Traditional Methods are Tools, Too

Traditional Methods are Tools, Too (PILOT Reflections) One often hears that computers and other online instruction methods are only tools, and that they should complement, rather than replace, traditional methods of instruction. But aren’t traditional instructional approaches also tools? I just finished a week of teaching a Vacation Bible School, and I absolutely love sitting on…

Teaching Students with Psychiatric Disabilities

Teaching Students with Psychiatric Disabilities (PILOT Reflections) When I was a grad student teaching a freshman writing class, a student wearing a leather jacket and miniskirt put her fishnet-stocking-clad leg up on the table and blew spit bubbles through her front teeth, popping them with her finger while talking to me about her assignment. Maybe that…

Varying Instructional Methods

Varying Instructional Methods (PILOT Reflections) I wonder if I’d do a better job varying my instructional techniques if every college classroom came equipped with a first-grader to act as an early-warning system, ready to flop over on the carpet and moan at the first sign of boredom. I love writing workshop days because there’s usually little…

Missing Class

Missing Class (PILOT Reflections) Preface: Did I Miss Anything, a short poem by Tom Wayans. Amusing: A FAQ page that I put up is the top Google hit for “missed class“. Students sometimes miss class for extended periods due to illness. I once had a student who was a group leader in a technical writing class.…

Accessing a Map of the United States for a Visually Impaired Student (no answers — just musings)

Accessing a Map of the United States for a Visually Impaired Student (no answers — just musings) (PILOT Reflections) If I wanted to use a map of the United States in a class that includes a visually disabled student, what would I do? For a low-tech solution, I’m sure there are Braille maps, or 3-D maps…

Universal Design in Education

Universal Design in Education (PILOT Reflections) At the local Shop ‘n Save grocery store, after you swipe your credit card through the slot, the green LED’s light up with the message, “$9.95. Is this OK?” But there’s no “OK” button on the credit card machine. There is, however, a well-worn arrow, scrawled in black ink from…

Promoting Instruction and Learning Opportunities with Technology (PILOT) project

Promoting Instruction and Learning Opportunities with Technology (PILOT) project (Jerz’s Literacy Weblog) I’m taking training in acessibility via Seton Hill’s Promoting Instruction and Learning Opportunities with Technology (PILOT) project. I’ll be blogging some of my thoughts on the “inclusion” unit of this online course. Revising Seminar in Thinking and Writing (with an eye on inclusion) Universal…