A Learner’s Way

During a recent career fair at Laurier University, I got to swapping ideas with a marketing rep from Georgian College.  I learned that her employer provides her with a Blackberry, with a GPS,  to help her get around the province to visit various high schools and universities.

That got me thinking about how students seem to need a GPS for each and every assignment.  They want a precise road map that tells them which direction to go.  They get very anxious when they don’t receive clear and absolute answers about the best direction to take–the one that will earn them an “A.”

Striving to achieve an A  I completely understand.  Grades are the students’ pay cheques.  Along with their regular pay, students also want to earn bonuses, just as we do in the world of work.

But, classroom assignments are so unlike the world of work.  And, so unlike the world of corporate communications where we rarely encounter any absolute right answers.  Just ideas that are better than others.  Or, more creative or cost-effective ideas.

Employers expect employees to “figure things out” and “find things out.”  They often don’t have the time (or inclination) to provide all the answers. 

I experienced this while working at RBC last year.  At the start of my contract, my supervisor asked me to update the department’s publication’s style guide. Piece of cake, I thought.  I like copy editing.  I’m familiar with CP Style. I’ve taught a number of PR writing courses. How hard could this be?

I figured I had asked her the right questions to begin the project.  I thought I knew precisely what she was looking for. So, off I went, armed with what I presumed was enough to earn me an ”A.”

By the sixth or seventh draft, I knew one thing:  supervisors often don’t know exactly what they’re looking for until they see it.  However, they always know what they aren’t looking for (and that’s usually incomplete, unclear and just plain sloppy work.)  That’s a constant. 

And, employers (like college professors) like it when they get a new idea that works.  When someone impresses them with a different direction, another way of looking at things. Something a little off the road map they’ve provided.

And, they especially like it when you don’t make more work for them.  That’s a given.

So, PR employers:  do your direct reports require a GPS to complete their projects?  And, academics, do your students insist on precise road maps before they set out on their next assignment?

In a recent class we reviewed highlights of IABC’s Profile 2007 that summarized communicators’ salaries and job satisfaction levels. Naturally, students fielded many questions about the findings.

They wondered about on-the-job benefits and learned they should consider the value of benefits when landing that first job. They learned that it’s okay—even at entry level—to negotiate salary and working conditions.

But, most critical from their point of view: they wanted to know what they can expect to earn during their first job in PR. According to our grad data, entry-level salaries for communicators here in Toronto are in the range of $27,000-$31,000 (Cdn.) per annum. Many students felt these salaries were awfully low.

They were right……I’ve since learned from colleague Gary Schlee, who has access to more recent data, that the range is closer to $32,000-$38,000.

Question: what salaries do juniors earn at your organization?

Students also wondered if obtaining a Master’s degree in PR would earn them more money. In my experience, unless you’re working for an academic institution or perhaps a professional association, it doesn’t.

What are your thoughts on this?

Just finished reading why Les Potter loves his job teaching at Towson University and can really relate.  I love my job too.

When I began teaching Corporate Communication & Public Relations my son was a junior kindergarten student.  Now in his third year at Brock University, he’s also completed a diploma at Centennial College.  So, I’ve been at this game a number of years.

During my time as an educator, I’ve enjoyed a year-long sabbatical and participated in a couple of  in-college secondments. I recently completed a 14-month leave during which I worked full-time with a sales communications team at a major bank.  And, just this summer, I worked briefly at Maverick PR  here in town.  Just because I wanted to know more about working day-to-day in a PR agency.

But, I always come back to teaching. 

When I count my blessings I include the gifts of freedom, autonomy and creativity I relish as a college educator.  And the joy of knowing that each academic year I get to meet 60 or so new people who affect the way I view the world.  And, continue, as graduates, to enrich my life.

Students let you know when you’re off the mark.  They tell you, in no uncertain terms, when you aren’t giving them their tuition’s worth.  Conversely, they provide tremendous feedback when you get it right.

I’m fascinated with how people learn.  My highs come when knowledge sticks.  I experienced one of those delicious highs this week. A student wrote to tell me she experienced her first “ah hah” moment of our five-week semester.  She shared that she finally got the difference between a goal and an objective when writing a strategic communications plan.  Tough stuff and she got it.

What was my role in this?  To set up the conditions that foster learning.  And, to know that when I don’t get it right the first time (translation: the students don’t get it), how to adjust the conditions so they do.  If it means going back to the drawing board, I do.

That’s what I think effective teaching and learning is all about.  Creating the conditions for learning.  And, that’s really creative.

It’s like a quote I read somewhere:  “Teaching isn’t about covering the material.  It’s about uncovering the material.”  That’s the quote I post on my office wall.