I attended a lecture, and the delivery was so bad that I learnt nothing about the content. But instead, I learnt so much about 3 things I shouldn't do when I am teaching in future.
Problem: The slides are unintelligible. What I learnt: Slides are visual aids that can enhance our presentations; they can increase the audience's understanding of the topic, explain points, and make an impact. I can do a better explanation with an illustration or just simply a sequence of text description explaining how each step works.
Problem: My lecturer assumes we know everything that was taught in class. I am not sure about the other students; for some parts, I was lost, for some parts, I regarded it as not necessary. What I learnt: If I were to teach, I need to prepare content that is relevant to my class. My students may not understand why they need to know this topic; I need to tell them and show them, why this is good for them to know. Other than for the purpose to pass the exam.
Problem: My lecturer asked the class “any questions?” And answered right away, “no, good.” And I see students in front of me, giving the “what?” hand gestures. What I learnt: I want my class to understand. I have to set an environment that is safe for questions. I don't have to rush through the content. I can ask for a show of hands to check their understanding.
I attended a lecture, and the delivery was so bad that I learnt nothing about the content. But instead, I learnt so much about 3 things I shouldn't do when I am teaching in future.
Problem: The slides are unintelligible.
What I learnt: Slides are visual aids that can enhance our presentations; they can increase the audience's understanding of the topic, explain points, and make an impact. I can do a better explanation with an illustration or just simply a sequence of text description explaining how each step works.
Problem: My lecturer assumes we know everything that was taught in class. I am not sure about the other students; for some parts, I was lost, for some parts, I regarded it as not necessary.
What I learnt: If I were to teach, I need to prepare content that is relevant to my class. My students may not understand why they need to know this topic; I need to tell them and show them, why this is good for them to know. Other than for the purpose to pass the exam.
Problem: My lecturer asked the class “any questions?” And answered right away, “no, good.” And I see students in front of me, giving the “what?” hand gestures.
What I learnt: I want my class to understand. I have to set an environment that is safe for questions. I don't have to rush through the content. I can ask for a show of hands to check their understanding.
I wrote What I’ve learnt from a lecture today about teaching to serve as a reminder for myself and to share to anyone who is currently teaching.