Document Type
Poster
Presentation Date
Fall 2020
Abstract
My approach to teaching for several years was to explain the relevant material to my students, and then follow up with questions to confirm understanding. This is the approach that I was exposed to as a student and so I never questioned it. If my performance in a class was not up to par, then there must have been some deficiencies in preparation on my part. I never stopped to consider that perhaps the employment of a different teaching strategy by the instruction might have helped me obtain a better grade. Of course, this is mere speculation – it may be that my performance in this hypothetical course might not have improved significantly even with a teaching approach designed to better facilitate learning in students. Or perhaps it might have.
Over the years, there has been the need to re-evaluate the methods and strategies employed in facilitating learning in students with the goals of enhancing classroom engagement, increasing material-retention rates, improving class attendance, and ultimately achieving higher graduation rates in students. While my initial approach to teaching – the lecturer approach - is not entirely without merit, the STEM Instructional Program showed me a better way.
WMU ScholarWorks Citation
Olagbemi, Omofolakunmi Elizabeth, "From Instructor-Driven Teaching to Student-Focused Learning – a Personal Narrative" (2020). STEM Instructional Graduate Teaching Assistant Posters. 16.
https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/stem-gta-posters/16