In Langara’s Advanced Teaching Seminar, Langara instructors write a fictional story in the first person, highlighting, “some kind of ‘problem’, or challenge, or dilemma, or puzzlement” they have experienced in their teaching practice. The “story will, at some level, be a partial description of the landscape of good teaching (even if the teaching in the story itself isn’t – on the face of it – seen as ‘good’). A story is a snapshot of what good-and-improving teachers sometimes experience in their practice.” Woven informally into each story are the concepts and phrases pulled from various assigned course readings (see references).
For more information about the Advanced Teaching Seminar or to inquire about registering, e-mail Carolyn Wing, Educational Development Coordinator at TCDC (tcdc@langara.ca).
B means Bold
BCAP (Business Computer Applications) is a course that teaches students the functions of Microsoft Office software. The course outline (BCAP course outline 2005) required the students to purchase a $130 Microsoft Office textbook and explore the chapters on Word, Excel, Access and PowerPoint tools; the textbook was a good reference though the publication was outdated. Technology plays an important part of education and business; however, current and accurate references online seemed like a better investment than purchasing a $130 textbook.
While reviewing the course outcomes, evaluation tools and rubrics, I was reminded I want to leave the students with tools and techniques they can apply in the working world, and I want to teach with this in mind.
Having taught the BCAP course once with the textbook, I knew I wanted to explore another way to show how these software tools could be used in the context of business. I knew the students understood that B means Bold and they were ready for answers to why, where and how they could explore uses for Word, Excel, Access, and PowerPoint software tools.