Teaching Methods

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1. Since most of my courses are mathematical in nature, I teach all my classes in the computer lab. I do the problems along with my students so they receive hands-on experience both in doing the work and getting results.

2. I strive to make the process simple. Students create several templates which they can later utilize for work related situations.

3. I bring 25 plus years of industrial experience to the classroom. My work experience enables me to guide students in relating to processes that work as well as those that do not work.

4. Because our students come to us from a wide variety of industries, I also consider it important to bring the student’s experiences into the classrom. This partipation of real-life situations benefits in both learning and understanding the work experience, and how this course(s) can aid the positive progression of that experience.

5. In my online courses, I introduce 30+ videos in which the students are able to observe me solve  problems which are analyzed within the course..

6. I provide my cell phone number to students so that they can call me whenever they have questions. Surprisingly, none of the students have abused this privilege.

7. I connect with online students using Adobe Connect, Google Hangout, Blackboard, and AT&T meeting lines in the evenings several times during the weeks of the course.

8. For online capstone students, the entire team needs to meet with me three to four times during the course. This is mandatory. These meetings apply to a portion of the final grade.

Though most of the students like this hands-on approach and learning style, a portion of the students neglect the work, choosing only to watch PowerPoint presentations. In order to achieve the advantages offered in assimilating the course(s), conscientious dedication to the complete curriculum is required.

Philosophy of Education

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Education impacts people in various ways. At its’ most basic foundation it should be solid and simple – a map from which you set your chosen path. It should enable you to be knowledgeable, skilled, and confident. Learning should instill the student with more than head-knowledge, extending beyond the classroom into the workplace and even enhancing elements of daily living. Graduating and obtaining a job are only a part of the education process. The person you become, the ethics you’ve instilled, and your ability to be able to either lead or contribute as a team member, as the situation warrants, should remain present in both your work and personal life.

It is my belief is that education in its’ various forms should remain a lifelong endeavor. With knowledge comes the potential to make a difference. As essential to life as diet and fitness, it contributes to ones’ ability to flourish as a person. Our basis for making decisions which affect not only our well-being but the welfare of family and community is established within what we have learned and experienced.

Regardless of the nature of the work, whether in commerce, health, politics, corporate expansion, or some other venue, what we take from our education should ignite into excitement, enabling the formulation of creative possibilities. Beyond the scope of problem solving and answering questions there also exists an unending need to implement skills and knowledge, to take existing trends and make them better, and to anticipate something yet unknown.

On-going learning is a choice and one in which the student should become engaged and reaching for more. Although sometimes requiring new disciplined routines and management of already tight schedules, education is the catalyst from which we are able to launch ourselves into an ever evolving world armed with a can-do attitude and a curious, open-minded viewpoint.