Objective: Understanding and applying effective communication in my courses
Essential Question: What are the benefits and guidelines of effective communication? How is an email an important communication resources, and what are the expectations for an effective email?
Assignment: Student should read the article “Effective Communication with Your Professor” and create effective Cornell Notes. You must create 5-6 questions and provide their answers in the summary section. Remember to use complete sentences with clear supports for your answers. Also, your notes section should demonstrate some concepts of importance (highlighting, underlining, Point of Confusion, circled, etc.). Notes structure should be easy to follow- you may use bullets to create this format. This is due at the end of the period. Assure that your notes are complete, and that they are effective and provide enough information to assist you on your Quiz on Thursday (October 10th). -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Effective Communication with Your Professor Students gain very specific benefits from communicating directly with their instructors. Learn best practices for communicating with your instructors during office hours and through e-mail. College students are sometimes surprised to discover that instructors like students and enjoy getting to know them. After all, they want to feel they’re doing something more meaningful than talking to an empty room. The human dimension of college really matters, and as a student you are an important part of your instructor’s world. Most instructors are happy to see you during their office hours or to talk a few minutes after class.
Effective Communication Benefits:
1. Talking with instructors helps you feel more comfortable in college and more connected to the campus. Students who talk to their instructors are less likely to become disillusioned and drop out. 2. Talking with instructors is a valuable way to learn about an academic field or a career. Don’t know for sure what you want to major in, or what people with a degree in your chosen major actually do after college? Most instructors will share information and insights with you. 3. You may need a reference or letter of recommendation for a job or internship application. Getting to know some of your instructors puts you in an ideal position to ask for a letter of recommendation or a reference in the future when you need one. 4. Because instructors are often well connected within their field, they may know of a job, internship, or research possibility you otherwise may not learn about. An instructor who knows you is a valuable part of your network. Networking is very important for future job searches and other opportunities. In fact, most jobs are found through networking, not through classified ads or online job postings. 5. Think about what it truly means to be “educated”: how one thinks, understands society and the world, and responds to problems and new situations. Much of this learning occurs outside the classroom. Talking with your highly educated instructors can be among your most meaningful experiences in college.
Guidelines for Communicating with Instructors:
Getting along with instructors and communicating well begins with attitude. As experts in their field, they deserve your respect. Remember that a college education is a collaborative process that works best when students and instructors communicate freely in an exchange of ideas, information, and perspectives. So, while you should respect your instructors, you shouldn’t fear them. As you get to know them better, you’ll learn their personalities and find appropriate ways to communicate. Here are some guidelines for getting along with and communicating with your instructors.
1. Prepare before going to the instructor’s office. Students must make sure they know the professor’s office hours. Also, note if you must first make an appointment or does the professor have an open-door policy. If you must make an appointment, then email your professor at least 2-3 days before showing up. Then, go over your notes on readings and lectures and write down your specific questions. Or know your specific reasons for your visit. You’ll feel more comfortable, and the instructor will appreciate your being organized. 2. Don’t forget to introduce yourself. Especially near the beginning of the term, don’t assume your instructor has learned everyone’s names yet and don’t make him or her have to ask you. Unless the instructor has already asked you to address him or her as “Dr. ____,” “Ms. _____” or Mr. _______,” or something similar, it’s appropriate to say “Professor _______.” 3. Respect the instructor’s time. In addition to teaching, college instructors sit on committees, do research and other professional work, and have personal lives. Don’t show up two minutes before the end of an office hour and expect the instructor to stay late to talk with you. Also, do not exceed your visit to more than 15-20 minutes. 4. Realize that the instructor will recognize you from your behavior in class—even in a large lecture hall. If you spent a lecture class joking around with friends in the back row, don’t think you can show up during office hours to find out what you missed while you weren’t paying attention. Professors value students who are respectful and engaged. 5. Don’t try to fool an instructor. Insincere praise or making excuses for not doing an assignment won’t make it in college. Nor is it a good idea to show you’re “too cool” to take all this seriously—another attitude sure to turn off an instructor. To earn your instructor’s respect, come to class prepared, do the work, participate genuinely in class, and show respect—and the instructor will be happy to see you when you come to office hours or need some extra help. 6. Try to see things from the instructor’s point of view. Imagine that you spent a couple hours making PowerPoint slides and preparing a class lecture on something you find very stimulating and exciting. Standing in front of a full room, you are gratified to see faces smiling and heads nodding as people understand what you’re saying—they really get it! And then a student after class asks, “Is this going to be on the test?” How would you feel? 7. Be professional when talking to an instructor. You can be cordial and friendly but keep it professional and on an adult level. Come to office hours prepared with your questions—not just to chat or joke around. (Don’t wear sunglasses or earphones in the office or check your cell phone for messages.) Be prepared to accept criticism in a professional way, without taking it personally or complaining.
