Passing Thoughts From Students - COBH 3330

I teach for many reasons in the College of Public Health. It started out as a way to gain some experience and  to "test the waters", that is, to see if I wanted to use my degree to teach. It was originally tied to my graduate assistantship. It was my 20 hours or required work. Truth be told, I have never just put in 20 hours a week on any of the classes that I've taught. It's like a whole other job, and one that demands considerable time to make it work. I've had great teachers all of my life and I can only hope they know that they could tell that that "I got it." And usually it was because of their commitment and involvement in the subject material and also in the interest that they had for me as a student. You could always tell who wanted to teach and those who "just did their job." It's hard to be excited in learning about a topic when the instructor is operating on "auto pilot."
My graduate assistantship ended some time ago, and so I wasn't required to teach to fulfill any contractual obligation. I continued to instruct because I wanted to. I get the chance to interact with students, face to face, and to challenge them through their academic endeavors. The learning process is two way, they learn from me and I certainly learn from them. I've been teaching the same course for some time now, its important and I am passionate about diversity and implications for health care usage and outcomes. The class is constantly being retooled to fit the needs of the current class.

The following comments are unsolicited. Students do reflective writings each week and these snippets came from the last  entries they were required to submit. I don't teach in order for folks to like me, but, comments like this warm my heart. It lets me know that they "got it" and were engaged in the class materials and in the experience itself. Sometimes in front of a class it can seem like you're talking to a wall. My students like the feedback that they have received from me during the course of the semester, and so I guess it's fair that they share as well.  I had a former student stop me in the hall this past week. She and another former student had been in South Africa this past semester completing some international practicums. She told me that during the course of her experience in SA that the cultural competencies that she had learned in class were in the forefront of their interactions with others. She remarked that she and the other student were frequently discussing concepts and strategies that we covered in class. She was smiling ear to ear. She made my day, an indicator that I'm doing what I should be doing with this class.  The following comments also whisper this very same thing:

In conclusion, this has been an amazing class. I don’t say that about many classes either. Every week it has been interesting and has kept my attention. This class has given me the drive to find out more about not only my own culture but also other cultures around me. Thank you for being a great instructor!

·         I think it is vitally important to first seek to understand and then be understood. You can’t live life not listening to others’ perspectives…and most importantly you cannot prescribe people a view through your glasses when you don’t like their view on something. My glasses and your glasses aren’t the same…just because they work for me doesn’t mean they will work for you and vice versa.

·         I’m sad this is my final journal. I have never felt like these assignments are a chore, rather I look forward to them every week. It’s like my quite time to reflect and expand my mind. I’m conflicted as to whether I should start journaling in my free time

 I feel like you are one of the only teachers that tries to get us to actually think about things and how we feel about certain issues.  I’m not trying to earn brownie points or anything, but this has been my favorite class I have taken at ETSU.  It’s definitely not easy, but I have learned so many things.  Thank you. J

Thank you for making this class so enjoyable and scheduling all the guest speakers, that was a great way of learning and I really liked it. It put everything we learned into real life perspective and I can honestly say that I have learned so much more than I could ever write down on a test. Thanks!

With this being the final journal, I want to say Thank you for all that you have taught me this semester! I’m not going to lie, going into this semester, I came into class with a head full of horror stories that I had heard about the course, and some about you. But through the semester, I have realized that some people do not take the time to appreciate the opportunity that they have to learn what we have learned in this class. I now officially know more than my parents and many of my friends – and that is always a plus! J So again, Thank you for taking the time to make sure that we all learned what we learned in this class, and for having the enthusiasm about it to make it interesting, and many times exciting.

My last journal entry. Where one journey ends another is sure to begin. I cannot believe the progress I have made in just a couple of months. I went back and read my first journal entry and I used words like “white” and “typical” to describe myself. I am not judging myself; instead I find it concerning and almost humorous. How many other people around me define themselves by race or economic status? What if I had not taken this class? Where in life would I have finally been challenged to look outside myself? And at that point, would it have been too late to make a difference in the world? I certainly hope that I can take the lessons I have learned from this class and start a new mindset for not only my children but for their children as well and so on.

I don’t know if I’ll get an opportunity to tell you, so I’m going to go ahead and write it here, I really enjoyed the class. I loved being able to learn about religions and beliefs from the people who actually practice them. I feel like I’m very informed and feel prepared for any cultural/religious issues I may face in the work force. Actually, I’m going to the Holiday Party at my soon-to-be internship on Friday at the Tennessee Department of Health’s East Tennessee Regional Office and cultural competency is actually on the itinerary of topics that will be spoken on. I thought that was neat, talk about applying what we learn in the classroom!

I really wanted to say that your class is the best class I have taken at ETSU, and I’m sure I’ll never have another class like yours. The journals really made me open my eyes about others and most importantly myself. You’re a wonderful professor and it has been pleasure having this class!

Wow, is this really the last journal entry? It feels like this semester has flown by…but in that’s a good thing! I have really enjoyed this class and I’m actually sad to see it come to an end. I think you’re a very intelligent, knowledgeable, and personable teacher and from a student’s standpoint I think that’s what makes or breaks a class, at least for me. I have learned so much and gained a new perspective on how to accept others who are different from you no matter if it’s cultural or religious differences. I think this course has made an impact on my views towards reaching out towards people, especially reaching out to help them as a healthcare professional. I will now know how to react to certain situations and be able to understand why certain people make radical decisions based on their culture or their religion. Thank you for the opportunity to learn and expression our opinions freely. I really like that aspect of the class. I hope you continue to teach other students to be more receptive like you have me because it has helped me to open my eyes and see things from a new outlook.

I have really learned a lot about myself  in this class about various religious and spiritual practices.  This class has really opened my eyes and helps me see things from other people’s perspective. This class has taught to not be so quick to judge and be more open to learning about other people’s culture and religion so I can understand them better and realize where they are also coming from. This is a lesson that I will take with me forever to help me provide better quality care to different individuals from different background, religion and values in the health care system J

I just wanted to tell you I have enjoyed your class, between me not feeling well tonight, and not wanting to cause anyone still taking the test any problems, I didn't tell you goodby like I wanted to. I appreciated your nice comments in my journal you just sent back. I'm always interested in learning about things I don't know about (it's the retaining it all that gets me!) And this class has had an overwhelming volume of new information that it was impossible for me to take it all in. But I have enjoyed it. I hope you get to feeling better yourself. And good luck with finishing your degree al