The courses I teach have good required textbooks and a workbook. The textbook and workbooks have many exercises in them -- at appropriate breaks in each chapter -- to reinforce basic principles for the students.
The textbooks also come with PowerPoint slides created by the publisher of the textbook. I rarely use the publisher-furnished slides because I have learned that the students read/use them exclusively, and forego reading and studying the textbook or workbook -- which is the assigned material.
I also use the whiteboard during each class lecture to record key points and to record "practice problems" for discussion. I use PowerPoint slides sparingly -- typically for short presentations to discuss a small problem, or show pictures of a problem that are not illustrated in the textbook.
Kimberly,
These are terrific resources. I think every additional resource we can incorporate into the curriculum contributes to better student retention of needed information, and also to meeting the student learning outcomes.
Barry Westling
I prefer to use a variety of media to teach my Hematology class.
I utilize videos that provide excellent pictures of cells that the students will be visually identifying in completing a differential. I also utilize PowerPoint presentations for facts, procedures, and to explain processes. We have a video microscope that projects the material from the slide to the screen in the classroom. This also works well and keeps the students engaged.
The challenge becomes selecting the right choice of media that will engage the student and promote learning the content.
Eric,
Gotcha. No worries. I'm sure your students are getting the full benefit of your talents and creativity.
Barry Westling
Barry,
I suppose I misunderstood the question! I do share plenty of anecdotes every day with my students, tying in my own experience and background, "FYI bonus info" regarding what we are working with, good stories, "bad" stories, the list goes on!
Eric,
I'm out of my league as far as the content of your program goes, but in a general sense, ways to introduce media might include the history of different foods; unusual or nontraditional uses of food items; etc. Things like this (history, interesting facts) makes classes more interesting. Students like stories too. Examples of past bad mistakes, errors, and related "would you believe" kind of situations from the workplace often can be merged into the lesson and you'll have the class's attention and focus too.
Barry Westling
The format of a kitchen classroom can occasionally make it difficult to introduce media into instruction. Many days, I provide demos for my students of the content we will be exploring in the classroom while discussing with my students what we are doing and why it is important. I try to break this up by providing handouts, guided worksheets, and whiteboard notes whenever applicable.
I do allot one or two days per term to share a movie or documentary relevant to the class. A large part of training future chefs is helping them become aware of trends in the foodservice industry. Movies like Fresh and Food, Inc. that highlight the importance of fresh, proper food prepared without overprocessing echoes the current trend in our industry of local, seasonal, organic, and wholesome food.
Richard,
Media that effectively contributes to student learning does take some thought, care, effort and planning to make for meaningful lesson material. The best information, if it doesn't advance student knowledge in a productive and engaging manner, is of little value.
Barry Westling
First, one should make sure they are comfortable with their choice of instructional media.
Second, be prepared.
Third, it is a very useful instructional method that can help students learn.
Louise,
This sounds like a good variety of uses for media. Today's students want information in short bursts, and easy to access when they're wanting to review it. Of course, this creates some challenges for instructors who may have their own agenda. Therefore, the quest is to meet both instructor and student needs.
Barry Westling
I begin by looking at the text and any power points that are provided by the author. From there I add/delete information to fit the lesson plan. I have used handouts, links to websites and YouTube videos to spark discussion. Even using a 5 minute scene from a movie can be a great way to reinforce a point or begin discussion.
When using PowerPoints, I like to display them on the whiteboard, rather than a screen. That allows me to be able to write comments, make drawings or circle key words to catch the student's attention.
Additionally, I like to select various media; but whatever the media, I review first. I try to find some that have humor, but balance with more serious information.
Louise Xifo
Jacqueline,
Great. Tech-savvy students have grown accustomed to these kind of sites and media, and I think to the degree possible that we try to meet them, at least halfway. We may have a fixed ciurriculum we want to (and need) to follow, but that doesn't mean we can't be creative in our desire to convey the information in a manner students will be familiar with.
Barry Westling
I select media by relevance and content. I like Youtube for videos relating to a topic we are discussing. I also like articles, books, and handouts that are relevant to a topic. I also like to utilize websites that provide information on certain topics.
Kathryn,
Simple PPT's are best. Easy to construct and if one uses bullet points, can simply guide the instructor through a discussion, rather than providing all of the information on the slide. Embedding hyperlinks or very short videos's into your slides also make PPT's come alive.
Barry Westling
We have pre-made power points, but I am wanting to create new ways to present the information because I find they get monotonous.
Yes, we have to keep the students ready and on the edge. Creating excitment in learning is key....
Ivan,
You've covered a lot of the essential requirements for analyzing if the media resources are adequate. Careful review of the answers to these questions will yield a practical approach to determine what is needed.
Barry Westling
Roy,
I think even if the school has a prescribed curriculum with specific media, we can still be creative. Asking questions, conducting discussions, having students reflect about their learning, these are among many ways we can supplement the required class material with helpful learning activities, and they don't take away anything from what the school wants taught.
Barry Westling
When determining which media is best suited to train the learning objectives and activities, consider the following:
Determine what type of setting is required? Is it up to date or does it have to be modified? If the instructors and learners have to travel to the sight, what materials must they bring? Is the cost of travel worth it?
Media characteristics: What is the best media for this type of instruction? How must the media be obtained? Must we produce it? If so, do we have the technical expertise?
Time: What are the critical time factors involved? When and how many learners must be trained by a given time? Is there more than one group to be trained and how closely will each group follow?
Most of my instructional media has already been chosen by the school. I am a bit aprehensive about adding aditional media. Can u advise?
