Prof isn't meshing?

Student Lounge College Life
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First I’m not sure if this is the right section, I’ve only posted here a few times in the past
Second I know that the title seems kinda weird but I couldn’t think of a nice concise way to put my thoughts together. As you’ll see in this post, I’m a rambly person on the internet.

My issue is that I’m taking managerial accounting, one of my business prereqs, with a professor whose teaching style does not match my learning style at all. I have already asked him multiple times since classes started 4 weeks ago if he would be willing to include more real world examples or demonstrations of how to solve the problems. How he teaches is he takes a screenshot of a section of the e-book that is important, reads it too us, and if it has a formula puts them on the board. Our other class day he works at his desk and tells us to just do our hw. He often seems surprised by what the book says and then disagrees (my financial acct. prof. disagreed with things, but she would always phrase it “the book says this but I would say do xyz instead”, my managerial prof. just says like “oh, that’s interesting, I wouldn’t agree with that… huh.”)
I thought that I could get by with the tutors in our learning center and using the online tool “My Study Plan”, but I just took our first test and I was way wrong.
I have no clue what to do to try to do better in the class. I have a feeling the prof. will not change his style at all, as other students have brought it up in class (I’m not sure if anyone else has contacted him outside of class), and he just hems and haws and mumbles. He’s been teaching for like 10+ years so he’s understandably probably set in his ways. I can forgive a lack of charisma or public speaking skills, but he seems so unsure of everything he is telling us and is surprised by the book at least 2 times per class.

I really loved my financial accounting class, and even thought it was fun! She used lots of examples, the class worked out problems together, and even though I slipped up and got a low C on one test, I feel like I did so much better under her, and I know I can succeed in the subject. I kind of wish she hadn’t left so I could have taken her for managerial.

I am so lost as to what I can do to change the way I learn/retain information to match his teaching better, if you or your students have dealt with this before and have /any/ advice, I’m all ears.

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It might just be the subject… I remember finding managerial accounting to be squishy compared to the other accounting classes I took. But bottom line – you aren’t going to change his teaching style. Do you know anyone who did well on the first test? Ask them how they studied for it.

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I know I can’t change him, but I have no idea how to change myself. The guy next to me got a 95, he took this prof for financial as well and finished with a B. We studied very similarly, we both reviewed the homework and My Study Plan, the only difference I was aware of was that I went to tutoring too. However, the guy next to me has stated that he really enjoys this prof. and his teaching works for him. Other kids in class got mid D’s (me) to high C’s with I think one or two more A’s, so I know I’m not alone, but it’s still frustrating.

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Not every teaching style is going to work for you, and that’d just one of the facts of education. It just means you’ll have to study that much harder outside of class and figure out a way you can learn the material. Lectures are sometimes almost a supplement to the work you do outside of class, anyway. I had a professor last semester who I actually really liked, but I HATED the way he taught the lectures. His style worked well for other students though (and it sounds like in your case it’s working for at least a couple other students), and I just had to do a lot of work outside of the classroom. Other professors have had styles that really worked for me and in those cases I got more out of the lecture than anything else. Every student learns differently and every professor teaches differently.

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Thanks for the advice! My problem is I need examples and demonstrations to see a concept in action to fully understand it, and I don’t know how I could give myself and example whenever I am fresh to the subject. The tutors are trying their best to help but in the end they aren’t professors and I feel bad because I feel like what I want is above their pay grade.

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Assume he won’t change his style…

But go to his office hours and ask him to work through some problems you are having trouble with.
Or ask him for some examples.

Also look in other books or on the internet for other examples.

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Is there another prof you could take the class with in a future semester?

You seem very clear on what you need, and it seems pretty obvious that he’s not going to change his style, so I think you know what you need to do…find other resources…

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I’m dual enrolled so I am at our local school (since they have like one 4 year program they don’t want to be called a CC anymore) and will have my 2 year degree after this semester, so I thankfully will not have to deal with him again.

Do you know of any resources for managerial? I usually go to khan academy whenever I need help but theirs are geared more towards financial accounting it seems.

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I think this is about you “meshing” and not your professor.

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I am sorry that you are not meshing with your teacher and that sadly happens. There are many ways to learn to complement with your work at school. Sady, if the teacher doesn’t provide you with good learning environment, find one that works for you. You might ask around the program department to see if there are any students who have had good grades from that course and ask them if they can help you navigate this course. Also, there are free managerial accounting courses over the web that could help you get through with wider knowledge than your class can provide you with. I learn a ton from free online classes on Coursera. There is one you can enroll and take at your own pace. Good luck.

