NUTSHELL NOTES "Teaching tips in a nutshell" - The University of Colorado at Denver's One-page Web-page Newsletter for Teaching Excellence

On the back of this page, you'll find the same list of traits, but now you'll apply them to yourself. So at this time flip the page and complete the brief exercise, and then come back to finish reading this issue.

The traits you selected are core values for you. (These can change with time.) If you listed traits for yourself that you also listed (last issue) for your mentor, you likely affirm that mentor's influence as continuing to shine through in what you do today. For some of us, this influence has lasted for more than 30 years?we are recalling a profoundly formative moment of our lives.

In the last issue, you were asked to recall a setting in which your memory took place. When we do this exercise in the first day of Boot Camp for Profs®, a small percentage of respondents recall the event in a large class setting. The dominant number of memories are from a small class setting, and a substantial number take place outside a classroom altogether?perhaps in a professor's office, at a chance meeting walking across campus, or maybe even in one of those rare visits to a professor's home. Some recall a parent or pre-college teacher. With condolences to pioneers in instructional technology, no one has yet recalled "a most influential moment" as arising out of a web page or a videotape! Perhaps that will occur one day, but the current results indicate that the human element is very important to generating memorable moments. It reminds us that we are not teaching a subject, but rather that we are teaching people. So if we want to have positive influence on our students, we'll probably have to try to pay as much attention to them and as we do to our content.

Consider another question about your past mentor: "Do you think that this person realized the importance of that moment in your life'so much so that you would recall it years later?" Very few respondents give an affirmative answer to this. The lesson here lies in recognizing that moments and events we consider to be fairly routine or even mundane may not be either. As professors, any time we spend with a student might indeed translate into just such an important moment. We are influential to students, even when we are not in front of a class, and we always have power that we easily overlook. It carries quite a bit of responsibility to wield it with ever sharpening awareness.

So, should we "teach as we were taught?" We connected deeply with a particular mentor for a reason. Possibly we were like them or wanted to be like them. If so, and we emulate them too much, we risk reaching only the students who have our interests and possibly share our values. Most students are not like us (see NN, v.6, n. 2). This arises for several reasons, including the reality that a broader spectrum of a larger and increasingly diverse population now attends college. Aspirations and values do change with generations and more open admissions policies. The sharing of love for knowledge that worked for our mentor might not work as well in our classrooms where many students may be more concerned with "how to make a living" than "how to live." Ours may be a tougher job than our mentors had. Yet, we have more ways of delivering materials and more access to knowledge about pedagogy than was available to our mentors, so we can indeed grow beyond what they gave to us, as wonderful as their gifts may be. Key words that you provided for yourself that are not traits recalled for the mentor likely reflect your own growth?growth that should always be continued.

A final word: if your old mentor is still alive, send her/him a thank-you card. Any teacher is rewarded so very richly by being remembered in this way, and this is one of those rare chances to repay one good memorable moment with another!

1. Below are some key words that others have used to describe influential teachers. Suppose at some unspecified time in the future, one of your students is doing a similar exercise and they recall you. Number in order of your priority, three traits that you would want your students to recall about you. If better terms than those provided apply, write these under "other" in the final three entries. Choose these carefully.
 

SOME KEY WORDS accessible adventuresome  approachable  authoritative  available  balanced  caring  challenging  clear  committed  communicative  competent  concerned  creative  dedicated  demanding  dignified  disciplined  eccentric  effective  encouraging  energetic  enthusiastic  exciting expressive  fair (just)  focused friendly fun helpful humorous inspiring interesting knowledgeable motivating neat nurturing organized patient personable prepared professional research - oriented respected respectful stimulating student - oriented understanding warm __________________ (other 1) __________________ (other 2) __________________ (other 3)

 

First TLTR of the Year!- With Lunch RSVP to 64915 or enuhfer@carbon.cudenver.edu  Our first Teaching Learning Technology Roundtable (TLTR) will be on First-Class®-based conferencing systems CU-Virtual and CEO. If you use either for teaching, come prepared to share your experiences good & bad. If you don't use either, come listen and enjoy pizza with all of us. NOON, OCTOBER 21, Exec. MBA Suite 150 at CU-Building 14th & Larimer.

TELECONFERENCE!!   Creating Tomorrow's Learning-Centered Environments?Today! "...perpetual learning as a fundamental assumption underlying the role of higher education..." October 22, 10:30 a.m. - 12:30 p. m. Media Center 008 Lower Level of Library Building (Use East Entrance) Sponsored by Facilities Planning & Use and the Media Center --RSVP 6-8376