RE: New Instructor Experiences [7:62826]
>I don't know about you, but public speaking is one of the hardest skills >I've had to learn. > >I've noticed that there are lots of 'fear-enhancing' factors that can >become involved; they can vary from person to person - some speakers >completely lose it when handling a difficult audience-member, or trying >out new material, or typing/demoing while speaking. For myself, it >seems having a video-camera in the room will completely trip me up. I >can't tell you the number of times I've presented material well (good >survey results and everything), only to #@%$& it up completely when >having to record it for a Video-on-demand session. Urg. Makes me wish >that they'd just use a handheld camera and not tell me it's in the room. >:-( > I hear you, Frank. One of the few really useful academic things for me was taking a dramatics minor in high school. It's not all gloom -- there are groups such as Toastmasters, which often have reasonably accessible breakfast or lunch meetings, that help a lot. Two things tend to be a problem for me when teaching. I'm deaf in one ear, so my physical position vis-a-vis the students is important, as well as the amount of machine noise in the room. Second, I often supplement the course materials, to the point that my time management may suffer. I also try to do the course as stand-up comedy, which doesn't appeal to everyone. Mind you, there was only one time I awakened someone, because he was snoring so badly that nobody could hear. He had me worried, as his sleep apnea was VERY obvious. Interesting side effect, I've noticed, of certification. Before there was any large push to certification, people really wanted the extra material. Increasingly, when I was teaching on a regular basis, students would complain, sometimes to my bosses, that I dared give them information that didn't strictly pertain to certifications -- such as the major changes in access list processing between IOS 10.2 and 10.3. Message Posted at: http://www.groupstudy.com/form/read.php?f=7&i=62845&t=62826 -- FAQ, list archives, and subscription info: http://www.groupstudy.com/list/cisco.html Report misconduct and Nondisclosure violations to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
RE: New Instructor Experiences [7:62826]
John, You may want to drown your disappointment in something a little stronger than coffee. :-) I volunteered to teach a small computer class at my daughter's school a while back and I definitely had those days. It usually happened when there were pressing issues at the office and I was anxious to finish the class so I could start to resolve the issues. However, after a while I learned to concentrate more on the class than the office! In my opinion, it's just one of those things that happen occasionally. Shawn K. -Original Message- From: John Neiberger [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] Sent: Tuesday, February 11, 2003 5:12 PM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: OT: New Instructor Experiences [7:62826] I just feel the need to rant/vent for a bit and I knew there were a bunch of you who might be able to relate to this. I've started teaching a short, one-session general networking class for some of the people here at the bank. The first session, which was really just a runthrough with a handful of students, went fairly well. In fact, it went so well that they increased the number of overall attendees to about 60 or so. Last week I had another session that went exceptionally well, except for a couple of students who really didn't want to be there. I couldn't have asked for it to go better, and my boss heard lots of good things about it. One person even said I should be a professor! :-) Now, that brings us to today Today I had an afternoon class, and in my opinion it sucked rotten eggs. I feel embarrassed to have been involved with it.I can't think of too many ways in which it could have gone worse. I rambled, I flew through 2.5 hours of material in about an hour, I lost my place a lot. I'm not certain that I ever formed a train of thought longer than a couple of cars, and I think even those trains were without engine and caboose. Have any of you other instructors had days like that? As I even mentioned in class, I felt like my 'explainer' was broken today, and it certainly was. I'm hoping that I could get some sympathy from other instructors with similar experiences. Okay, I'm going to go drown my disappointment in some coffee! John Message Posted at: http://www.groupstudy.com/form/read.php?f=7&i=62838&t=62826 -- FAQ, list archives, and subscription info: http://www.groupstudy.com/list/cisco.html Report misconduct and Nondisclosure violations to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
RE: New Instructor Experiences [7:62826]
Hey man it happens. Some days it's like you've got a tap running into the hoover dam, and it's your job to make sure everyone gets an 8 oz. glass of water. Other days you've got that tap up and running, and the students want to know about the Gulf of Mexico. My advice would be, if you have another session with these same people, and if the next session is relevant to your recent one that didn't go so hot, start off asking a couple questions of the group that relate to the last session. There are many topics in networking that just don't sink in after only one exposure, and there's nothing wrong with somebody not picking everything up the first time. Hell, you can even make fun of yourself if you're comfortable doing it. On more than a couple occasions when I've covered ISDN and interesting traffic, I've had to stop and say "Hey, who's the idiot that taught you guys access lists???" The other thing I do to gauge how much is getting absorbed is constantly encourage students to ask questions. They'll tell you what they don't get, but they do so by asking questions. By the way, if you find that you enjoy teaching, you might want to see if there's a college in the area that participates in the Cisco Networking Academy Program. Most community colleges