Section A

Who was your favorite psychology instructor in college? What did you like about him or her? Did your favorite psychology instructor present the material in an interesting and exciting way? Maybe he or she made you feel that you mattered as an individual. Maybe you found the assignments to be engaging and enjoyable. It is likely that you have a variety of reasons for identifying that instructor as your favorite. It is also likely that those reasons describe several characteristics that deem your favorite instructor an effective instructor.

For this Discussion, review and study this week’s Learning Resources. Search the Walden Library for article(s) on characteristics of effective college instructors and consider why these characteristics contribute to effectiveness. Next, select three of the characteristics researched in the article(s) that you feel are essential for effective psychology instruction. Then search the Walden Library for one article on strategies for developing the characteristics you selected. If you are unable to find an article that describes a strategy for your characteristics, then think of strategies that might be effective in developing those characteristics. Finally, reflect on whether an instructor can be effective without possessing the characteristics you selected.

With these thoughts in mind:

an explanation of the three characteristics you selected, and explain why they are essential for effective psychology instruction. Then explain the strategies that you might employ to develop those characteristics. Finally, explain whether an instructor can be effective without possessing the characteristics you selected. Be sure to reference the article(s) you selected from the Walden Library in your post, if applicable.

Be sure to support your post with specific references to the Learning Resources. If you are using additional articles, be sure to provide full, APA-formatted citations for your references.

Section B

Part 1: Building Rapport Through Class Introductions

For Part 1 of this Assignment, review and study this week’s Learning Resources. Consider how your introduction might build rapport with students in your own psychology course. Then think about the value of first impressions and their impact on student perception of instructors, particularly with respect to class introductions. Finally, reflect on how your introduction is one of many strategies for initiating online student engagement.

Assignment (1–2 pages, APA format where appropriate)

Submit an introduction of yourself to your online psychology class. Your introduction should include the following:

• A brief description of your educational/professional background
• A brief description of your geographic origin, personal interests, and/or hobbies
• A brief explanation of the goals and expectations for the course
• A brief statement to encourage students to respond with their own introductions
• A brief conclusion to your introduction that includes the following question to your students: What do you think of when you hear the word “psychology”?

In a separate paragraph from your introduction, include the following:

• An explanation of the type of environment you are trying to create in your classroom and how your introduction fosters that environment.

Part 2: Responding to Student Disclosure

For Part 2 of this Assignment, review and study this week’s Learning Resources. Imagine you are an online instructor of an introductory psychology class, and your students had two assignments this week: (1) to introduce themselves in the informal classroom meeting area and (2) to describe what they think when they hear the word “psychology.” Then read the message one of your students, Carlos James, posted, introducing himself to the class, which is shown below. Reflect on how you might respond to the introduction.

Carlos: Hi everyone, my name is Carlos James and I live in Chicago, Illinois. I am a psychology major and this is my first class. I am so excited! I was diagnosed as bipolar several years ago and spent some time in a mental hospital, but now it is under control with meds and I feel great! I have always wanted to study more about psychology and understand myself better. My wife, Elena, and I have 3 children (Marcos, Marta, and Carlos, Jr.) and are really happy together, she is a wonderful wife, mother, and lover! I am looking forward to talking to you all!

When I think of psychology, I remember my time in the hospital. I was in so much pain, I kept going from bouncing off the walls to a deep dark depression and the psychologist really helped me. When I was in the hospital, my wife left me and took the kids, it was months before they returned home. I think of psychology as a way to help people in mental pain. I remember once, before I started on my meds when I was arrested for running around my neighborhood naked. Now, I am embarrassed about that time but then it seemed like a logical thing to do. Now I am doing better and I can’t wait to get off the meds!

Assignment (2 pages, APA-format where appropriate)

Beginning on a separate page within the same Word document as Part 1 of this Assignment, indicate whether your response to Carlos is a private e-mail or a group reply to his original post; if you choose to respond to Carlos by e-mail, include a response that you would post in the discussion that the rest of the class would see. Be sure to copy Carlos’s post into your paper when responding to it and address the following:

• Provide examples for anything you feel is inappropriate, and provide a rationale for your examples.
• How might you respond to Carlos’ inappropriate remarks without destroying any rapport you have built?

Resource

• Ambrose, S. A., Bridges, M. W., DiPietro, M., Lovett, M. C., & Norman, M. K. (2010). How learning works: 7 research-based principles for smart teaching. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
  • Introduction, “Bridging Learning Research and Teaching Practice” (pp. 1–9)
  • Chapter 1, “How Does Students’ Prior Knowledge Affect Their Learning?” (pp. 10–39)

• Society for the Teaching of Psychology. Retrieved from http://teachpsych.org/ebooks/index.php

  Note: Review at least one of the ebooks available on teaching introductory psychology. Be sure to cite the ebook used.

• Stallman, H. M. (2010). Psychological distress in university students: A comparison with general population data. Australian Psychologist, 45(4), 249–257.
  Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.
• Svinicki, M., & McKeachie, W. J. (2014). Introduction. In McKeachie’s teaching tips: Strategies, research, and theory for college and university teachers (14th ed., pp. 3–5). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
• Svinicki, M., & McKeachie, W. J. (2014). Meeting a class for the first time. In McKeachie’s teaching tips: Strategies, research, and theory for college and university teachers (14th ed., pp. 19–25). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.