This Tip discusses my experience teaching in a university degree program that was the first evening continuing education program in Madison.
Teaching in a University Degree Program
Applying for a Position
During the years I taught in the evenings for UW-Madison Extension and the Madison Area Technical College, I had held down a day job working for the State of Wisconsin in personnel management. Therefore, when I saw that Cardinal Stritch College was looking for ad hoc instructors for their Continuing Education Programs for Adults, I felt confident enough to apply. They required a Masters Degree, which I had earned at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Presenting a Ten Minute Program
My application and resume were accepted. The next stage of the selection process was to present a ten minute program. Mine was on Win-Win Negotiation. I incorporated all that I had learned from my studies with Dr. Madeline Hunter to make the training educational, interactive, and entertaining. I know I brought koosh balls and bowls of candy, as well as my colored cartoon overheads.
It was quite an education to sit in on all of the presentations. I was amazed to see how much a ten minute presentation revealed about a trainer’s skills! Later, I interviewed trainers for my own company, Laurel and Associates, Ltd. At that time, I remembered and used this process. From that point on, all of my skill-building training programs (in
- communication,
- presentation,
- facilitation,
- negotiation,
- conflict management,
- assertiveness, and
- train-the-trainer, etc.)
have included skills practice for ten minutes.
Hired to Teach Two Courses
I was delighted to join the ad hoc faculty to teach in the first evening continuing education program in management for adults that was offered in the Madison area. Cardinal Stritch offered an Associate Degree, a Bachelor of Science and a Masters of Science degree. The program involved four-hour sessions offered weekly for 56 weeks. The students took one course at a time, with each course lasting for four sessions. I was hired to teach two courses for the Masters of Science in Management program:
- the very first academic course they received, which was Personnel Management and
- one of the last, which was Organizational Development.
I also taught the very first session that students in all of the programs attended: Orientation.
The students were all working adults, ranging in age from their middle twenties to their late fifties. They came from all over the area. Some drove more than an hour one way to attend the classes, which ran from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.
What I Learned
I learned so much from them.
Creatures of Habit
First, that they were creatures of habit. When I returned to teach the last class, they were all still seated in the same arrangement they had assumed over 50 weeks prior!
Breaks and Something to Eat
Second, because of the travel and class time, many were tired and hungry. I found that encouraging them to bring something to eat and giving them ten minute breaks every hour kept them much more alert. It wasn’t until much much later that I learned that the brain gets saturated after fifty minutes and needs that time to relax and reboot.
Already Living What Was Taught
Third, they were already living and working what we were teaching. The classes only served to give them a common vocabulary to discuss their experience. Their examples and stories brought every management principle to life.
Proposed Hard Examination Questions
Fourth, given the opportunity to propose questions for their examinations, they came up with questions MUCH harder than anything I would have asked!
Aimed for and Achieved an A
Fifth, they reviewed the class and homework requirements for earning an A, a B, or a C in the course. Then almost every one of them contracted for an A and achieved it. They proved the power of setting goals and accepting personal responsibility for their own learning.
Great Research Papers
Sixth, they did a terrific job on their research papers. They continually taught me new information, new perspectives, and new applications.
Four Hours is Enough
Seventh, that four hours was a good period of time for learning.
