Well, I found out another disadvantage with mixed classes in the same time period. Now I am having trouble with my Carpentry 1 students complaining about the Introduction Class Students doing things that they were not able to do last semester. I made some changes in the curriculum to make the class more interesting for the Introduction Class and now I have jealousy in the Carpentry 1 Class to resolve. I tried explaining the reasons for the changes but that went in one ear and out another on most of them. I really wanted to tell them to "Shut-up, grow-up, and do their own work"..................but I didn't........I kept my cool and left them stew on it for a while. I moved on with the class and ignored the complaining. Three different classes in one class period is just too many. They are all getting cut short on their education and they have one teacher who is getting frustrated.
mikem.
You point out another hazard to multi-level classes-- students complaining about changes made to a prerequisite course that they did not get to experience. Oh well, as my grandmother used to say, it's always something!
ReplyDeleteMaybe you could respond to these complaints by saying something to your students like, "You guys gave me so much great input last semester that it helped me realize that I needed to make these changes. I really appreciate that." It probably won't stop their complaining, but they will get the benefit of having their complaints responded to in a positive way. Any other ideas?
I know exactly what you are talking about. I have mixed technology classes and the students are always complaining about what they did not get to do during the previous year. I have also found them to be warning or advising the newer students about the work that they are facing. I had to find ways to get them in their own activites quickly in order to cut down the communication time between the two or three groups.
ReplyDeleteDitto, ditto, ditto. And I like Jessie's suggestion. One other thing that has happened to me is that I teach two sections of the same course during the day. If I try something in the first class and it bombs, I may change it for the second class or not do it at all. That has come back to bite me because some of the kids in the first class are friends with kids in the second class, and they all talk at lunch. Kids will come into the afternoon class "knowing" what we're going to do that day. If I change things around, I'll get "how come the other class got to do _____?" It's frustrating sometimes.
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