I tell people that I am successful as an instructor because I am present for my students, but thinking about that, I realize it is more than just being present, whatever that might mean. It all starts with my philosophy of adult learning. I realize that adults come with a knowledge base on which they are building and expanding and I acknowledge that through comments that I make when students first introduce themselves. I look for something in the introduction to either have them expand on, or to make note of how their past experience might benefit the class.

I check the classroom at least twice a day. Some days it is a challenge because I travel much of the year in our motor home. When we are on the road, I inform the students that I will be moving from one spot to another and if they need me before evening  they can call my cell phone.  One way I try to let my students know I'm approachable is to share some of my travel with them in the Cyber Café.  I use a broadband card when I am on the road and can usually get online without any problems. One time I had to go to the highest area near the RV park, which turned out to be a cemetery, but it worked and the company there was very quiet.

In giving feedback I let the student know what they do well, I thank them for their participation, I make suggestions for things they can do to improve.  Students indicate that I challenge them, and that I am always available to help when they need the assistance. Because I teach nursing to individuals who have had mostly hospital based experiences, community health feels like a new avenue for them and the assignments seem to confuse them. When I teach that course I give examples of anonymous previous papers, along with the correction suggestions. The feedback that I receive is that this practice is very helpful.

My attitude toward my students is that they are my peers who are learning new material that I know a little more about than they do, and that my job is to guide them toward the information that will give them the knowledge they need. I try to never be demeaning or make them feel "dumb." I let them know I'm willing to work with them. For students who are struggling with understanding the assignment, I offer to have them submit part of the assignment early to make sure they are on the right track. If a student submits a paper early and I see that they don't understand the concept, or have made a lot of formatting or grammar errors, I will return the paper with some comments and suggest they make corrections and resubmit. As long as it arrives on time, I will grade the new submission. I believe education is a learning experience and try to help them to learn. I'm looking forward to trying to incorporate some media into my classes in order to more effectively address different learning styles.

I believe learning should be fun and attempt to add humor where appropriate. I also believe in positive reinforcement, so I am often telling them how awesome I think they are. When they have an active week where there is a lot of discussion, I let them know that I appreciate all their participation.  I also let them know what it is that I like most about the participation, such as, bringing in outside information, sharing their own experience that relates to the material, and expanding on what someone else has said. 

When grading I not only return their graded papers as soon as possible within the week, I also make lots of comments and share suggestions for improvement of presentation. I use two colors in my grading. Blue means this is good statement or even though it is not wrong, here is how you can make this better, red mean oops you goofed (wrong word, message is not clear, this is wrong information). When they make a mistake I let the know how to correct the mistake.  

My student evaluations reveal that I challenge them to think and be involved with the material, that I answer questions quickly, that I work with them to succeed, and that I demonstrate that I really care about ther success.  I think caring about their success is the key to my success.

Faculty Spotlight:

Enid started her nursing education at a hospital-based program. After years of working in pediatrics, medical/surgical nursing, community health and long-term care, she decided she wanted to teach nursing. She got her BSN and her MS with a major in Gerontological Nursing from the University of Arizona and then a Masters in Counseling from University of Phoenix and a PhD in Health Psychology from Walden University. She taught nursing at a community college in Southeast Arizona for 17 years. After retirement she worked for the University of Phoenix in all three of their modalities (on-ground, online, and flex-net). After learning that Grand Canyon University had an online program, she applied for a position and has been enjoying her experience at Grand Canyon. Since she travels more than half the year in her motor home with her husband and two dogs, teaching online is ideal. It allows her to do what she loves, and still travel the country. 

Enid has been a registered nurse since 1965. She is a member of Sigma Theta Tao, The International Society for Humor Studies and the Association for Applied and Therapeutic Humor. She has a published continuing education text on humor and healthcare for Western Schools, an article of humor and cancer, and a chapter on Jewish cultural issues in a cross-cultural nursing text.  She is also a Certified Laughter Leader through the World Laughter Tour, and has led a number of laughter clubs sessions. Her professional and community presentations have included end-of-life issues and humor and health.