love getting adjunct instructors who have current industry experience. Good luck, Hal Logan CCAI -Original Message- > From: John Neiberger [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] > Sent: Tuesday, February 11, 2003 5:12 PM > To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Subject: OT: New Instructor Experiences [7:62826] > > > I just feel the need to rant/vent for a bit and I knew there were a > bunch of you who might be able to relate to this. I've > started teaching > a short, one-session general networking class for some of the people > here at the bank. The first session, which was really just a > runthrough > with a handful of students, went fairly well. In fact, it > went so well > that they increased the number of overall attendees to about 60 or so. > > Last week I had another session that went exceptionally well, except > for a couple of students who really didn't want to be there. > I couldn't > have asked for it to go better, and my boss heard lots of good things > about it. One person even said I should be a professor! :-) > Now, that > brings us to today > > Today I had an afternoon class, and in my opinion it sucked rotten > eggs. I feel embarrassed to have been involved with it.I can't > think of too many ways in which it could have gone worse. I > rambled, I > flew through 2.5 hours of material in about an hour, I lost my place a > lot. I'm not certain that I ever formed a train of thought > longer than > a couple of cars, and I think even those trains were without > engine and > caboose. > > Have any of you other instructors had days like that? As I even > mentioned in class, I felt like my 'explainer' was broken > today, and it > certainly was. I'm hoping that I could get some sympathy from other > instructors with similar experiences. > > Okay, I'm going to go drown my disappointment in some coffee! > > John Message Posted at: http://www.groupstudy.com/form/read.php?f=7&i=62836&t=62826 -- FAQ, list archives, and subscription info: http://www.groupstudy.com/list/cisco.html Report misconduct and Nondisclosure violations to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
RE: New Instructor Experiences [7:62826]
One thing that I've discovered is *very* distracting is if I see anyone who looks bored, sleepy, irritated, whatever. That will make me lose my train of thought because I started to be concerned about *why* they appear to be tired, bored, or whatever. I then start to be even more self-conscious, which causes me to talk fast and get even more flustered. Lots of fun! :-) John >>> "Frank Jimenez" 2/11/03 4:27:08 PM >>> I don't know about you, but public speaking is one of the hardest skills I've had to learn. I've noticed that there are lots of 'fear-enhancing' factors that can become involved; they can vary from person to person - some speakers completely lose it when handling a difficult audience-member, or trying out new material, or typing/demoing while speaking. For myself, it seems having a video-camera in the room will completely trip me up. I can't tell you the number of times I've presented material well (good survey results and everything), only to #@%$& it up completely when having to record it for a Video-on-demand session. Urg. Makes me wish that they'd just use a handheld camera and not tell me it's in the room. :-( Frank Jimenez, CCIE #5738 Systems Engineer Cisco Systems, Inc. [EMAIL PROTECTED] -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] On Behalf Of John Neiberger Sent: Tuesday, February 11, 2003 4:12 PM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: OT: New Instructor Experiences [7:62826] I just feel the need to rant/vent for a bit and I knew there were a bunch of you who might be able to relate to this. I've started teaching a short, one-session general networking class for some of the people here at the bank. The first session, which was really just a runthrough with a handful of students, went fairly well. In fact, it went so well that they increased the number of overall attendees to about 60 or so. Last week I had another session that went exceptionally well, except for a couple of students who really didn't want to be there. I couldn't have asked for it to go better, and my boss heard lots of good things about it. One person even said I should be a professor! :-) Now, that brings us to today Today I had an afternoon class, and in my opinion it sucked rotten eggs. I feel embarrassed to have been involved with it.I can't think of too many ways in which it could have gone worse. I rambled, I flew through 2.5 hours of material in about an hour, I lost my place a lot. I'm not certain that I ever formed a train of thought longer than a couple of cars, and I think even those trains were without engine and caboose. Have any of you other instructors had days like that? As I even mentioned in class, I felt like my 'explainer' was broken today, and it certainly was. I'm hoping that I could get some sympathy from other instructors with similar experiences. Okay, I'm going to go drown my disappointment in some coffee! John Message Posted at: http://www.groupstudy.com/form/read.php?f=7&i=62835&t=62826 -- FAQ, list archives, and subscription info: http://www.groupstudy.com/list/cisco.html Report misconduct and Nondisclosure violations to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
RE: New Instructor Experiences [7:62826]
