Hi Juanita,
Great strategy for helping students with review. This can be used by instructors in any setting. Thanks for sharing it with us. Also, the students get to know more about each other as a result of working in their groups. So they get both cognitive and social development.
Gary
I study where the students are weak. To motivate their learning process I have extra credit day the day before I tell the students to study what we have gone over up to that point. Then I divide them in groups which become teams. I put the teams together by mixing the weak students with the strong students. The questions that are asked are questions that they are having problems with. If the question is answered correctly that team will recieve 20 points. Answered incorrectly -10 points. The team with the most points gets the extra credit points. Every student gets a chance to participate and discuss the reasoning for the answer. From this the students study more and are ready to play this game everyday.
Motivation in exciting students flows from the delivery of the lecture material. Telling antidotal stories to the students, giving examples and sharing your own experiences ar excellent techniques to light the fire of excitement!!!
Ensure that the learning environment is safe and promotes fun, interesting discussions, and activities that demonstrate open communication.
Be excited about it yourself.
I tell my students what they are going to learn and how they will use it in the workforce. I give the examples of how they will have to use it
You yourself need to be motivated to teach the subject. you need to be vested -- this motivation will be sensed by the students and you can make students become involved and excited.
We are not allowed to give extra points. There seems to now be a trend in the career colleges in order to maintain Accreditation we are not allowed to give extra credit. Everyone has to have the same chance to earn all the points or the same grade.
I do the same and discuss the success of my colleagues, friends, family members, former classmates, etc.
I like to relay my career experiences to the students and what I have learned by them.
Give pop quizzes on what you covered and give extra points when ans are correct
I like to use several items to help motivate my students. First is my enthusiasm for the subject I am teaching. Next I like to bring in examples to show students what is really possible with this knowledge. Finally I like to find an area that students are finding difficult in my subject and make especially sure that they achieve their goal.
As well as teaching students material, you also have to talk about the exciting experiences with the job while you were in the field. It excites the students and makes them want to learn more.
Student interaction itself can be the catalyst for successful motivation. Pairing up students or having them work in groups can meet goals quicker than teacher-student interaction. I keep the students attention by employing the following ideas:
Change the style or approach every now and again to mix things up.
Use student participation in new ways, such as role-playing, or group reporting.
Invite outside sources to help such as parent volunteers who can teach certain skills.
I try to make sure that they understand the impact of content on their day-to-day lives, both professionally and personally. Whether a student believes it or not, they will communicate through writing more often than they will communicate by speaking. Getting students excited about writing requires the instructor to motivate them by using exercises that are important to the student or that the student can find immediate value in. For example, if I am teaching a paralegal he or she will be more interested in writing a brief whereas a Information Systems technology major might prefer to write technical documentation.
Hi Chris,
By helping the students to "connect the dots" between the classroom and the real world instructors are providing a vision for the students that will keep them motivated and focused on their career goals.
Gary
I believe the best way to motivate students is to show them the direct, real world benefits of the subject matter. Students must keep their eye on the prize. As instructors, it is our job to help students see the benefits of what we are teaching them.
If students can see the direct benefit, they will be intrinsically motivated to do their best because it is in their best interest.
I agree with all the responses pertaining to discussing real-life stories and how they relate to the subject matter. When I discuss my humble beginnings and the journey along the way, I share both failures and triumphs - which makes me human in their eyes. Additionally, I find that I must continually look at my audience (students) and capture what they need at the time which constantly seems to change. Did they just finish an exhausting exam? Is it right after lunch? Also, teaching younger students, you must continually keep abreast of technology and be able use the transmission of communication that they identify with - not just the tried-and-the-true or the familiar and comfortable.
Hi Dr. Krieger,
This is an example of using the different senses to gain knowledge. Integration of different experiences really helps with knowledge retention and skill development as you know. When your students complete the course they are prepared to move to the next level based upon all of the different learning opportunities that have been presented.
Gary
Some of the ways for them to become motivated would be encouragement by the instructor in how well they are handling the materials and getting to understand their properties and uses