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It looks like you are using the MyLab product for the ebook. If so, does the ebook come with video explanations and stuff? Many of the Pearson books do - but I am in math, so I am not sure about the business books. Is there another section of this course with a prof that you like? Perhaps you can sit in on that class - ask permission first, of course. I sometimes have students ask me this, and I usually agree, if there is space.

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Could you ask the student who gets As if he could explain it to you and give some examples?

Does the prof ask for examples in his tests?

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Thank you all so much for your help, I have found some videos that are in a similar style to Khan Academy but are some person on YouTube I’d never heard of before (educationunlocked). I watched all of the ones relating to the first unit today and they explained the topics so much better than my prof. and I watched all of the unit topics in under 2 hours, so this person is much more concise as well. I have emailed the dean’s to explore transferring to a flex start (do it in half of the term) class with a professor with better ratings online and from my friends, I am not holding out hope on this but I thought it would be best to explore my options. The test was due online by Saturday and everyone was talking about it today, it seems the majority of the class got C’s, a couple of people were unfortunate like me and did worse, and 2 people got A’s.

@mathprof63 some of the questions in MyAccountingLab have videos, but at least for my class a lot of them don’t seem to. The ones that do have videos that go along with them so far have been mostly vocabulary about manager’s tasks (planning, controlling, directing) or the differences between managerial and financial, but not the word problems. The word problems do have Help Me Solve This, which is great for doing well on homework, but the program does not explain things very well for me. If the computer is “explaining” it, it really helps me to see each step broken down just to be sure I’m doing everything correctly, but they usually breeze through the easier steps.
@mommdc I have asked him during our day each week where we all just do homework, but the issue with this solution is that the professor reading the book out loud is working for him, everything is just clicking, and so whenever he tries to explain things he just repeats what the professor says because hey, he understood it so why shouldn’t I? (I don’t blame him, I’ve been guilty of that mentality in some other classes before)

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@learningbirdy : the videos I am referring to are in the ebook portion of MyLab, not in the exercise section. There must be an ebook in the package, b/c your prof is projecting it. Many times, they will also feature videos - they can be hit or miss - some are better than others.You can look for the movie camera icon.

Once you see the videos on YouTube, do you go back to the book and try to read the corresponding material? Books usually cover more ground than a video. That could be the reason your classmate is able to make it click when the prof reads out loud (of course, i could be totally wrong - just putting out an educated guess from my experience…)

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@mathprof63 there are no videos in my ebook portion of the course. I have not gone back to the book as I just started videos yesterday and today (my bad test grade made me feel very hopeless and lose most motivation over the weekend so I finally started today). I went to the study modules and the old hw problems and they made so much more sense now with the videos. I have been reading the chapters this entire time, which is why I am perturbed that he just reads them to us. The guy next to me reads and outlines the chapter as well, and it seems that is all it takes for the information to click for him. I have realized with this course that for math (even though it’s technically not math it’s accounting) I need to work a problem with guidance, or watch someone actually work out a problem on the board, not just say the problem and the answer. The videos I found on YouTube seem to be doing that with the topics so far.

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As a professor, my first thought to a student who asked me to change, let alone less than a month into the semester, would be UP YOURS. You go and get a PhD, and do research, and teach, then you tell me what to do.

However, as more specifically a professor who does do their best to show real world examples in class, the problem is that in lower level classes, or classes which have a set amount of material that must be covered, you can’t always include real world examples.

He might be a new professor, or conversely an old professor who is set in his ways. But YOU are the one who has to change - you have to try to find out what will be on exams, and improve.

You got VERY lucky with your financial accounting professor, and you don’t realize it. You think every professor should be a winner, especially in your major. Wake up and smell the coffee, YOU won’t change him, and you might torque him off. Be deferential and ask for help.

Would you tell your boss to change if you didn’t like his style? What would happen if you told your boss to change? I shouldn’t have to give you a hint…

When it comes down to it, the most similar relationship between a college student and a professor is an employee and their boss. It is NOT the same as in high school, where your parents can intervene on your behalf. You need to figure out how to navigate sucky professors.

NFN, if this is a two-year school, you were VERY VERY VERY lucky to get a great professor at all. I took community college courses, and once I got reprimanded for asking a question. I was told that the other students weren’t asking questions, and I was “slowing down the class” by asking a question.