Make it Relevant and Build on the Positive
With my math classes, I have found that students generally come into class with very polarized views of the subject. In their prior education the have either found that they enjoy the topic and learning additional techniques and methods or they have struggled with the topic and have determined that they really will have no practical application for the material we are going to be covering.
In order to keep the entire class engaged, I find the Motivator role of the instructor very important. Within this role it is important to engage the students who begin the class with a self-induced barrier to really engaging in the class for fear of failure ("This material isn't really useful to me" is a clear signal that someone has struggled with it in the past and is rationalizing). Keeping the tone of the class "light" and acknowledging the progress students are making as well as giving examples in their everyday lives that the concepts can be applied really seems to help dissolve the "distancing" some students do at the start of a quarter.
I an interested in what you call "distancing" that some students manifest at the beginning of the quarter. I am concerned about what I see as both insecurity and overconfidence in these students that in combination can make them very distant and delay their engagement with the tasks and subject matter in class. Ways this can manifest itself is not showing up for the first day of class and not completing the very first homework assignment. I agree that connecting subject matter to everyday life is helpful. Are there other techniques for engaging these students?
HELLO, I TEACH VARIOUS ART CLASSES. THE STUDENTS ARE INTERESTED IN VIDEO GAMES, COMICS AND MOVIES. SO, I CATER MY PROJECTS TO ENVIRONMENTS, LIFEFORMS, AND OTHER STUFF LIKE THAT.
ART IS NOT ABOUT DRAWING THINGS, PER SAY, BUT IT DOES CROSS PATHS. WHAT I DO IS FOCUS ON REPRESENTATIONAL ART BUT IN WAYS TO MAKE THE STUDENTS THINK. MEANWHILE THEY ARE STILL SEEING A CONNECTION WITH THE MOVIES, VIDEO GAMES AND COMICS.
