Reading Notes #1

Considering I have basically zero teaching experience, much less creating a syllabus, the readings were very helpful. Personally, I found Tools for Teaching to contain more of a variety of information that will help me write a syllabus and communicate with students outside of class.

The first thing that struck me was where Davis suggests that we should focus on what we want to achieve for outcomes. (pg 3) On the surface, this sounds like a glaringly obvious suggestion, but I feel pointing out the obvious is a good thing once in a while. I've had a number of courses where the syllabus I received was so vague and confusing, I had no idea what I was supposed to accomplish by the end of the course. I don't feel confusing the student right off the bat is a way to create a productive learning environment. For individuals of my experience level, I also feel it is very necessary to seek advice from faculty who have taught in your field, especially in creating a syllabus. (pg 4)

I think the section regarding all the different taxonomies presented a large amount of information that clearly point out that there is no definitive answer. I am interested in learning more about Bloom's Taxonomy, mostly because it was not only referenced in Davis, but also in Lang as a starting point for learning domains. (pg 5-6) If I tried to decipher all the learning domains, it would likely only produce an incoherent wall of text. This is why I would like to discuss this further and try to gain a better grasp of it.

Being in a health care field, information is constantly changing, which makes choosing sources for course material especially difficult. This is why I was happy to see Davis suggest that we not only use multiple mediums for material (pg 13), but that we also stay current by using new textbooks and journals. (pg 4) In a health care field, this can also meet the goal of choosing material to reflect course outcomes. (pg 12) However, in any science based field, textbooks are good for teaching basic course material, but are quickly shown to be outdated with advanced material. This is why I feel using peer-reviewed journals would be beneficial. This would serve not only to keep material as current as possible, but also keep costs down for the students, since they will have access to many articles through university library systems.

I think some other good points Davis made were to make sure there is a clear outline of assignments that doesn't leave a gray area for the student to interpret. (pg 21) Lang also touches on this by suggesting that we should be very clear on the syllabus we produce. (pg4) What I also liked to see was adding student responsibilities to the syllabus. (pg 9) While I am still young and a part of the generation that is guilty of this, I personally think students feel entitled to quite a bit while simultaneously not taking responsibility for their own education and expecting someone to give it to them.

With regards to office hours and electronic communication, I feel Davis did a very good job on those topics. Office hours need to be accessible and organized. (pg 495) Scheduling appointments with students is a great way to keep that organized. (pg 494) When talking about E-mail, I feel the professor has to set limits on day one, or it will spiral out of control. I think there needs to be a time of day set, that if any e-mails are received after it, they won't be responded to until the next day. Basically, treat it like office hours. In that same respect, if the professor sets hours for the student e-mail, it is equally important that the professor respond to e-mails within their own guidelines.