From police officer to part-time professor: making the leap into the college classroom

FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin,The, April, 2007 by Tracey G. Gove

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Those who have taught online have enjoyed the experience. Akin to teaching in the classroom, the sole difference has been in geography. (12) Communication with students occurs regularly, as does personal contact with each individual, something often impossible on a university campus. (13) Web-based teaching offers flexibility and participants have described it as intellectually and professionally invigorating. (14)

PREPARING FOR THE FIRST CLASS

Once hired to teach a course, officers will find that few colleges have an orientation program for new adjuncts. (15) The information obtained during the preinterview research will prove invaluable in preparing for the upcoming semester. New adjuncts must review course protocols and objectives so that learning outcomes, lectures, and class assignments will match curriculum goals.

A trip to the college campus becomes essential. First, officers should visit the criminal justice department to meet the faculty and staff and view available classrooms as to layout and accessible equipment. Also, they should tour the library and bookstore; professors will need the familiarity because they will have to use both facilities and provide directions to students unfamiliar with the campus.

Although officers will find that the greatest resource for preparation lies in speaking to other faculty members, they should obtain and study a faculty/staff manual, which contains important information to learn prior to the first day of class. Part-time professors must know the institution's policies and procedures pertaining to student withdrawal, grading, missed classes and late assignments, make-up exams, tests, tutoring, disability accommodations, and learning center resources. Also, adjuncts should know the teacher evaluation systems.

Part-time instructors may find that they receive less institutional support than fulltime faculty. (16) They may not have an office, e-mail account, voice mail, secretarial support, or even a mailbox. Armed with this knowledge, officers will be prepared for the minor issues that may arise. For example, they can schedule office hours to help students 30 minutes before or after class time in the classroom, library, or student lounge. This would help offset the lack of office space.

Typically, adjuncts will receive a course textbook. When schools do not provide them with a syllabus, they should request copies of several used in the class. Not only can officers use these as a template but the syllabi will provide an idea of what other teachers have done in the course. A search through the Internet can produce a variety of different syllabi online, as well as free templates, guidelines, and examples.

Textbook publishers will freely give a desk copy of their texts to instructors. Further, the local sales representative for the company will provide resources to assist with lesson plans and tests. Publishers also have settled on the information superhighway, providing an abundant supply of teacher resource materials on their Web sites. Individuals can easily access games, presentations, test generators, video clips, pictures, class assignments, projects, student handouts, and a variety of other helpful materials and use them in the classroom. These vast resources provide hours of classroom assistance and help increase student comprehension through auditory and visual stimulation. And, they are easy to use and incorporate into a lesson plan.