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How To Give a Teaching Demonstration (A Guest Post) | The Professor Is In 14/01/2018, 00)39

How To Give a Teaching


Demonstration (A Guest Post)
Karen January 10, 2012

Today’s post is a Guest Post by Dr. Melissa A Barlett, who is an Instructor


in Biology at Mohawk Valley Community College in Utica, NY. Melissa
kindly came to my rescue when I asked for a post on the Teaching
Demonstration. As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve had only one of these in my
career, and bombed it so badly I have wiped it mostly from my memory. I
made the classic mistake of assuming the students had read the assigned
text, based my entire lesson plan on discussion of the reading, and then
had to stand there in the excruciatingly painful silence of a roomful of non-
participants for most of 50 minutes. It was dreadful. Thanks, Melissa, for
sharing the insights that will prevent this from happening to others. (For a
bit more on the subject, be sure to also read the Addendum in the middle
of this post, provided by another reader).

Take it away, Melissa! (and see below for a later addendum added by
Karen in April 2015)

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One of the things that makes Academic Interviews so much different from
many other interviews is the presentation. Depending on your discipline
and the school you are applying to, this can come in a variety of forms. For
example, after a year’s worth of interviews for biology positions, I could
give my research seminar in my sleep. However, in some schools, and
especially SLACs, they are starting to get away from the research seminar
and are moving more towards the teaching demonstration where you
actually teach either a lesson or an entire class.

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For many people, this is a terrifying prospect. You probably haven’t spent
much time in front of students. Even a typical TA, in my field at least, is
not usually creating their own lecture materials on a regular basis. Of
course, since a huge part of what you’ll be doing in the near future,
especially if you get this job, will be teaching, this is probably something
that the committee will weigh heavily. Therefore, you want to do
everything you can to make a great teaching impression.

Fortunately, I have some tips to help you out.

Tip 1: Know your audience

Ask lots of questions.

Are you actually teaching a class or are you giving a demonstration mainly
to faculty? If it is a class, be sure you know the student population. Are
they majors? Non-majors? Freshmen? Seniors? If you are only doing a
demonstration, ask specifically what level/type of student that your
teaching should be geared for.

Teach to the correct level. You are not showing off how much you know in
a teaching demonstration. You are trying to show how well you can explain
a complex concept to someone who has never studied it. Even if you are
teaching to a “class” of faculty, treat them like the students you would be
teaching. This isn’t talking down, nor should it be to students, but be sure
you define terms as appropriate and go over difficult concepts a few times.
Repeating things 2-3 different ways is a common teaching technique.

One of the best things you can do is try to physically engage your audience.
This can really depend on the type of class. For very large classes of
younger students, engagement is often more difficult. I like to throw out
simple yes/no questions near the beginning of my lectures. Then I can ask
“How many people say yes?” and when no one raises their hands, I add on,
“nodding is a completely acceptable way of responding.” Usually, if you

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work them in slowly, head nods will turn into hands raising. Even then, my
favorite line was, “How many for A? How many for B? How many abstain
from answering?” Students always raise hands for that last one, which
shows that they are listening. I also once did a sorting exercise during a
teaching demonstration where I had two columns and put up a word on
the powerpoint. I then had the students point right or left as to where it
went. They didn’t have to talk, but they mostly played along. This lets you
and the evaluating faculty know the students are listening.

Tip 2: Make the material fit the course and the time

Find out not only the topic, but where this topic fits into the course outline.
Better yet, find out what textbook they use and find/borrow a copy so you
know what the students will be seeing.

Choose the topics that you will cover to fit into the time period. Going over
time in a seminar is usually forgiven. If you are teaching a class and you go
over, they might just walk out on you, which is probably not the impression
you want to make. I’d even say aim for shorter rather than longer.
Although, being able to show that you can time a lecture within 5-10
minutes of class time goes a long way to showing that you could do that
when you are teaching as well. What this might mean is that you have to
teach a smaller chunk of material than the probably broad topic you were
given. Choose something that makes a good complete story. It is
impossible to cover an entire actual textbook in a semester of lecturing.
Showing that you can pick and choose the important topics or choose an
appropriate level of detail shows you could do that in your own class.

As a biologist, I teach Human Biology to non-majors. I don’t need to cover


the material that would be covered in an Anatomy and Physiology class, so
I choose to focus on how structure relates to function and not on the
details of each system. I want my students to see how signals travel in the
nervous system, but I don’t need to stand up in front of them and describe
what each neurotransmitter does in detail.
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Tip 3: Use visuals effectively

The number one way to lose students is to hit them with a block of text or a
non-stop lecture. There are probably two main possibilities of visuals for
this demonstration: powerpoint or writing on a board. I’ll discuss both.
First of all, find out as much as you can about the room and the available
technology. Is there a computer set-up? A place to plug in a laptop? Chalk?
Smart board or white board? The more you know, the better you can
prepare.

