20 May 2010
TO: Sarah, Hisako, Homeira, Adrian, Pedro and Eric
FROM: Patti Keeling
RE: New Faculty Learning Community
It was a great pleasure working with all of you this semester. Chabot is lucky to have such a talented
group and I know you will all have a bright future in teaching. Next year, I’m taking on the coordinator’s
duties once again but, this time, I’ll have my group all year. I was hoping you would take a few moments
to help me out as I plan next year’s program for the New Faculty Learning Community. .
Since I wasn’t with you the first semester, please reflect on the activities you had in the fall as part of
New Faculty Learning Community.
1.
What meeting/conversation/activity stands out as having the most impact on your teaching?
Honestly, my favorite conversations were when we just all talked about what was going on in our
classrooms. This was very cathartic for a first year teacher to complain, praise, and laugh about
moments of success and not-so-successful teaching experiences. In particular, because I was new to
Chabot, learning about other faculty members struggling with retention or sharing what was working
was very valuable.
Is there anything you wished had been introduced to you earlier in your first year of teaching?
Nope!
2. What would you have liked to cover in more depth?
I thought that learning about some of the characteristics of our students was very useful and we could
have spent more time on that – also, I enjoyed hearing Cindy’s experiences in the classroom over her
time at Chabot.
3. Anything else you’d care to contribute.
Overall, it was a very useful experience and both Cindy and Patti were exceedingly kind and supportive.
Now, about our time together:
1.
What meeting/conversation/activity stands out for you from this semester?
I really enjoyed learning about lingo used in funding allocation (FTES, WSCH, etc.) While this has not
directly impacted my teaching, it has inspired me to learn more about how education at all levels in
CA is funded. This, I believe, will enable me to be a long-term advocate for more efficient and high
quality funding for CA community college students. With regards to teaching, I thought the last day
was great – I loved learning about what others are doing in their classrooms.
2. We had several “guests” (Carolyn Arnold, Monica Munger, Tom DeWit and the GIFTS
Contributors, to refresh your memory).
-Did you find their contribution valuable?
Yes, this was very useful in terms of providing practical (as opposed to theoretical pedagogy)
information needed by first year faculty. The teaching conversations are interesting and necessary and
obviously need to be included. However, the college/administrative/programmatic info - knowing
where to go for what, learning about how things work - were, for me, extremely valuable for the outside
of the classroom requirements of the job.
-Is this something I should continue next year?
Absolutely. Not only did I learn a lot about various programs and terminology, but I also feel like I know
more people on campus and they know me, particular people whom I might never have otherwise met.
- Is there anyone else you would recommend for a meeting next year?
The one thing that I still don’t feel confident in is transcript and transfer advice. While I realize this is
best left to counseling, I would like to know the basics about whether, for instance, students who retake a class to “erase” an “F” need to complete a form or whether it would automatically be replaced if
they get a higher grade. It would be great to hear from a counselor about the various services they
offer, what kind of advising they provide and what we should and shouldn’t be speaking to students
about with regard to technical transcript or course sequence questions.
3.
Is there anything you would have liked covered in more depth?
Curriculum development, faculty governance/committee structure at Chabot
4. Did you miss “homework?”
Is this a trick question?
5. Did you think we met often enough? Too often? Was the length of the meetings
satisfactory?
Meetings were often enough and about the right amount of time (2 hours).
6.
Any additional comments?
I wish that we had rescheduled meeting times second semester from the first to better match
everyone’s schedules.
Thank you for facilitating this for us!
You can send this to me electronically or hard copy (in the Language Arts Office mail box, preferably). I
know you all have a gazillion things to do but, if possible, I’d like to have this by May 27th.
Again, thanks for your participation. Your insights and ideas were inspirational to me and I hope I
contributed something that you will take with you in your teaching careers.