Final Reflection & Self-Appraisal

Final Reflection 

My enrollment in the University of Nebraska Omaha’s Department of Continuing Studies Transformative Teaching and Learning Initiative aligned with my first semester of teaching online. Prior to the Winter of 2018, I spent every term, for the last seven years, in the traditional classroom. Each term of my career, as my knowledge and experience increased, my confidence in the classroom increased as well. My thoughts and beliefs on teaching and learning focused on two main points: open communication and meeting each student where he/she is at. If I could achieve both of those goals, a sense of community would develop among the students and myself, and we would all feel comfortable exploring our ideas and arguments. Furthermore, what may be more important, is that a classroom that has a keen sense of community will also regard and respond to the ideas and beliefs of others. A strong community not only respects the diversity of the group, but also takes that diversity into account when engaging in communication. This point is vital to English Composition courses, where it can be difficult for students to feel confident and/or comfortable expressing their ideas and experiences. As a student and instructor, I cannot count how many silent classrooms I’ve sat in. This is punishing for everyone, and if the spell is not broken early, it can spoil an entire term.
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This is where point two—meeting students where they are at—becomes significant. My classroom works in drafts. We use brainstorms, outlines, workshop groups, and in-class writing assignments. These assignments are geared to focus on the forest (argument, construction of argument) and the trees (details, description, counterarguments, framing sources). And I respond to everything. The more I read, the more I learn a student’s strengths and weaknesses as a writer; the more I learn who they are as people. With this knowledge—along with the subjects of their writing projects—I put them in workshop groups. In Composition I, these groups change per paper. But in Composition II, these groups are significant when it comes to the major research paper. Composition II research paper groups meet at least ten times throughout the term. They work on the forest and the trees, together, sharing ideas and research, and supporting one another in a class that a considerable number of students quit. These groups are sub-communities within the classroom, and they are invaluable. Beyond understanding the students as writers and attempting to know them as people, I also give my students freedom. I let them write about whatever they want. I communicate my expectations; I communicate the dynamics of writing and the techniques that need to be applied (which the guidelines, brainstorm, and outline reinforce); I show them the box they must work within. Once they know what I’m looking for, they can do whatever they want.

Probably the most controversial thing I do, maybe even more so in the English department, is award 100 percent scores to hard worked, significantly drafted, well written papers. As I said before, I collect drafts, and lots of them. On the first day of class, I not only tell my students that I judge their work against their own work and development, but I also tell them that I am an instructor who awards 100 percent scores. I am not one of those English teachers who believe a 100 means perfection. That does not make sense to me. Writing is never perfect. The Iliad isn’t perfect. Neither is The Brothers Karamazov. Writing is human. Good writing is connective. Good writing pulls at the reader. It makes a person read the same passage over and over, then put the book down to think about the passage further. To be encompassed by it. It makes a person think about the writer, how he/she came to touch on an idea or a sentence or a description that is so beautiful or clever. So well thought out and patient. Even the word essay means “to try.” So why would perfection ever come into the conversation? And why would a student ever feel motivated to take risks— to really try— if he/she knew from the start that trying was mostly futile? And how significant can that futile pursuit be to a student who is taking my class because it is required for their major?

These things are easy to communicate in the traditional classroom. It’s conversation. I can say it all in five minutes or less and move on. It’s a spark in the brain, a touchstone. But things are different in the online classroom. The conversation isn’t the same. The openness, the eye contact and gestures, the laughs and conversations about our days and weekends just aren’t there. And right at this transition is when I began the Department of Continuing Studies Transformative Teaching and Learning Initiative.

At this stage in my career, every aspect of the DCS Teaching and Learning Initiative was important to me because the assignments approached both practical and philosophical knowledge, and then created immediate opportunities for reflection. Furthermore, these reflective opportunities allowed me to meditate on how to transition my work from the traditional classroom into the online classroom.

