| Teaching is one of the oldest and most respected | | | | At times there are few gaps in the sense that either |
| professions in the world. In good old days the students | | | | the student has forgotten the prerequisites required for |
| who had genuine desire to learn used to go to | | | | the course you are going to teach or may be there |
| traditional Gurus and were usually self-motivated. The | | | | was a gap in the syllabus and students have not been |
| going through teaching-learning process was | | | | taught the prerequisites required for the course. In both |
| comparatively easy as concepts were relatively | | | | the cases it may be good idea to cover the barest |
| simple and straightforward to implement. With changing | | | | minimum of the prerequisites required for the course |
| socio-economic and technological scene the whole | | | | instead of blaming the students or the framers of the |
| process has undergone a tremendous change. | | | | syllabus. |
| In today's society there are certain students who | | | | Keep them with you: Make sure that the students |
| come just to earn a degree so as to have a | | | | keep pace with you all through the course and do not |
| respectable social status and are not interested in | | | | abandon you in between. You could devise means to |
| learning at times. Not only that such students | | | | make sure that they stay with you as far as course |
| deliberately create problems for teachers in smooth | | | | coverage is concerned. One technique is to ask the |
| conduct of classes. Moreover due to technological | | | | students to repeat part of the teaching of the previous |
| advancements in various fields, the concepts and | | | | class in the beginning of the class as a practice which |
| applications have become quite complicated to | | | | forces each student to at-least glance through the |
| understand, practice and implement. | | | | notes before they attend the next class. Moreover |
| The teacher's job under these environments has not | | | | you should be able to identify the students who are |
| only become more difficult but has become challenging | | | | falling behind for what ever may be reasons. Target |
| wherein he has to ensure that learning difficult to | | | | such students for your questions very often and let it |
| understand concepts takes place not only for the | | | | be known by them- after all it is for their own good. |
| students who are interested to learn but also for the | | | | How to Ensure Learning |
| students who are not interested. This is to ensure so | | | | Following points may come handy in ensuring proper |
| that all the passing out students attain minimum | | | | learning: - |
| prescribed standards by the university before they | | | | Generate interest: If you can discuss some of the |
| pass certain university courses failing which the | | | | applications of what you are going to teach it will be |
| credibility and survival of the University will be | | | | better as students interest in the topic will be invoked |
| questionable in today's competitive environment | | | | and their understanding will positively be better. |
| wherein lot of private Universities are mushrooming. | | | | Test their understanding of what you have taught: This |
| This requirement poses new and here-to-fore unseen | | | | could be by way of discussions and question answers. |
| and un-heard challenges for the teachers in the field of | | | | You could also ask some good students to give |
| higher technical education who have largely been | | | | answers to the questions raised by other students in |
| involved in teaching the students who were basically | | | | the class. By doing so you will be able to judge their |
| interested in learning and were able to learn on their | | | | understanding of the subject, give them little practice to |
| own as well with little or no guidance from the | | | | speak and also clarify the doubts, which others may |
| teachers. | | | | be having? |
| Keeping this in mind the attitude commonly shared | | | | Force them to come prepared: you could take |
| among the breed of teachers involved in higher | | | | frequent class tests or you could ask some students |
| technical education that their task is to teach and the | | | | at random to come on the stage and just give the |
| students will learn only if they are interested and want | | | | brief of what was discussed during previous lecture. |
| to learn is a negative approach to my mind. | | | | Strike a good rapport with students: Your attitude |
| Teaching and Learning: The Missing Links | | | | towards them is very important and they read it |
| What has largely been considered classroom teaching | | | | correctly always and every time. Be sympathetic but |
| and learning process traditionally has got certain | | | | firm in your approach. Your approach could be almost |
| missing links to my mind, particularly in the face of | | | | fatherly. They should be able to sense that you mean |
| changed socio-economic changes discussed above. I | | | | their good and that should be shown by your actions |
| consider following to be the complete cycle of | | | | rather than you talking about it. |
| teaching learning process and I have tried to stretch it | | | | Read their mind and Eyes: You should be able to read |
| beyond learning to achieving proficiencies and | | | | question marks in their eyes. It is not difficult. Do look in |
| developing competencies which is call of today in fast | | | | their eyes and you will be amazed to see them |
| changing, highly competitive industrial environment. | | | | speaking without using words. Do not ignore that as if |
| Today industry wants to hire the students who should | | | | you do that, they would soon loose interest and also |
| be able to take on the task head-on without requiring | | | | the track of what you are teaching. |
| much of training, which becomes quite costly affair | | | | Why wait. Take feedback for yourself in the very |
| especially for small and medium sized industries. The | | | | second week: Talk to them frankly and openly and try |
