magically injected into them at some point without their awareness. They rejected that voodoo education then, and, I’ve learned, they will reject it again if I push it, even though they struggle with the internal desire to “make it this time” in college. Contrary to the occasional lounge talk I’ve heard and been part of, students are in college spending their time and money because they want to learn and because they want a better life for themselves. Granted, they often don’t know how to acquire what they want or how to make themselves learn what is presented to them. But, when asked for their opinions (often a new experience for many of them), they express that there are instructional areas that they have strong opinions about. SCEES One of the most prominent comments from students regarding what they want from the college experience involves individualized instruction. They all want to have their individ- ual needs met. They want to feel like they are more than part of a crowd, that their individual talents and abilities are respected and deemed worthy. They want teachers who are real people, who recognize them as human beings—teachers who care about them—not just their test performance. They want to be challenged, not decimated. They want caretakers who check on them regu- larly, who support their individual learning, who inform them individually of their progress, and who assign a variety of tasks that give them the opportunity to learn in modes that fit their individual styles and that are designed to meet their level of learning. They like teachers who talk at their level, who can joke and take a joke, and who Iet them talk and learn with other students. They like clear, complete explanations and con- crete examples, thorough (but brief) explanations of difficult concepts, and opportunities to have their questions answered. SVCTS When I think about what students want, I know that classes that deliver the same old message of “sit down, shut up, and listen so that you can memorize facts to dump onto a test shect” probably are not going to motivate them. It seems clear that students are not necessarily unmotivated or unwilling learners; they are simply uninvolved in the depersonalization of the traditional classroom. They are willing to learn; they simply may not be able to endure the way they are taught. I now know that if I really want to see motiva- tion in my students, I have to be motivated to rethink what it is | am doing to them. Ronald W. Luce, Instructor, Communications For further information, contact the author at Hocking Technical College, 3301 Hocking Parkway, Nelsonville, OH 45764-9704. Celebrate! hg VAY ava The final program for NISOD's Interna- tlonal Conference on Teaching Excellence and Conference of Adminis- trators is complete. Preliminary programs—titles for individual sessions and major addresses—will be mailed this week. Plan to attend the celebration on May 20- 23 in Austin! Suanne D. Roueche, Editor March 9, 1990, Vol. XII, No. 8 ©The University of Texas at Austin, 1990 Further duplication is permitted by MEMBER institutions for their own personnel. INNOVATION ABSTRACTS is a publication of the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD), EDB 348, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 787 oy 12) 471-7545. Subscnptions are available to nonconsor- tium members for $40 per year. Funding in part by the W. K. Kel j Issued weekly when classes are in pes dn during fall and spring terms and once during the summer. ISSN 0199-106X. Foundation and the Sid W. Richardson Foundaton. 10