Observation Experience

For my observation, I observed Steve Pandolfo as he taught a video compression workshop at the Education Service Center.

Prior to beginning the workshop, Steve very carefully setup all of the equipment that he had brought with him, testing to make sure that everything would work as needed for the class. This is a very important step in technology training because so much of the class depends on the equipment. By troubleshooting any problems ahead of time, it let him fix any problems that could be fixed, and anticipate and plan to adjust for any problems that couldn't.

The handouts included in the workshop were very helpful and appropriate to the class. Steve was very helpful in including the information and directing us to the appropriate handout as we went along so that we could use those handouts as resource materials after the class was over.

The class was a small group of TATC instructors so the general technical expertise of the group was fairly high. However, most of us had large holes in our knowledge of digital video, especially with respect to compression. Steve began the course with foundational information which, while being a review for most of the class, was a great way to alleviate any anxiety and bring us to a common level of understanding before we jumped into the more difficult material.

Steve has a very advanced knowledge of video technology and had many exceptional experiences to share with the group. However, the course had a very definite emphasis on the Apple/Macintosh platform and Quick Time video as that is most definitely Steve's preference. Many of his comments were biased toward Quick Time - which I see as his professional preference based on his experience and not a whim preference. However, as an instructor, I believe that it is important to try to remain unbiased wherever possible and remember that you are there to meet the needs of your students. As a technology teacher, you will not always be able to choose the software or platform that you are teaching. However, your students are there to learn, and while I believe it can be helpful to share your personal opinions, you must still present the information as positively as possible. For example, on several occasions I have been asked to conduct Front Page training. Personally, I really dislike Front Page as a web authoring package. However, when people have paid and given their time to learn Front Page, it would really detract from the class if I kept putting down the product I was trying to teach.