Tips and Help

When you have a PROBLEM --

Talk to your Co-operating Teacher
Contact Professor Lemke by Email, or leave a voicemail message at 718-951-5483
Talk to Professor Lemke before or after class or during Office Hours (Room 0604 Plaza)
Contact the Program Head, Professor Taubman, 718-951-5205 (Room 2309 James)
Contact the Graduate Deputy or Student Advisement office, 718-951-5447 (Room 2105 James)

Make sure you understand the purpose of the assignment, read all instructions carefully
Use the library and the internet to find background information and relevant ideas
Integrate your personal experience with research information and professional sources
Plan your writing, write carefully, and edit and revise before submitting any work
Show your work to people you respect and ask for their suggestions to improve it
Write more than the minimum that is required; talk about at least one point in depth
Be thoughtful and original, do not accept conventional opinions uncritically, suggest alternatives
Present more than one side of a question and evaluate the pro's and con's
Make your work look as good as it sounds (type, format, clean it up)

The core of good teaching --

Be well-prepared; know your topic backwards and forwards
Pay more attention to the class than to your lesson plan
Ask questions that stimulate students to think logically, critically, and imaginatively
Get the students to do more of the work of the lesson, individually and/or in small groups
Use demonstrations, media, and hands-on activities to make abstract ideas concrete
Always have more than one way of saying and explaining something important
Use diagrams, drawings, charts, graphs, maps, tables, lists in addition to talking in complete sentences
Keep good notes on the board and involve students in phrasing them
Slow down, step back, and figure out what the students are having problems understanding
Keep a sense of humor and engage with your students as individual human beings
Let a discussion follow its own unpredictable path as long as it keeps students thinking
Know what your number one priority is for each lesson, keep it in mind