Managing Student Expectations of Your Class - DE Oracle

DE Oracle @ UMUC An Online Learning Magazine for UMUC Faculty Center for Support of Instruction Managing Student Expectations of Your Class George Harding Adjunct Faculty Graduate School of Management and Technology Published: 0 2004 Category: » Online-pedagogy » Teaching-strategies Drs. Harding and Dinauer provide the following text to their students early in the first week's conference discussion, and invite their comments and questions. This is a key part of a concert of documents and activities these veteran instructors use to clarify their expectations of students and manage student expectations of their classes. This text and the linked documents are offered here for use by other UMUC faculty, if they wish, with appropriate editing for their own particular classes and teaching styles. Faculty should not link directly to any webpages linked in this document except the Read Me First webpage, since they are not intended to be generic. The Read Me First page (see link below) is updated each term by the Graduate School DE coordintors for use by Graduate School faculty exactly as-is. The URL remains the same each term. ADMN640 (or PRPA602, etc.) is a rigorous and demanding class designed to improve your skills and abilities. To accomplish the objectives of the class, you will be expected to: Contribute meaningful, insightful discussion in the weekly conferences Fully participate in a study group Develop a project Express your knowledge in the exams The items listed below are posted in the [Syllabus, Course Content, Conferences, and/or Webliography] areas of this classroom to introduce you to this course and to articulate my expectations, so that everyone understands how this particular classroom functions. APA Guidelines Class Schedule Evaluating Resources FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) Myths About Taking Online Classes Quality Responses Read Me First (http://info.umuc.edu/de/faculty/rmf/) (link to page maintained by Center for Support of Instruction (CSI) for instructor use as-is) Syllabus Using TFE (Text Format Editor) for Responses Using HTML for Responses As you read my responses to your assignments or to your postings in the Conferences, you will get a feel for the way in which I guide discussion. My objective is to spur you to think more deeply, critically, and creatively than you might otherwise. In this class, I would like your conference postings to stimulate the thinking of your classmates. If all you had to do to master the material was read text and lecture notes in the subject area, I could just mail you the materials and send a test when you completed the readings. However, there is an Managing Student Expectations of Your Class - DE Oracle important reason why we use the technologies that allow us to come together electronically to learn: knowledge emerges from intelligent dialogue, not just with your instructor but with your peers. My hopes are that in this class, together, we will generate the kinds of conversations that add value to the learning experience. As you write your thoughts in the conferences, question if you are adding value to the discussion. Each instructor has his or her own style. I like to ask challenging questions in order to get you to examine your responses more critically and make your arguments clearer and/or more concise. My comments may appear pointed, as I try to show you potential weaknesses with your arguments and other alternatives that should be considered. I encourage you to do the same with me and with your classmates. However, please, Remember that critical discourse is civil, well-informed, and argues for or against an idea or point, not a person. Don't interpret critical questions/comments to mean that your responses are wrong, that I don't like them or you, or that your classmates don't like or don't respect you. Don't get distracted by the confrontational connotations of arguments. The more we help each other think critically/objectively, the more we will obtain from the discourse. The more controversial the topic, the more learning that takes place. In a f2f (face-to-face) class, we would be expected to discuss and argue intelligently about the readings and related topical issues for three hours a week. That is also a good guideline the time you should spend reading and participating in our online class discussions. As graduate students you are expected to be able to explain your positions eloquently. Organization of your thoughts and clear statement of the evidence for your claims is absolutely essential. For an excellent resource on argumentation (essentially every point that you make is an argument), you might want to learn about the Toulmin model of rules of rational argumentation (http://www.concentric.net /~Creyn266/COMM335/Toulmin.htm) . To maintain a level of readiness required for discussion, you should be reading as much as possible. In addition to assigned readings, at a minimum, you should read: 1. A major daily newspaper 2. At least one news magazine per week 3. Professional journal(s), to keep abreast of changes, current concerns in your profession 4. Best-selling business books, to keep abreast of evolving management theory In addition to supplementing your thinking, you will find that reading also helps your writing. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns after reading the introductory materials, please post them in the Week 1 Discussion Conference on "Class Expectations". Also, please comment on the value of this material, any changes that may make it more valuable to you, and what you expect to gain from this class. Open, honest discourse is critical to the graduate learning experience. About the Author(s) George Gordon Harding has taught ADMN640, Information Systems for Managers, in the Graduate School since 1998. He has been involved with Manufacturing Engineering, Information Technology, and Project Management for 35 years, working for DuPont Merck Pharmaceuticals, DuPont, General Electric, and Baumritter Corporation. In addition to his industrial career, he has taught various math and computer courses as an adjunct professor at a number of colleges in the Delaware area. He earned his Doctorate in Education from Wilmington College, his MBA from the University of Delaware, and his BS in Management from New England College. Before getting his college degrees, he graduated from the General Electric Apprentice Program as a Journeyman Toolmaker. He also has 9 years of military experience with the Army and the Air Force. Leslie Dinauer teaches PRPA602 (Media Communications Techniques) and PRPA603 (Public Relations Research). She Managing Student Expectations of Your Class - DE Oracle Contact Site Manager Created and Maintained by the Center for Support of Instruction © University of Maryland University College Powered by ArticleMS from ArticleTrader.com received her Ph.D. from University of Maryland College Park, her M.A. from American University, and her B.A. from University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her primary research and teaching interests are research methods, persuasion and attitude change, communication theory, and consumer behavior. She is currently studying cognitive structures of attitude concepts. Prior to her positions at the University of Maryland, Leslie was the President of Envisage Communications in Arlington, Virginia. Rating: Not yet rated Comments No comments posted. You must be logged in and be a member of the UMUC community in order to comment. If you are a member of the UMUC community and do not have an account, please register for a FREE one. If you have a guest account but are Faculty/Staff of UMUC please send an email to the DE Oracle Site Manager (mailto:degrad@umuc.edu?subject=Please Update my DE Oracle Guest Account) so that your guest account can be updated. Managing Student Expectations of Your Class - DE Oracl