
Jason Norman
Adjunct English instructor
Old Dominion University
Norfolk, VA USA
“I've learned that it's better to regret doing something than regret not doing it.”
Old Dominion University
Norfolk, VA USA
“I've learned that it's better to regret doing something than regret not doing it.”
Adjunct English instructor
I teach several levels of English.
It starts the day before. You plan as much as possible—what you'd like to cover, how long it will take, what you are looking for, etc. Always give yourself more material than you think you'll need. Then you come to class and start with an attention-grabbing activity, like a journal. Get through a brief introduction of the assignment, and get the attendance sheet passed around. Then act out the script you prepared for yourself beforehand; students like teachers who come in ready to go!
Here's the first step for college students
Take some classes to see if your personal passion bleeds over into your professional one. What you like as a person might not seem so attractive when you discover what it truly entails. Get started early, so if you are disappointed, you have time to recover.
"I can't say that I heard discouragement; no one ever said that I shouldn't be a college instructor. I wasn't a great student, so I had self-doubts, but that was about the extent of discouragement."