UMSU VCE Summer School 2015

[Stick]

\

What block are you in? Asking for no reason whatsoever....

Haha, I could use a keen bean like you!

By the way, how far in did you Biology tutors get in your first class? I anticipated I'd get to the end of "the cell" but only reached the end of "molecules of life" - and that was without even getting around to any activities other than the initial ice-breaker. I know I tend to go through content rather slowly and thoroughly, but I really thought I'd get through more than just three pages. >_<

[IndefatigableLover]

Haha, I could use a keen bean like you!

By the way, how far in did you Biology tutors get in your first class? I anticipated I'd get to the end of "the cell" but only reached the end of "molecules of life" - and that was without even getting around to any activities other than the initial ice-breaker. I know I tend to go through content rather slowly and thoroughly, but I really thought I'd get through more than just three pages. >_<

I know I'm not a Biology tutor but for my first class for Bio we only got through the first two pages (unofficially it's three since we didn't go over it but talked about what was on Page 3) of the booklet which happened after watching videos centred on Monomers. As we went through the booklet my tutor picked out questions from past VCAA exams and we went through them as a class

On a general note: Good work for VCESS so far! It's quite enjoyable!

[Stick]

*Phew* Your class was similar to mine then, although I mainly got people drawing rather than watching a video. I heard some classes getting well into metabolism, which genuinely concerned me about my pace.

[simpak]

I got up to metabolism and tomorrow I hope to reach the end of nervous system \o/

[IndefatigableLover]

*Phew* Your class was similar to mine then, although I mainly got people drawing rather than watching a video. I heard some classes getting well into metabolism, which genuinely concerned me about my pace.

Haha yeah watching the video was a bit awkward since it was quite longer than 5 minutes but I guess being our first lesson and how awkward/quiet we all were it was the right decision in hindsight I think LOL
 

[charmanderp]

Dat trivia tho.

[pi]

Who is the person from my class who said they knew me from AN? REVEAL YOURSELF.

[IndefatigableLover]

Dat trivia tho.

Best Pun: I don't know one. Please don't pun-ish me :')

[scribble]

Who is the person from my class who said they knew me from AN? REVEAL YOURSELF.

HahahahahahaHAHAHA

[Stick]

I got up to metabolism and tomorrow I hope to reach the end of nervous system \o/

That was my intention, but now that I've actually taken a class I feel like I'm just too slow to keep to my schedule. May I ask how you go about taking your class? Generally I'm content going slow (my motto for VCE has always been to do it slow and do it right the first time) but I realised that if I keep up at this pace I won't even complete immunity. I know I shouldn't rush through for the sake of it but I feel I owe my students more than a brief overview of less than half the year's course. The only way I can see myself moving at a more appropriate pace is to cut out a lot of the activities I had planned. :/

[simpak]

I generally don't refer to the book unless there's a mistake or I want to emphasise something really important (eg 'make sure you know this table' or 'memorise that definition') or add something to something in the book eg add something into a diagram or graph.  I basically introduce a topic in a couple of sentences and then going into harder content. I draw a lot of pictures on the board that I've planned out beforehand (haven't been using technology because it tends to waste time imo and I suck at setting up a projector/computer) and then ask people questions or to contribute in order to draw the pictures/teach the class.  Get people to come up and draw/write on the board.  Ask people if they understood everything --> move on to the next topic.

I am a fan of the broader overview thing. I feel like I'm going through the most important points in each of the classes, without spending much time on things that can be rote learned without much conceptual understanding (eg plant hormones). I decided to do it this way because everyone in the class is at a different level in terms of what they already know, prereading etc - by covering more things, even in less detail, you appeal to a wider proportion of the class.  Otherwise some people get overly bored/don't learn anything because you spend the whole time going through something they already understand.  I would prefer to go over something in less detail and ask people to approach me to talk about it if they didn't understand properly, or they want further clarification.  But there's no 'right way' to teach any of this - this approach might appeal to some students and a slower more complete approach might appeal more easily to others.

I finished everything I wanted to go through today, without spending as much time on the action potential as I would have liked to, but it's okay!

[Stick]

Thanks, simpak. It sounds like your activities are really streamlined and aren't overly involved or complicated, which is something I overlooked in my lesson planning. Other than that, I think I just need to let go and stop worrying about all the little details! (But, the details... T_T jk XD)

I was foolish to believe private tutoring and taking a class were similar. I guess I learnt that one the hard way! ^_^

[vox nihili]

Thanks, simpak. It sounds like your activities are really streamlined and aren't overly involved or complicated, which is something I overlooked in my lesson planning. Other than that, I think I just need to let go and stop worrying about all the little details! (But, the details... T_T jk XD)

I was foolish to believe private tutoring and taking a class were similar. I guess I learnt that one the hard way! ^_^

There will be a lot of variation in the classes anyway. It's worth remembering that a lot of the kids involved in this programme will have come from schools with pretty poor science programmes and may not have a solid grounding in science at all. So if things are going a little slow, don't fret too much. To pick your speed you need to make sure that they're understanding what you're saying and at the same time, aren't bored because you've said it so much. I'm sure you're doing a great job

[pi]

Urgh 9am class tomorrow. I haven't woken up in the am for some weeks now... >_<

[Stick]

There will be a lot of variation in the classes anyway. It's worth remembering that a lot of the kids involved in this programme will have come from schools with pretty poor science programmes and may not have a solid grounding in science at all. So if things are going a little slow, don't fret too much. To pick your speed you need to make sure that they're understanding what you're saying and at the same time, aren't bored because you've said it so much. I'm sure you're doing a great job

Thank you very much for the kind words. Today went really really well; I managed to almost catch up with my schedule and still managed to run my intended class activities. I think it was just the initial class that must have thrown me off a little because now I feel content with how I ran things.