| complete cycle as perceived by me is as shown | | | | changing your style if required. After all what you |
| below: - | | | | teach is not important, what they learn is more |
| (a)Teaching | | | | important isn't it? |
| (b)Creating Awareness | | | | Keep them on toes: If they do not put questions |
| (c)Making them Know Things | | | | bombard them with questions. Basically your approach |
| (d)Complete Learning | | | | should be to ensure that they listen to you and are |
| (e)Acquiring Proficiency | | | | mentally alert. |
| (f)Developing Competencies | | | | Show your genuine concern for their welfare: Do not |
| What is the difference? | | | | only talk just do the best you can. Even accompanying |
| Till very recently the situation was that if a teacher had | | | | some student to hospital in emergencies can earn their |
| taught and they (students) understand it was | | | | faith and respect. |
| considered that Job was done well. But in today's | | | | Earn respect by your behavior and knowledge not by |
| challenging, competitive and rapidly changing industrial | | | | your position: Even how you stand how you talk and |
| and economic environment is that sufficient? Will the | | | | how you dress up does matter. Do you remember |
| passing out students from technical institutions be in a | | | | your school/College days? Try to look back into those |
| position to deliver the goods when they join any | | | | days and you will realize as to what needs to be done. |
| industry without requiring much of the 'on induction' | | | | Do your homework thoroughly: There can never be |
| training? Probably not! Let me quote an example from | | | | any short cut for depth of knowledge. Each lecture |
| my personal experiences. | | | | has to be prepared thoroughly as if you are going to |
| We were in the process of installing the equipments at | | | | teach it for the first time. |
| one of our sites where there was a requirement of | | | | Why Limit to classroom? |
| programming the exchange for Direct Inward Dialing | | | | Classroom teaching could well be just less than 50% |
| (DID) facility. I tasked one of our freshly inducted | | | | of the total learning involved or put it otherwise it could |
| engineers to get it done and sincerely thought that | | | | be gateway leading to learning experiences. Use |
| after some introduction to the exchanges and the | | | | every opportunity presented to you to make them |
| facility he would be able to do the job at least within a | | | | learn. Other opportunities to enhance teaching learning |
| week. We had enough time as some other time | | | | process could be following: - |
| consuming jobs were also required to be completed | | | | · Lab Sessions |
| before launch of the services. I tried to explain the | | | | · Tutorial Seminars |
| exchange to him and to my utter surprise he did not | | | | · Projects |
| have any idea about functioning of exchanges though | | | | · Industry Visits |
| he had one of the subjects on the exchanges at his | | | | Make use of this time to fullest advantage. |
| undergraduate level. It took one month of patient | | | | Demonstrate the equipment in lab sessions and during |
| training before he could finish the programming of the | | | | industry visits and couple this with classroom teaching. |
| exchange to our satisfaction. To our surprise one of | | | | Same way projects, seminars and tutorial time can be |
| the marketing executive who had background of | | | | fruitfully used to a great advantage. Invoke the interest |
| commerce could pick up programming of the | | | | in the students by taking practical systems and |
| exchange in the process and could do better than the | | | | examples from the visits, which you had undertaken to |
| engineer who had formal teaching on the subject. I just | | | | enhance the learning. |
| put a question to my-self as to what was the point in | | | | Need to develop art of self-leaning |
| hiring a communication engineer if he could not do the | | | | End of studies at the college is going to be beginning |
| job and every thing had to be spoon-fed to him. The | | | | of the actual learning about the real world where |
| problem was probably at his undergraduate program | | | | continuous update of the knowledge will be required. If |
| where he had learned to mug up the things, reproduce | | | | continuous spoon-feeding is resorted to at the college/ |
| it at the time of examination and then forget about that | | | | institute level it may result in their incompetence to |
| without thinking about its applications. This highlights the | | | | understand complex reading material at later stage. |
| lack of learning taking place in spite of teaching being | | | | We should not let it happen at any cost. |
| done. | | | | Where we fit in as teachers? Can't we motivate them |
| Improving Teaching Learning Process | | | | to develop the art of self-learning and self-grooming to |
| For making teaching learning process to be more | | | | get ready for future? This will go a long way to |
| effective a change in teachers attitude and approach | | | | completely develop the students to face the future. |
| is required following can be tried out: - | | | | Some extra efforts will have to be put in by the |
| Paradigm shift from "Catch me if you can" to "catch | | | | teacher for this in the form of organizing seminars and |
| them if you can" approach: In today's environment a | | | | other co-curricular activities for the students on beyond |
| teacher can no longer think that he will teach to his | | | | syllabus topics of common interest. There may be initial |
| level best and it is for the students to follow and | | | | resistance on the part of students, which has to be |
| practice what he has taught. One has to speak the | | | | overcome by way of rewarding the performing |
| language at the level and in the manner that students | | | | students. This will also develop overall personality of |
| understand. | | | | the students in addition to developing habit of |
| Test the water before you take a plunge: It is better | | | | self-learning. |
| not to start with the syllabus full throttle from day one. | | | | |