Of the practical components, I found “Module Two: The Student in Higher Education” and “Module Three: Technology Resources” of the greatest benefit. The demographics of a student body are important foundational knowledge for any instructor. Just on the discussion of planning and delivery in the English classroom, having this information aids an instructor in choosing course readings and developing different strategies for learning.  I think more modules of this type, especially regarding the population of international students—their backgrounds and the histories of their counties—would be of significant importance.  I believe this to be true of the technology component as well. In my few years at UNO, I have received extensive information about the library and the abundance of research outlets it offers. I have even taken numerous courses—including the full-day summer camp— discussing the Canvas platform. However, I have yet to see instructor courses offered that discuss different delivery platforms. The technology module is the first time I have taken a course about adding audio to my lectures. It would be to my betterment as an instructor if I could take more courses like this. I would love to learn about how best to record lecture sessions and post them online and how to deliver lectures live, so students can ask questions and be involved in an open discussion; moreover, it would be great if I could save these lectures on an online platform, making them available for future use.  These are aspects of the teaching environment I know work in, and I will be working to expand my knowledge of the different technologies available to me.

Of the philosophical components, I enjoyed reading Ken Bain’s What the Best College Teachers Do. Unlike other books on teaching theory, I found Bain’s book to be practical, conversation, and approachable. Even though the book discusses the upper echelon of educators, he is really focusing on best practices. It isn’t really a book about being the greatest genius in an Ivy League’s English department, but as an instructor, it’s about how to translate knowledge while also be inspired by and engaged with students. Every time I read a chapter, even just a few pages of the text, I felt encouraged and, in a way, understood. Bain’s text, combined with the practical knowledge of the modules, pressed me to really consider the scope of my teaching and communication. In the last few chapters of Bain’s book, I thought a lot about the students I’ve had throughout the years that I was not able to reach. In some ways, particularly on the topic of student evaluations, it’s easy to give attention to the majority, especially the majority who speaks out positively. As an instructor, the best students are always memorable, but so are the ones who sit in the back, alone, not saying a word all semester. Since reading Bain’s book, I have been reaching out even more to these students, really trying to create an open dialogue of understanding, and evaluating what I can do to help them succeed in my class. I find this notable important in the online classroom.

Of the other activities associated to the certificate program, I found them valuable, and I am really proud of the work I’ve achieved in this course. I think my teaching philosophy is one of the first essays I have written that doesn’t shy away from saying exactly how I feel. If anything, taking this DCS course and engaging whole-heartedly in all of the projects has taught me to really stand up for my beliefs as an educator. Teaching is an active career. Being a teacher is challenging both personally and socially. One must be aware of the past, the present, and the future, in regard to both singular and world events. Building this portfolio is the first time in my career that I worked on a project that wasn’t to attain a new position, but instead to have a better understanding of who I am, who I’ve become, and who I want to be, as an educator. That’s invaluable. As I continue on in my career, I plan to keep listening to my students. I plan to keep working on engaging them as much as I can and attempting to meet them where they are. Furthermore, on the conversat
ion of my own development, I plan to learn more technology that I can implement in my classroom.
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DCS Transformative Teaching and Learning Initiative
Final Self-Appraisal
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Date Submitted: June 4, 2018 
Instructor Last Name: Clanton 
Course Name:  English Composition 1150 
Course Format:  Online 
 
Item                                                                                                                                                           Ranking
Organization of course                                                                                                                                       5
Navigation of the course facilitates ease of use                                                                                              4
Course learning objectives are clear                                                                                                                5
Communication of expectations to students                                                                                                  5
Types / variety of student-to-student interaction opportunities and activities                                         3
Types / variety of student-to-instructor interaction opportunities and activities                                     4
Assessments that are appropriate, timely, varied                                                                                          5
Ensuring academic integrity (testing strategies, screening for plagiarism)                                                 5
Providing feedback to students (timely, appropriate, helpful, personal)                                                    5
Integration of technology                                                                                                                                   5
Creative design / presentation features                                                                                                           5
Instruction strategies that assist a variety of learning styles / abilities                                                        4
Awareness / utilization of student support services on campus                                                                  4
Awareness / utilization of instructor support services on campus (within DCS)                                       4
Awareness / utilization of instructor support services on campus (outside DCS)                                     3