Helpful Tips for Faculty

Here are some strategies that may be helpful as you settle into another busy, yet productive semester. These were discussed during the New Faculty Learning Community:

• Create a routine for the students to get used to, for example: the first 5-10 min. of class or last 5-10 (but not the entire class)
• Give preview questions to go with each reading
• To return papers, call their name and have them come pick it up from you up front – this way you get to see them for a longer period of time (not just the back of their head)
• In order to proof your own writing (which is often a futile effort since you wrote it and easily overlook errors), read it from the end, one full sentence at a time.
• To reduce the cringe factor or to relieve anticipatory stress for your students, use euphemisms ☺ (Ex.- “preparation exercises” are quizzes, “narrative piece” is a paper)
• Create an outline or “skeleton” of your PPT (PowerPoint) and post it on BlackBoard before the class so they can fill it in during class (or for preparatory work ready when they come to class)
• As always seems to be the case, moderation is the key when it comes to reflecting on your course evaluations
• As a professional with multiple demands on your time – teaching, research, service, committees, professional development, and so on, it’s essential to schedule time (even if it’s 15-30 minutes a day, 2 times a week) – Ex- allow for 30 min. on M, W, F to write a professional article. For more information on this and researched benefits, check out F.O.P. (First Order Principles for College Teachers), by Robert Boice
• Remember… writing and research are both recursive, so the more you put in, the more you will get out of each, oftentimes “magically”

Please feel free to add your own in the comments section below... the more, the better!