Student Friendships: Worth the risk?
Ryein was a student worker in the library. He was a non-traditional student, army reservist from a troubled family but had a heart of gold. We came from two different worlds but somehow we became friends during our evening shift together. He helped me to remember...
I don’t understand what you don’t understand
“I don’t understand what you don’t understand.” A conversation was occurring in the classroom as I walked in. A student was attempting to help another with a drawing in the text. It was not clear to one, and the other thought it was obvious. It reminded me of a...
The National Debt
I have been having my MTH 120 students ponder the $17 trillion national debt. They have been using formulas for simple interest, compound interest, and debt repayment along with dimensional analysis to answer a variety of questions about the debt. Simple Interest I =...
Darn Serious Learning
Lately, there seems to be a force that is developing on campus. Because of the on going projects that have been popping up on campus looking at poverty, homelessness, food drives, and clothing drives, I think the biggest subject that is being raised is ‘awareness’. ...
Google Hangouts is here!
Google Hangouts is now available on all NMC accounts! Google Hangouts lets you send messages (text and chat), make voice and video calls, and share photos with friends and colleagues. Google Hangouts allows you to get messages and calls directly through your NMC...
My students can’t write! Part 2: Scaffolding
The process of writing is often just as important as the product. A strong process supports a strong product and helps students practice critical thinking, time management, self-reflection, and communication and interpersonal skills. Scaffolding is the term for...
Do you think he will get mad?
“Do you think he’ll get mad if I do them all this way?” A student was holding up a folded sheet of notebook paper for her friend to see. I was walking by the table outside my office area that they were using for homework. My first thought was to snatch the paper...
Lady in the Classroom?
I have grown to become a great fan of a wonderful movie by M. Night Shyamalan entitled “Lady in the Water.” Bizarre. Different. Odd. Unique. These were my first impressions; kind of other worldly if you will. But upon reflection, and given time, I found myself...
Pharmacology Scavenger Hunt Assignment
Teaching fundamentals of nursing, I seldom get the "aha" moment. When I taught the second semester students, I would see the "aha" moment when students were in clinical and what they learned in lecture finally made sense. Instead of just memorizing information, the...
Accessibility: Are You Color Dependent?
When designing your course, writing an article, or developing training material, are you depending on color to convey a concept, denote a recurring item, or flag a requirement? This could be difficult for students that may be color-blind. In most cases it is reds and...