Important Stuff You Should Know

Every now and then here at the Café, we want to give you updates and reminders of important details that pertain to your ministry as an IOT. Please take note of these items and pass this information along to other instructors who may not have access to this blog.

IOT Credentials
The renewed IOT, LTI and Preschool credentials have been mailed. Along with the credential are a new Update CD and a letter. Please read the letter carefully as it refers to requirements for maintaining active status as an instructor.

If you do not receive a credential and think you should have, please e-mail Cheryl Oetting at Cheryl.Oetting@cefonline.com or phone her at 636-456-4321 ext. 291.

Teaching in Teaching Children Effectively™ Overseas
Several of our IOTs on occasion have taught in a TCE™ course overseas. This is great that you are able to do so. Remember though in order to teach a TCE course overseas you will need permission from your state director, the USA department, international ministries department and the national CEF office of the country that you wish to teach in.

Overseas courses are not registered with the CMI office; therefore, if you want the overseas TCE course to count towards your one a year required course, then you need to e-mail Cheryl Oetting at Cheryl.Oetting@cefonline.com giving her the name of the country, dates of the course and list the subjects and practicums you will be participating in.

Advertise Your TCE Courses in Teach Kids
Remember you can have your TCE courses listed in Teach Kids magazine. The deadline for sending in your course information for the January/February issue is November 1. Send in the beginning date, location (city, state) and a contact telephone number to Cheryl.Oetting@cefonline.com and we will send the information to the magazine.

CMI Online
We are hard at work preparing for the launch of CMI Online! The first phase will involve individual seminar subjects presented with audio and PowerPoint.

The second phase will be a three week course called The Romans Road for Children. That course will give students a taste of what online learning is like. It will involve streaming video presentations, downloadable student notes, interactive discussion boards, live chats, quizzing and assignments.

Later in 2008, we will be launching TCE Level 1 online. Right now CMI staff members are busy taping class sessions and writing instructional materials to guide students through the online process. A new CMI Web site is under construction. Keep watching for the new site. It will contain a link to CMI Online.

CMI Online Instructors
Are you ready to be an instructor in cyberspace? When we launch CMI Online, we are going to need lots of online instructors to facilitate the courses. We are hoping to provide training for online instructors early in 2008. If you think you might be interested in becoming an online instructor, please send an e-mail to Carol.Nolen@cefonline.com. You will not be obligated, but Carol will keep your name on file so we can send you further information as it becomes available. This will be a great opportunity for you to discover your “virtual” self! :-)

That’s the latest IOT news from headquarters! Thanks to all of you who stop in regularly at the Café. We appreciate your interest and hope this blog is a help and encouragement to you. If there is something particular you’d like to see on the blog, please let us know. Drop a note to Lynda.Pongracz@cefonline.com and share your suggestions and ideas with us. Also, let your fellow instructors know about the blog. We’re still meeting IOTs who don’t know about the Café and they’re missing out on all the fun!

What Kind of Teacher Are You?

Your blog team apologizes for the delay in updating the posts. Here at CMI, we've just completed a very crazy couple of weeks with a large group of students. Weeks six and seven at Institute are always very busy. We run three modules simultaneously: IOT Level 1, IOT Level 2 and Dynamics of Teacher Training. Extra students always come in for those modules.

We had an added challenge this time around. Just before week six began, we learned that Grace Swensen fell and broke her hip. That meant she and Joanne Anderson would not be here to teach the IOT Level 2 course. The rest of us scrambled to cover all the bases. Many of us taught classes we don't usually teach--or had not taught for a long time. We also had to bring in some outside staff to help with practicums.It was quite a challenge, but God provided the needed strength and wisdom.

Please join us in praying for Grace's recovery. She is home from the hospital, but is dealing with uncomfortable side effects from her medication. If you want to encourage Grace and Joanne, you can send a card to them at: 225 Hialeah Lane, Grayslake, IL 60030, or e-mail them at gswensen@sbcglobal.net.

Now to today's post! Stan Toler is a motivational speaker and writer. In a recent publication he listed qualities of a good teacher. We thought this list was very appropriate for those of us who are IOTs. See how you rate in these five important areas:

1. Teach sincerely
People are not only affected by your skills, they are influenced by the way you live. The greatest lessons you will ever teach will come from your own experience. Your transparency will be a greater source of inspiration than your facts or theories.

2. Teach purposefully
Vibrant teaching focuses on building productivity and responsibility. It observes weaknesses and teaches strengthening. It recognizes possibilities and offers plans. It estimates damages and offers reconstruction.

3. Teach methodically
Methods must fit the occasion and lessons must be aimed at the learning level of your students. And don’t forget, steady doses are better than overdoses.

4. Teach sacrificially
Every teacher is given a moment—a window of opportunity--that may never open again to influence a life. You may have to subtract time or energy in order to add the resources for someone’s development.

5. Teach sympathetically
The best teaching comes from the heart. Your students not only need your experience, they also need your attention. Teach them by not only respecting who they are, but also by what they will become.

Someone has said, "We should be in the business of building people up. There are too many people in the demolition business."

Our prayer for you, as an IOT, is that you are building up your students through your compassionate teaching.

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