I find having adequate breaks is important for adult learners. I teach 5 1/2 hour sessions, so building in time for students to get a snack and use the restroom is important. I also use the break time to switch from one activity (like lecture) to another, like a lab or teamwork activity. I use roughly the following format for classes, adding up to 2 more sections of lecture and lab depending on the class length:
Lecture - 50 Minutes
Break - 10 Minutes
Lab/Activities - 50 Minutes
Break - 10 minutes
Teamwork - 50 Minutes
Hi Shelina:
I'm sure this probably gets your students refocused. I think a good back up plan is something teachers can keep on the shelf for those times when "everything is going wrong". Missing equipment; half the class is absent due to inclement whether; computer or LCD is not working; can't find a bulb for the overhead; textbooks didn't arrive - these are just a few of the dozens of things that can happen to ruin the plans for the day.
So a good back up plan can be pulled off the shelf, is relatively low tech, and can be implemmented with little preparation. The one thing is it should be related to the course topic, otherwise it's just going to be a time filler and time waster.
Regards, Barry
When I have a low attendance or I see that the same old bookwork is not the key for the lecture that day I use videos or games to bring them back to learning just a few minutes can renew their sprits and attitudes.
Hi Edward:
One technique is to break up the lesson into segments that follow the course objectives. If more time is needed or extra time is left over, the teacher can either review, ask questions, provide examples, share experiences, etc. These help "round out" the lesson. It's good to have something that is low tech and can be implemented with little preparation if what was planned cannot be presented for whatever reason.
Regards, Barry
You have to be ready to have a backup plan because everyday isnt always going to go as planned. Some lessons may take longer for students to understand so you have to be able to adjust that on the fly and if not they will pick up on that and think you were unprepared
Hi Erik:
Great plan and smart on your part. The trick is to make sure whatever is added or substitued as a back-up is relevant (which you say your lessons are) to the current topic.
A variation of what you're doing is get your students into groups and have them dig out assigned information, then have the group write out 2-5 questions. You can then use these (or their essence) to make a quiz. Yes, some students will recognize their question(s), but they'll have earned the points from the studying they had to do to be able to create those questions.
Regards, Barry
Hi Barry,
I have several back up lectures that would fit into multiple classes, and could be made relevant in any of them. The reason I did this was because I found myself teaching the same students three or four times in a row - and there is some curriculum overlap in each of the classes.
In order to prevent boredom on my students part by hearing the same lecture from the same instructor, I dug deeper into the material and try to push those students further. Taking what they learned in the previous class and applying an advanced version in the later courses.
I might add, that this approach also keeps me learning as well, and has come in handy when asked demanding questions.
Hi Anne:
Keeping students on track is can be tricky at times due to different levels of learning and skill performance. Planning for students to finish at different times and having prepared activities for those that finish earlier is a great plan. Keeping students busy with class topics rather than just busy work may take some planning too.
Regards, Barry
I try to have various exercises and activities to help engage the students. Some students may excell and complete all thier assignments so I have additional assignments/activities to keep them busy
Hi Ondrea:
Discussion is very powerful and (probably) underused tool for the classroom. The more students participate in their own learning it is going to be more meaningful and memorable.
Regards, Barry
Hi Rhonda:
These are good plans. Sounds like your classes will be better in the future. Good luck!
Regards, Barry
Sometimes during lecture i notice that my students can loose focus or get bored whenever this happens I will break the class up into groups and give them a topic to make a discussion forum about that has to do with the content just taught. I like this because it gets them back on track and involved with the lecture.Once they have presented their facts collectively i can return to lecture and I have earned their attention again.
I plan to make some worksheets available if I need to fill some space in a class. I plan to research and develop some games to play for review if needed for backup. I plan to stay atleast one week ahead in planning.
Hi Nathan:
Your animated motions and movement is a good idea, helps keep students focused, and makes the class more interesting. Breaking class up into parts will serve well for keeping students attention.
Having a topic or activity that can always be done with little preparation is a simple back-up plan that's easy to initiate.
Regards, Barry
I have media set up for all of my lectures, most of the time I use the white board and move freely around the class to keep students engaged, if the coffee club ( 6am class ) starts to lose attention I will fall back on neeto PP or jump right in to a scheduled demo ahead of time to break up lecture in to smaller parts.
Hi Carolyn:
Your use of time sequencing is innovative and I think you are fortunate your curriculum allows that kind of adjustment. It sounds like a good idea, although not all teachers have lecture/lab, and would be unable to make such a switch.
However, having course related material that doesn't take a lot of preparation and is very low tech (so it could be used anytime-anywhere) would very hehpful when a teacher is having "one of those days" when everything seems to be going awry.
Regards, Barry
My class is a lecture lab course. If something had to change for lecture, I would do more lab that day, or vice versa.
Hi William:
I agree. I think case stuydy methods are one of the most effective learning techniques we can train our students with because it involves interaction, discussion, critical thinking, past experience, and can place the student "in the moment" in some of the cases, which can be a very powerful motivation and conhtribution to transfering learned lessons into long-term memory where it can be accessed months and even years later.
Regards, Barry
Case studies are a great way to refocus or reinforce learning objectives. They have the advantage of relevence, if chosen properly, and the ability to vary the depth of discussion based on the experience/knowledge level of the students. It also enhances the ability to incorporate student-lead learning into the classroom.
Hi Augustine:
Good planning. Sometimes, we need a plan for when everything we've planned for just is not available. That's when a plan , or plan of action, is worth it's weight in gold!
Regards, Barry
