How to Prepare for a First Teaching Assignment

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You made your way through college and graduate school and now you’re offered your first teaching job. Exciting to say the least. If you are preparing for any higher education teaching job, make your first day memorable for you and your students by following these steps. It will keep you and them coming back.

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Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

Lesson plan
Icebreaker materials

Step1

Beef up your credibility by reviewing your text book. You’ve been hired because you are considered “the expert” in your field. The knowledge and experience you gained through college and work certainly will be relevant. However, knowing the textbook and the specific information contained in it, even the exercises, adds to your credibility.

Students paid money, usually an exorbitant amount, for the book. They will be upset if it’s not used.

Step2

Prepare an ice breaker. Whether they are 18 or 40, students are apprehensive coming into a classroom for any number of reasons. Create a comfortable and safe atmosphere by doing an icebreaker. You want to be the authority, but you also want to show you are relaxed and excited to be there.

Step3

Prepare your lesson plans as far out into the semester as you can. Take the time to identify learning objectives for each class, how the material will be delivered, and how you will assess each topic. No one likes to enter any session or classroom without a direction on where they are going.

Consider each lesson plan as a meeting agenda. You wouldn’t walk into a meeting without an agenda so create one for each class. Students will be happy and your job will be much easier. This includes making enough copies of material you may need for day one.

Step4

Visit your classroom. If you haven’t already been there or seen the room, ask to see it. Not just any room, the room you will be teaching in. Study the proximity of desks and board. Notice the placement of the door and how large the room is. Notice the electrical receptors for any technological equipment you may want to use.

Rehearse your first lesson while there. Seeing the room and practicing at least once will diffuse some nervous energy.

Step5

Recite the names on your roster. Going through the list a couple of times will ease the pain of stumbling over confusing or difficult pronunciations.

Step6

Envision a positive experience. See yourself delivering a successful presentation and seeing a classroom full of smiling students. This will help diffuse nervous energy.