I don't know about you, but public speaking is one of the hardest skills I've had to learn. I've noticed that there are lots of 'fear-enhancing' factors that can become involved; they can vary from person to person - some speakers completely lose it when handling a difficult audience-member, or trying out new material, or typing/demoing while speaking. For myself, it seems having a video-camera in the room will completely trip me up. I can't tell you the number of times I've presented material well (good survey results and everything), only to #@%$& it up completely when having to record it for a Video-on-demand session. Urg. Makes me wish that they'd just use a handheld camera and not tell me it's in the room. :-( Frank Jimenez, CCIE #5738 Systems Engineer Cisco Systems, Inc. [EMAIL PROTECTED] -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] On Behalf Of John Neiberger Sent: Tuesday, February 11, 2003 4:12 PM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: OT: New Instructor Experiences [7:62826] I just feel the need to rant/vent for a bit and I knew there were a bunch of you who might be able to relate to this. I've started teaching a short, one-session general networking class for some of the people here at the bank. The first session, which was really just a runthrough with a handful of students, went fairly well. In fact, it went so well that they increased the number of overall attendees to about 60 or so. Last week I had another session that went exceptionally well, except for a couple of students who really didn't want to be there. I couldn't have asked for it to go better, and my boss heard lots of good things about it. One person even said I should be a professor! :-) Now, that brings us to today Today I had an afternoon class, and in my opinion it sucked rotten eggs. I feel embarrassed to have been involved with it.I can't think of too many ways in which it could have gone worse. I rambled, I flew through 2.5 hours of material in about an hour, I lost my place a lot. I'm not certain that I ever formed a train of thought longer than a couple of cars, and I think even those trains were without engine and caboose. Have any of you other instructors had days like that? As I even mentioned in class, I felt like my 'explainer' was broken today, and it certainly was. I'm hoping that I could get some sympathy from other instructors with similar experiences. Okay, I'm going to go drown my disappointment in some coffee! John Message Posted at: http://www.groupstudy.com/form/read.php?f=7&i=62834&t=62826 -- FAQ, list archives, and subscription info: http://www.groupstudy.com/list/cisco.html Report misconduct and Nondisclosure violations to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: New Instructor Experiences [7:62826]
>John, > >Sounds like you had what I call a "Floating Talking Head" experience. It's >happened to me before. > >Basically, you are in the middle of teaching, presenting, or briefing, and >you experience a trippy sensation of almost being outside yourself. As you >talk, your self awareness gets distorted, and you become very aware that you >are forming sounds with your mouth. You are like "whoa! I am talking about >stuff!" to people! Whoa! This of causes messes up whatever it was you >were trying to say, or you speed up, or get goofy. > This is *exactly* what it was like! It was frustrating, but I can only blame myself. I haven't been getting much sleep lately and I think that's why I was zoning out. Heck, I'm so sleep right now that's it's hard to focus on writing this email. Imagine trying to teach a class in this condition! Well, I'm certainly glad there are others who can relate, just as I suspected. Time for some more coffee before I nod off here at my desk. Thanks! John Message Posted at: http://www.groupstudy.com/form/read.php?f=7&i=62832&t=62826 -- FAQ, list archives, and subscription info: http://www.groupstudy.com/list/cisco.html Report misconduct and Nondisclosure violations to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: New Instructor Experiences [7:62826]
John, Sounds like you had what I call a "Floating Talking Head" experience. It's happened to me before. Basically, you are in the middle of teaching, presenting, or briefing, and you experience a trippy sensation of almost being outside yourself. As you talk, your self awareness gets distorted, and you become very aware that you are forming sounds with your mouth. You are like "whoa! I am talking about stuff!" to people! Whoa! This of causes messes up whatever it was you were trying to say, or you speed up, or get goofy. There is no cure, though some professors try leather elbow patches and a pipe. Best just get some cookies and coffee and chalk it up. Tomorrow, if I were you, I'd review what you were covering when you experienced FTH just to ensure that your students are on the same sheet of music. HTH, Charles ""John Neiberger"" wrote in message [EMAIL PROTECTED]">news:[EMAIL PROTECTED]... > I just feel the need to rant/vent for a bit and I knew there were a > bunch of you who might be able to relate to this. I've started teaching > a short, one-session general networking class for some of the people > here at the bank. The first session, which was really just a runthrough > with a handful of students, went fairly well. In fact, it went so well > that they increased the number of overall attendees to about 60 or so. > > Last week I had another session that went exceptionally well, except > for a couple of students who really didn't want to be there. I couldn't > have asked for it to go better, and my boss heard lots of good things > about it. One person even said I should be a professor! :-) Now, that > brings us to today > > Today I had an afternoon class, and in my opinion it sucked rotten > eggs. I feel embarrassed to have been involved with it.I can't > think of too many ways in which it could have gone worse. I rambled, I > flew through 2.5 hours of material in about an hour, I lost my place a > lot. I'm not certain that I ever formed a train of thought longer than > a couple of cars, and I think even those trains were without engine and > caboose. > > Have any of you other instructors had days like that? As I even > mentioned in class, I felt like my 'explainer' was broken today, and it > certainly was. I'm hoping that I could get some sympathy from other > instructors with similar experiences. > > Okay, I'm going to go drown my disappointment in some coffee! > > John Message Posted at: http://www.groupstudy.com/form/read.php?f=7&i=62829&t=62826 -- FAQ, list archives, and subscription info: http://www.groupstudy.com/list/cisco.html Report misconduct and Nondisclosure violations to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
