Author: adamct1

Empathy is Crucial

The article “When do Medical Students Lose Their Empathy” was definitely striking to me personally…even though I’m definitely far from being a med student. Reading through these higher education experiences that are vastly different than mine definitely opens my eyes to the notion that being empathetic to those that you are helping (my students in my case) is crucial to treating them the way they deserve.

Often, filling the role of both student and instructor is rather difficult, especially as you progress as a student yourself and more and more is placed on your own shoulders in order for you to succeed, and it becomes even more difficult to give students equal time time. It is easy to look at students as just a number or just a name on a paper, but empathy is what keeps us from that. I often consider how I would have wanted a professor to treat me if I was in the position of my student, and while that helps ground me in the moment, it is difficult to keep this frame of mind at all times.

However, this article sheds light on exactly how crucial your empathy can be to your success. While never something to avoid, empathy is not always considered a strength in our society, but I feel as if there are certain areas in which it is definitely crucial…like being in med school or a medical professional (and being a teacher too!). The article does a great way of softening the blow of this lack of empathy as well, and definitely makes it seem to be something worth striving for, because for some people it’s make or break and further still for some people it might even be life and death.

Inclusive Pedagogy

The notion that diversity “makes us stronger” is such a powerful idea. While at this point it’s almost cliche to say that being exposed to people who are different that you broadens your perception and changes the way you view the world, this notion should definitely be kept in mind when teaching. The relationship between student and teacher, in some classroom situations, is definitely one of ebb and flow. The instructor imparts information upon the students, and from personal experience, the instructor learns a lot about different personalities and learning styles, and how to properly dispense this information in various manners that can accommodate those who wish to learn.

Since teaching in Grad school, I have been exposed to a diverse array of different students, each with different backgrounds, beliefs, and viewpoints. Each of whom, although different, desire to learn, and the ability to adapt to and identify these differences is key to being a successful instructor.

With this in mind, the article “How Diversity Makes us Stronger”, mentions that diversity can be difficult, and although all the sentiments mentioned above ring true, I can’t say it is always easy, or that the instructor will always know how to act and react in the best way, but that it’s always important to be mindful of these differences.

GEDI Blog Week 1

“What kind of educational experiences change lives?” begins the article “Networked Learning as Experimental Learning”. This question is definitely super broad in scope and doesn’t really have a definitive answer.  I definitely think that different educational experiences can effect people differently, and beyond that no two individual’s education experiences are even remotely close to being the same. I feel that some individuals respond better to material itself as opposed to the presentation of material, others respond more to the individual presenting the information, while others still simply have their own unique viewpoint on education. However, I also feel that education has the potential to change anyone’s life and has the potential to positively impact any individual who decides to pursue it.  This idea seems to have been acknowledged by those in higher education because there are so many different way that classes are taught, however there is always much to be done as far as adapting education to meet everyone’s individual needs.