Writing on the board

The bonus to this method is that you are showing that you are comfortable
enough with the topic to not need extra visuals. However, this is not a
method you should use if you have bad handwriting (or in my case, can’t
draw a picture to save her life). The other problem is that you have to turn
away from the class to write. Be sure not to talk to the board! You say
something, turn and write the word/phrase, and then turn back around
and say it again. It will feel strange to you if you’ve never done that before
because for the moment that you are writing, there is silence. Most people
hate silence, but when teaching, it gives the students a chance to write and
process the material. You can’t rush through a lecture. In all cases, watch
the students. If most of them are writing, pause. Thirty seconds of silence
will seem like ten minutes, but it will show that you are aware of the
students’ needs. Many times, students are told they will be tested on this
material. Keep that in mind.

Powerpoint

To avoid rushing through a powerpoint based lecture, you need to be aware


of how much text you put on the slides. As a general rule, less is more. I
typically use sparse bullet-pointed lists containing only the most
complicated terminology. Remember: your presentation supplements your
lecture, it shouldn’t be your lecture. I’m a huge fan of pictures, videos, and

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animations. The whole point of the computer is to explain things that are
difficult to talk about or draw on the board. Make use of that. I typically
browse Google Images and YouTube for materials that are different than
the textbooks. I’ve been known to have ten slides in a row with just a title
and 1-2 pictures. If you are any good at all with powerpoint animation
functions, use them. People are always impressed with a well-done
animation. Do not use a canned presentation, make your own. I was asked
on multiple occasions if my presentation was premade, and I was glad to
be able to answer “no.”

Some other quick notes about making a great looking powerpoint for
teaching. Assume you will be in a lit room (dark rooms put students to
sleep, keep the lights on), and therefore, you should use a light background
and dark text. However, don’t use white, it’s too bright to look at for long
periods. Use a light color and a dark color of matching text. Preferably, use
a gradient on your background, but still in light colors, for example: light
blue transitioning to light green. On that I would use a nearly black navy
text in bold. Make sure it’s bold, and at least 24 point font (watch the font
sizes on pictures). Most of the pre-made choices for backgrounds are
terrible, don’t use them. Don’t use a dark background and light text, it’s
hard to read in a lit room. Don’t mix red and green, just don’t.

Here’s an example of a slide from one of my presentations on how to give a


presentation.

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Tip 4: Practice

Unless you are an experienced improviser who feels like they can estimate
times without practicing, you should always practice. Gather up your
closest friends and colleagues and teach them. The best thing you can do is
use a mixed audience as well. Use your spouse/friend in another field and
see if they can follow and understand you. Ask them about your flow, how
topics run into each other, and how the story connects together.

Then, have them ask you questions. Tell them to channel their inner
annoying freshmen and ask questions like, “Will this be on the test?” When
you are answering questions, don’t forget not to make up answers for
students. Even during a teaching demonstration, it is fair to respond with,
“You know, I’m not sure about that, but I’d be glad to discuss it with you
after class.” Or, if you have an excited questioner in your class, you can try,
“That’s really interesting, and I’d love to talk more with you later about it,
but it’s more detail than the class needs to know, so hold that thought until
after class.” You might have the faculty ask you “student” questions. I know
I did at one of my interviews. Answer them the same way as you would a
student, this is a teaching demonstration, demonstrate being a teacher.

So, these basic tips: know your audience, make the material fit the course
and time, use visuals effectively, and practice should be able to help you on
your way. The only other major tip I have for you is to have fun! You are in
this field because you love it, and as a teacher, one of your jobs is to make
your students love it as well. Let that come through, and everyone will
notice.

I talked more than you should in your lectures, so I think that’s enough!

Good luck!

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Refer to this excellent column by Rob Jenkins in the Chronicle of HIgher


Ed on Teaching Demos:

January 26, 2009

Demonstration or Demolition?

By ROB JENKINS

The teaching demo is arguably the most important part of the community-
college interview — and the most terrifying

If you’re fortunate enough to have scored a job interview at a two-year


college, congratulations. Now it’s time to start preparing for what is
arguably the most important, probably the most arduous, and certainly the
most daunting (judging from the e-mail messages I receive) part of the
interview: the teaching demonstration.

Over the course of my 30 years’ teaching at community colleges, I’ve


observed dozens of teaching demos. Only a few were actually good. Most
were just OK, and many were downright awful. I’ve seen a number of
otherwise-solid candidates derailed by their demonstrations, and many
other people whom we hired despite a lackluster performance, hoping
against hope that it was an aberration.

Those candidates were not bad teachers. OK, some of them were, but in
most cases, the problem was not that they didn’t know how to teach but
rather that they didn’t know how to conduct a teaching demonstration
during a job interview. The two things, while obviously related, aren’t
exactly the same.

Here, then, are some tips to remember as you prepare your teaching demo.

It’s a demonstration, not a presentation. One of the biggest mistakes job


candidates make is treating the teaching demo like a conference talk,

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sometimes even complete with PowerPoint slides and handouts of those


same slides.

It’s not that using technology is a bad idea (more on that later); it’s just
that candidates who are using it in that particular way are demonstrating
the wrong thing. They’re showing the committee how well they can present
information to peers in a conference setting, not how well they can teach
students in a college classroom.

