GUIDANCE - PART ONE
I suspect none of us who teach probably appreciates fully how much guidance students need. Every class is unique and has its own keys to success. To us, who have been doing this forever, the way forward looks as clear as the yellow brick road that Dorothy was told to follow by the munchkins. To the students, the path looks like an overgrown mile of swampland with no visible markers. I realize that they look like adults but most students probably need guidance almost every step of the way. I think one of the biggest challenges in college education (and I have said this often on this blog) is that students are under-prepared when they walk into class. They are just are not ready for the depth of conversation that I want. So, we teachers wind up guiding them using a long, boring lecture. If they are not prepared, what else are we going to do? I often accuse them of being prepared for a high school class. The response i...