Tag Archives: teaching tips for adult students

Effectively Teaching an Excel for Accounting Course

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By Eric Weinstein, author of Labyrinth Learning’s Excel for Accounting and Payroll Accounting

Continue reading Effectively Teaching an Excel for Accounting Course →

Let Your Students Have a Do-Over

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By Alec Fehl, author of Labyrinth Learning’s Microsoft® PowerPoint® 2016 Essentials and Your Digital Foundation Continue reading Let Your Students Have a Do-Over →

Learn Why Payroll Accounting is Important for Students

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Like so many other occupations, accounting has now become a career choice with specialized fields. There is specific training for areas including construction accounting, tax accounting, and one of the most security sensitive: payroll accounting. When teaching students payroll accounting, it is important they understand how having a separate payroll accounts and an accountant assists in maintaining proper internal controls:

  • One reason to separate the payroll account is for reconciliation simplicity and time management. When payroll checks and taxes are paid out of the same bank account as routine general ledger invoices, it generates numerous transactions which in turn makes monthly bank statement reconciliation more complicated and time consuming.
  • Internet identify theft and online scams in relation to payroll services is rampant these days. By creating a separate payroll account, which is linked to the company’s main banking account, money can easily be transferred to cover payroll with an additional protective layer of security guarding against fraud and theft.
  • A payroll accountant is privy to personal information including social security numbers and financial legal proceedings such as wage garnishment. Employing a separate payroll accountant who understands the confidentially requirements helps keep internal controls in place and ensures only authorized personnel have access to private payroll files.

For accounting instructors, Labyrinth Learning has a new solution available: Payroll Accounting: A Practical Real World Approach by Eric Weinstein. For information on our other outstanding curricula and teaching aids, please contact us today.

Create a Student Centered Classroom in 2014

Create a Student Centered Classroom in 2014

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Create a Student Centered Classroom in 2014
Focus on each individual student in 2014 with a student centered classroom structure.

As the new year gets underway, how are you planning to create a more student centered classroom? With the following tips you can refine your teaching skills and help your students learn more effectively in 2014 and beyond.

  • Promote interaction among students: The easiest way to encourage collaboration in the classroom is to arrange desks in groups facing each other, in lieu of rows facing the front of the room.
  • Use more thought-provoking assessments: In any old classroom, students might learn about the latest software by listening to a lecture, reading in a textbook, and answering multiple-choice questions. A student centered classroom gives students the hands on experience for a real-world situation. It may be easier to scan a bubble test and call it quits, but meaningful exercises are far more valuable for assessing critical thinking skills.
  • Respond to lack of interest: You may need to shift the original game plan if students fail to show interest. If it’s possible to teach them the material in more than one way, cater to their preferences whenever possible.
  • Make class enjoyable: The goal is to intrigue learners, so even if they weren’t required to come to class, they would. Make the journey an enjoyable one, both for you and your students.

With these tips, the first semester in 2014 can lead to happier, more interested learners. For more on creating a student centered classroom in 2014, please contact us today at Labyrinth Learning.

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Foster a Positive Attitude in the Classroom

Foster a Positive Attitude in the Classroom

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Foster a Positive Attitude in the Classroom
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As with anything else in life, it is often the little things that count the most when dealing with another person. Nowhere is this fact more important than in the classroom, where an educator’s attitude can make or break a student’s morale.

Incorrect answers are inevitable in any class, but how an educator handles an incorrect answer can cripple a student’s morale. Instead of simply discounting a wrong answer and moving on to the next student, a superior educator encourages the original student to think through the process and come to the right answer on their own.

Encourage the student to actively learn by saying something like, “That’s good thinking. You are on the right track. Can you think of another answer?” This technique works in most scenarios. In short, it is one of the most proven ways to foster a positive attitude in the classroom. Not only will the original student benefit but the entire class will also respond positively to the process.

For more information on these and other excellent teaching tips, please contact us at Labyrinth Learning. You will find us online or you can reach us directly at 1-800-522-9746.

Tips to Improve Your Work in the Classroom This Year

Tips to Improve Your Work in the Classroom This Year

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Tips to Improve Your Work in the Classroom This Year
Sharpen your skills in the classroom by following a few of these basic tips. Source: freedigitalphotos

Traditionally the New Year is a time for making resolutions to better ourselves, improve our lifestyles, and conquer bad habits. This year, why not make it your aim to improve your lectures in the classroom?

  • Connect with other professors. Use the Internet to chat with other professionals in your field. Improve your knowledge of teaching methodologies you would like to try and learn new teaching skills you had never previously considered.
  • Make it a goal to remain organized. Organization will help you teach and your students’ ability to learn. Plus, you will always be able to find the materials and resources you need, even on short notice. Extend your organization efforts to your computer by deleting unnecessary files and keeping desktops free of clutter.
  • Teach like a pirate. If you are looking for inspiration, check out the book Teach Like a Pirate by Dave Burgess. It is full of excellent ideas you can put into practice in the classroom that will change the way you teach.
  • Above all, enjoy yourself. This means keeping some time for yourself; working all the time is a bore and your students will soon notice your lack of enthusiasm. Take some time for a hobby, either one that you already practice or something new.

For more support, teaching tips, and classroom resources, contact us at Labyrinth Learning.

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8 New Ways to Integrate Technology Education Into the Classroom

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teacher presenting in classroomToday’s high school students graduate with a whole new level of computer literacy and technological know-how. This is because teachers are using technology in the classroom more than ever. In order to continue this trend, and help adult students catch up, college and adult educators should implement “technology education” in their classrooms as well. Here’s how:

  1. Lectures. Convert your lessons into PowerPoint. In addition to visual appeal, lectures can be uploaded to your blog/website for students who missed class.
  2. Presentations. There is a host of free technology designed specifically for presentations. From PowerPoint to online options, students can collaborate on presentations without ever meeting in person.
  3. Video/Voice Chat. Take advantage of Skype or other video/chat options to communicate with students and encourage students to use it with one another outside of class.
  4. Games. Even in the world of adult education there are days when students need a break from the norm. Use Jeopardy or another fun app that’s group friendly to shift the energy.
  5. Website. It’s easier than ever to make your own website, which is a helpful way to localize class info, syllabi, informational resources, etc.
  6. Inverted Classroom. You can use a webcam to record your lessons and upload them to your website. Have students watch the videos before they come to class, maximizing classroom time for practice.
  7. eBooks. Scrap traditional textbooks and look for eBook and web-based learning platforms which imbed technology education into their process.
  8. Online Assessments. Research assessment tool options to enhance your hands-on learning approach and simplify assessments, grading, and gradebook management.