out on a good tip, hear me out. The number one thing that I've found that really bugs the crap out of students is when their instructor seems unprepared for the day. There is nothing more worrisome than feeling like you have a better handle on the situation than the person who is supposed to be imparting wisdom, knowledge, and guidance. "I mean, this is supposed |
to be their job, right? Teaching us *fill-in-the-blank*." If you are going to have to teach a class of any kind, whether for a requirement or for your paycheck or whatever, take the time to teach that class well. Make some pretty slides, read over assignments ahead of time, check your emails as often as possible without driving yourself crazy, and, above all, know what is on the syllabus, especially due dates for assignments and quiz/exam days. Channel your inner Leslie Knope and get it done!