The problem with the presentation approach is that candidates spend all
their time talking about what they would do in such-and-such a class
rather than actually doing it. That deprives committee members of the
opportunity to observe the way candidates present real material in a real-
time, quasi-classroom setting. And that’s what we need to see in order to
hire the best teachers.

Choose a manageable topic. While some search committees allow


candidates to choose a subject for their demonstration, most panels
provide the topic. In fact, committees often give all of the candidates the
same topic in an attempt to place everyone on an equal footing.

If you don’t get to pick your topic, you still have some important choices to
make: Exactly what information, and how much, do you hope to convey in
the time allotted (usually 15 to 20 minutes)? How will you present it? Will
you mostly lecture? Invite some discussion? Involve everyone in a group
activity? Dazzle committee members with your technological brilliance?

The first step is to narrow your topic to something you can manage in your
few minutes on stage. Here again, one of the biggest mistakes that
candidates make is covering too much information — basically, trying to
squeeze a 50-minute lecture into a 15-minute presentation. Once again,
they end up talking about what they do instead of doing it.

My advice is to identify a 15to 20-minute segment of a familiar lesson, an

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excerpt that can stand on its own without a lot of background or lead-in
material. Preferably, it should be something you’ve taught often enough
that you already know how you’re going to present it.

Treat committee members like students. Sometimes a search committee


will give you this directive explicitly, either in written preinterview
instructions or verbally as you’re about to begin. But whether they mention
it or not, remember that you can’t teach without students — and committee
members are the only other people in the room. (It’s true that a few
colleges have job candidates teach actual students in a classroom setting,
while committee members observe. But in most hiring situations at two-
year colleges, it’s the committee members themselves you’ll be “teaching.”)

Treating committee members as if they were students means forgetting, for


a few minutes, that they hold your professional future in their hands and
relating to them as you would to students in a classroom. Address them
just as you would address students. Ask them questions, try to engage
them in discussion, and call on them to answer. Involve them in activities,
whether they, much like real students, appear willing or not.

Although that approach may seem to involve a great deal of role-playing on


your part — and perhaps on the part of committee members as well — it
actually provides them with invaluable insight into your teaching style,
your classroom manner, and your ability to establish a rapport with an
audience.

Just be careful not to appear condescending. If you do, committee


members will wonder if you will treat a bunch of 18to 20-year-olds the
same way, or worse. And don’t take the “student/teacher” relationship too
far, like the candidate who confiscated a committee member’s cellphone
during “class.”

Do more than lecture. Tempting as it might be to stand up and talk for 15


minutes, don’t. And for heaven’s sake, don’t simply read from lecture

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notes; that’s a surefire way to eliminate yourself from contention.

At the very least, mix in a little discussion and some question and answer.
(One nice thing about having faculty members as your “students”: They’re
going to know the answers.) And be sure to distribute at least one handout
that clearly enhances the lesson.

You might also use a group activity, although I would add three caveats:
First, make sure the activity is, shall we say, age-appropriate. Don’t be like
the candidate who gave each of us on the search committee a cracker,
asked us to stare at it for three minutes, and then instructed us to write a
paragraph about what we saw. I confess: I just saw a cracker.

Second, don’t use an activity that will take up too much of your time. We
want you to do more than just lecture, but we do want to hear you lecture.
So choose an activity that can be completed in no more than five to seven
minutes.

Finally, don’t expect committee members to be any more enthusiastic


about participating in your activity than your actual students would be.

Use bells and whistles — in moderation. After you are invited to an


interview that includes a teaching demonstration, one of the first things
you should find out is what kind of technology will be available to you. If
it’s something you’re comfortable using — that is, something you already
use regularly — plan to use it in your teaching demo. So, for example, if you
normally use PowerPoint in your classroom, or like to pull up YouTube
videos on the Internet, the committee would probably love to see you do it.

On the other hand, you shouldn’t go to great lengths to concoct some


“totally wired” lesson plan that doesn’t reflect the way you actually teach,
just to show how savvy you are. Your lack of comfort (and perhaps
familiarity) with the technology will almost certainly be evident.

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Also, even if you’re a bona fide geek, avoid giving a teaching demo that is
so technologically based that it’s almost a lesson on technology rather than
on the topic at hand. Remember, search committees at community colleges
are looking for the best teachers, not necessarily the best techies. By all
means, dazzle them with technology, but do more than just dazzle. Teach.

And bear in mind that if you do intend to use technology, it’s vital to have a
backup plan. In my experience, nothing is more common during teaching
demonstrations than for the classroom technology to malfunction. So if
you’re using a CD, have the data on a flash drive as well. Prepare handouts
that you can substitute for the images that won’t appear on the screen if
the projector refuses to boot up. (Here’s where those copies of your
PowerPoint slides might come in handy.) If all else fails, be prepared to
teach in the old-fashioned way.

By following those few simple steps, you can set yourself apart from other
candidates. And if you’re interviewing at my institution, where I’m once
again serving on a search committee, I’m not just suggesting you follow my
advice — I’m begging.

After all, how many awful teaching demos can one person sit through?

Rob Jenkins is an associate professor of English and director of the Writers


Institute at Georgia Perimeter College.

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