Motivating Students
I teach Medical Assisting and Medical Administrative courses. My style is to mix it up in the classroom. I do this by making sure that every class period is a mix of lecture and practicing skills, or perhaps playing a game to review for a test. This keeps my students interested and focused during their class periods. I get a lot of students telling me they like this mix.
Hi Julia,
This sounds like a real comfortable approach to getting the students involved in the total educational process. Everyone has a chance to contribute as well as benefit from the other members of the class.
Gary
Sometimes the lecture time seems long, the students seems to like it when the background history is written on the whiteboard or done on a powerpoint presentation helps to keep them interested.
Keeping the students motivated by getting them involved in the lectures with feedback on the daily content of the lecture and involving them in demo time by having a student volunteer keeps it real for them and they aren't so afraid to make a mistake, it makes for a fun time.
Hi Wendy,
This is what teaching is all about. Blending different presentation formats into a variety of ways of reaching the learning preferences of the students.
Gary
I think bringing a mix into the classroom is good. It keeps those that are better learners by lecture happy and those more active students happy, also.
Hi Van,
Good idea. The element of surprise does keep the students engaged in the learning process and looking for what might happen next.
Gary
Lecture seems to be a daunting chore when the students see on the syllabus that that is what is scheduled for the day. It is always fun to "sneak" in other types of learning opportunities like games, videos, guest lecturers. Mixing it up certainly seems to keep students interested and awake.
Hi Deena,
This is a good point about the students working together. They really need to develop skill in this area as the bulk of their working lives will be spent working with and dealing with others.
Gary
I agree. I feel that I recieve better feedback from the students in class when they are given the chance to interact. I think that being able to discuss and work on activities during the class time, the students become more intersted and help eachother learn different skills and tools.
Marien, getting them involved makes it more fun for us, too! :-)
I agree. I like to do different group discussion every class and student seems to be more interest on the topics and learning the most.
I also like to mix it up. Trying a variety of small group and large group activities to either discuss/reinforce learning concepts or to demonstrate/teach a skill. These different activities also appeal to a variety of learning styles. Students seem to learn the most from the group activities and discussions.
Bringing fun into the class room is a very powerful instructional tool! You are helping students to solidify their knowledge and helping them learn how to work with others in a learning environment. I think mixing things up is a great way to maximize the energy and efficiency in the classroom.