Email Best Practices:
Just as e-mail has become a primary form of communication in business and society, e-mail has a growing role in education and has become an important and valuable means of communicating with instructors. Virtually all younger college students have grown up using e-mail and have a computer or computer access in college although some have developed poor habits from using e- mail principally with friends in the past. Some older college students may not yet understand the importance of e-mail and other computer skills in college; if you are not now using e-mail, it’s time to learn how. E-mail is also an increasingly effective way to collaborate with other students on group projects or while studying with other students. The following are ways to effective use email as a resource:
1. If you don’t have your own computer, find out where on-campus computers are available for student use, such as at the library or student center. 2. You can set up a free Web-based e-mail account at Google, Yahoo! or other sites. These allow you to send and receive e-mail from any computer that is connected to the Internet. 3. If you don’t have enough computer experience to know how to do this, ask a friend for help getting started or check at your library or student services office for a publication explaining how e-mail works. 4. Once you have your account set up, give your e-mail address to instructors who request it and to other students with whom you study or maintain contact. E-mail is a good way to contact another student if you miss a class. 5. Once you begin using e-mail, remember to check it regularly for messages. Most people view e-mail like a telephone message and expect you to respond soon but give your professor at least 24-48 hours to respond. 6. Be sure to use good e-mail etiquette when writing to instructors. 7. If your instructor gives you his or her e-mail addresses, use e-mail rather than the telephone for nonurgent matters. Using e-mail respects other people’s time, allowing them to answer at a time of their choosing, rather than being interrupted by a telephone call. Email Structure Guidelines:
E-mail is a written form of communication that is different from telephone voice messages and text messages. Students who text with friends have often adopted shortcuts, such as not spelling out full words, ignoring capitalization and punctuation, and not bothering with grammar or full sentence constructions. This is inappropriate in an e-mail message to an instructor, who expects a more professional quality of writing. Most instructors expect your communications to be in full sentences with correctly spelled words and reasonable grammar.
Follow these guidelines:
1. Use a professional e-mail name. If you have a funny name you use with friends, create a different account with a professional name you use with instructors, work supervisors, and others. Often times, professors prefer you use your college or campus email. 2. Use the subject line to label your message effectively at a glance. “May I make an appointment?” “Essay 1 Concern and Question” but not statements like “In your office”. 3. Address e-mail messages as you do a letter, beginning “Dear Professor ____.” Include your full name, course information (time/meeting days/course name), and any other important recognition information. 4. Get to your point quickly and concisely. Don’t make the reader scroll down a long e-mail to see what it is you want to say. 5. Because e-mail is a written communication, it does not express emotion the way a voice message does. Don’t attempt to be funny, ironic, or sarcastic, Write as you would in a paper for class. In a large lecture class or an online course, your e-mail voice may be the primary way your instructor knows you and emotionally charged messages can be confusing or give a poor impression. 6. Don’t use capital letters to emphasize. All caps look like SHOUTING. 7. Avoid abbreviations, nonstandard spelling, slang, and emoticons like smiley faces. These do not convey a professional tone. 8. Don’t make demands or state expectations such as “I’ll expect to hear from you soon” or “If I haven’t heard by 4 p.m., I’ll assume you’ll accept my paper late.” 9. When you reply to a message, leave the original message within yours. Your reader may need to recall what he or she said in the original message. 10. Be polite. End the message with a “Thank you” or something similar. 11. Proofread your message before sending it. 12. With any important message to a work supervisor or instructor, it’s a good idea to wait and review the message later before sending it. You may have expressed an emotion or thought that you will think better about later. Many problems have resulted when people sent messages too quickly without thinking.
