A PLETHORA OF PONDERINGS

Today, a potpourri of things faculty and administrators can do, can ponder, and can enjoy.

1. Faculty need to be keen observers. Learn to really observe your students and yourself and to self analyze and learn. Keep a notebook. Just as we often keep a listing of academic accomplishments, keep a list of teaching techniques and classroom exercises that work so you can refer to them constantly.
   
   
2. All teachers and administrators have to be able to speak eloquently, insightfully and inspiringly about their program, department or
   majors. This may be an elevator pitch, a longer TED-like talk, or a recruiting presentation.  Program ambassadors able to speak powerfully and instantly are not only extremely helpful. They are also someone every faculty member should be required to become.
   
   
3. Many of us can remember “the old days” when a good day in class was when the teacher showed a film or projected slides. Then came overhead projectors which were never as much fun, but did serve as a kind of transition to present-day technology. Today there are smart boards, also called electronic whiteboards. And while no one really ever had to learn too much about slides or films (except threading that pesky 16mm projector), knowing how to work smart boards and actually incorporate them into your teaching is kind of an art. 
   
   There is a school of thought that simply recommends using smart boards to show films and slides. But I think the point is to work them into the learning process so that they become a true ingenious tool in the teaching process. We do not want smart boards to simply be overused and thus to become boring. But we do want them to be, just like films and slides were, a fun and interesting resource that promotes and assists teaching in ways that make teaching more innovative, creative, and original. Think hard about this new resource. Don’t waste the opportunity to make it something truly different.
   
   
4. A great story brings emotion to a topic. Pictures also bring emotion. And so do words. If you want something to be scary, use scary words. If you want it to be powerful, use powerful words. If you want your presentations to be more passionate, use words and pictures that convey that passion.
   
   
5. The purpose of life is: Constant Forward Progress. It’s telling yourself you will make Constant Forward Progress. It’s figuring out how to make Constant Forward Progress. And it’s actually making Constant Forward Progress. Make a decision today that you will start on that path and a year from now be amazed at yourself and what you have accomplished.