Dr. Terry Whisnant-Teaching, Learning, Communication
Download PowerPoint Presentation Here:
“Connecting Teaching, Learning and Communication” -- Dr. Terry Whisnant, Presenter
This seminar was presented in 2 parts: “Learning Styles and Teaching Strategies” and “Communication Skills for the Hard of Listening.”
In exploring learning styles and teaching strategies, the seminar presenter posed the following questions:
Would you rather see the map or read the directions? Would you rather gather all materials before starting the project,
or just jump in and get things as you need them? Do you prefer to get the big picture before studying the details?
Is it better for students to brainstorm before or after they’ve read the chapter?
These and many other questions were presented as the basis for discovering individual learning and teaching styles. The presenter used group collaboration, modeling, lecture, demonstration and participant interaction to take a look at a variety of teaching techniques and strategies used in classrooms across the nation. The ultimate task for the participant was to explore matching student learning styles to instructor’s teaching strategies. Teachers appreciated the practical teaching tips, research summaries, and informational handouts provided in this seminar.
In exploring communication skills for the hard of listening, the seminar presenter states:
“communication is so much more than telling people what you want them to know.
Some "folks are plain old hard of listening --- they need a thunder bolt and lightening strike to get the point."
In this seminar, we learned the primary principles of getting through to those not inclined to understand things the first time around. Sometimes, saying something like what you mean is much more likely to hit home than saying exactly what you mean.
This presentation revealed the keys required to put power and impact into your communication.
Presented with a series of visual examples, group demonstrations, and easy-to-relate-to stories, audiences quickly warmed
to the fun of understanding why so much of our conversation and communication can go astray.
Remember, they’re not contrary, they’re just Hard of Listening!
About the Presenter:
Terry Whisnant is President of Horizon Seminars, a conference presentation and workshop company specializing in leadership, motivation, team management, and self-improvement seminars. Terry has conducted over 600 seminar presentations to business, industry, and public service agencies over the past 25 years. He is Director of Master Teacher Seminars in Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, and two in Virginia. These five-day summer programs provide teachers from a variety of disciplines and educational institutions, with practical explorations of strategies to improve their craft. Over one thousand teachers from 43 states have attended and completed the master teacher seminars.
In addition to his seminars, Terry is Professor of Behavioral Sciences at Southside Virginia Community College. He teaches classes in Life Span Human Development, Introductory Psychology and Sociology, Behavior Modification, and Theories of Personality. Terry also teaches graduate courses at Longwood and Old Dominion Universities and has served as Assistant Director of the National Center for Community College Education at George Mason University.
Terry received his Doctorate in Instructional Leadership from Virginia Tech, a Master’s Degree in Humanistic Psychology from West Georgia College, Sociology minor from Virginia Commonwealth University, and an Associate Degree in Liberal Arts from Western Piedmont Community College in Morganton, North Carolina.
Terry feels his greatest educational accomplishment was receiving the two-year Associate Degree. He is quick to credit the community college with providing him the opportunity for a second start in higher education.
Dr. Whisnant interest in the dynamics of human behavior is also reflected in his past experience as a clinical psychotherapist in Atlanta and with military service in Vietnam where he served with a unit specializing in psychological warfare. He enjoys hiking, collecting art prints, and pretending to play golf. Terry says golf is a wonderful way to commune with nature --- and hit something with a stick
