New teacher

[Jessey Bernstein]

Hi Tipsters!
I am a 4th year grad student getting ready to teach my first large, in-session class. It will be an Intro Psych class, with about 120 students. I have taught twice before, each time the second half of a summer course (also Intro). But in those classes, there were 10 or less students. I have a feeling this experience is going to be quite different, that I will be in for a number of surprises, teaching a large class, that I wasn't faced with in teaching such small classes.
So, I wonder if some of you could post a few examples of issues that you have faced when teaching small vs large classes. How have your teaching techniques changed, if at all? (Less in-class discussion? More group activities?...) Have there been different administrative problems to face in a large vs small class? Do you have any suggestions for how I can prepare for these things? (I am thinking that I should create some spreadsheets for grade calculation, as doing it by hand is no longer going to be an option...!).
Teaching is fun and meaningful to me, and I want to be able to convey the subject as well as possible to the students. At the same time, I do not want to waste (in my mind) a lot of time on administration -- thus, for example, I want to begin the class being as clear as possible about the consequences for late submissions, missed exams etc. (I've learned a lot about this on TIPS!). It seems that a bit of forethought can save lots of time later. In any case, I am open to ANY suggestions, warnings, tips or hints from you all.
Thanks so much,

Jessey Bernstein, M.A.
Dept of Clinical Psychology
University of Rochester
Rochester, NY



---
You are currently subscribed to tips as: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
To unsubscribe send a blank email to [EMAIL PROTECTED]