Hi Melissa,
The key to having both control and excitement is respect. If you present yourself as an organized and dedicated instructor that cares about students you will have both. The control comes with how you start and structure the class. This way the students know what is expected of them. The excitement comes with the activities, games, lectures, etc. that you prepare for your students. They know they will have a paced, organized class waiting for them that is informative, relevant, and engaging. By having this form of instructional preparation teaching then becomes much easier.
Gary
Hope this answers your question. If not let me know and I will expand on it further.
Yes, the learning environment is extremely important to the success of our students. It is our responsibility to maintain control, but at the same time, I believe that you can maintain control and still offer the students a fun, exciting, and enthusiastic classroom. This is also essential for learning and retention.
Do you feel that you can have both control and excitement in the classroom/learning environment?
Hi Darrick,
I think this is a good alternative to an actual demonstration. The key will be to make sure that the camera angles and close ins are such that the techniques that are being demonstrated can be clearly seen. As you know nothing is worse that a poorly done video. After viewing the taped demo the students then can practice the techniques they have just been show. With you as the instructor floating around to help them this method can be very effective.
Gary
Where I work the working environment can get a little tight for space sometimes and is overheard by students that there should be a little more room at times. At demonstrations it is kind of hard to see fine details with 15 people standing around and not everyone can get all of that particular lesson because of not being able to see. We are going to record the demonstrations and then play them on a big screen. Do you believe in that type of learning system?
Hi Patricia,
By creating a positive supportive learning environment you are also creating a learning community for your students. Your students will not be distracted by the environment so they can focus on the course and the content within it. For students that have been out of the classroom for a number of years this can be very important. They need to be able to settle in and feel that they are a part of the learning community without any distractions.
Gary
The learning environment plays an extremely vital role in the instructional process. I am a firm believer in that the room should be comfortable and conducive to learning. I teach all levels of typing and I am a stickler that no distractions should be made during timed writings such as laughing, talking, outbursts, leisurely entering and exiting the room, and etc. I always tell my students tht we need to make sure the room is conducive for getting timed writings. Students really need to focus and concentrate during timed writings (silence is the key).
Hi William,
You hit upon the new classroom sore point, the cell phone. Instructors are working on all types of policies about their use in their classrooms. There are almost as many policies as there are instructors. The key point is cell phones must not be allowed to interfere with the instructional process.
In terms of classrooms, instructors can set a positive attitude towards the class and its' setting. This will help much with student belief that positive learning experiences will occur in the course. Also, notice should be taken of little things that can clutter the classroom or present obstacles to student focus. Little things like this can add up to major interferences.
Gary
In today's environment cell phone are always interupting many functions. I agree with your slight tolerance on cell phone usage. However this has been a irritation during lecture classes. I have had students carry on conversations during the lectures with their buddies with the excuse "I gotta do this here business thing". I have finally put a stop to all of the cell phone usage during class time. I inform the students to give the phone number of the front desk to any family member who may need emegency access to them. The adminstration office will then contact the student. In my adult evening classes of course I am much more flexible on this issue.
Also a class room is no different than your personal office space. Clean, organized, well equiped and comfortable offices prove to be extremely conducive to work productivity.
I think class room invironments have been way overlooked when schools plan class room usage. It seems like a multiple usage approach variability to class room design is always the economic answer which creates inefficient class room designs.
It comes down to this. Uncomfortable people become easly distracted. To comfortable people become complacent. THE TEACHER HAPPENS TO BE THE INTERMEDIATE BETWEEN BOTH WORLDS.
Hi Katayoun,
The learning environment must reflect two very important components. It should reflect the business/industry standard for which you are training. That is the most relevant and current equipment and instructional support. It should also reflect your educational personality and how you approach learning. You may be a person that likes color or music and you should have this in your classroom. Keeping in mind that you do not want to distract your students but support them. If the class is a lab class with much noise then you might want to use bulleting boards to convey messages and color. This is where you can be creative.
Gary
A learning environment is very important for a student and must be designed towards their advantage.
Hi Peggy,
Right you are! You have to be organized as an instructor as well as a worker in the field of surgical assisting. By giving the students an organized learning environment you are setting the stage for their learning as well as giving them a role model to follow. As you know modeling a desired behavior is as important if not more so to talking about it.
The students can see order, sequence, and structure to what your teaching them and for your adult students take a bit longer to grasp the course content they have the added advantage of seeing the structure and sequence laid out for them.
Gary
Hi Gary,
Because the career I am preparing my students for demands organization to be successful, I give them organized material, an organized classroom and an organized lab. Students are easily distracted, particularily the slower adult students, and the less confusion around them the better they seem to do. The class I am teaching is surgical technicians and a very integeral part of being a good tech is to be organized in a manner with which you may best provide assistance to the surgeon. What better way to instill this quality in my students than to provide them with a well organized environment. Peggy
Hi Karmon,
The cell phone issue is a tricky one as you have explained. The issue has to be handled on a local basis, meaning what ever policy your school sets and then what you will accept in your class as the instructor. I think you have developed a very reasonable policy based upon your student population.
When starting a new class I discuss with the students the rules that will be a part of the class structure so there won't be any misunderstanding. As you well know each phase there are those students that violate the rules and I deal with them individually.
I will say that it seems to be of less a problem as we move along due to the fact that people are learning more about what the proper use of cell phones are and respect for others. Something we have to keep on top of along with everything else.
Gary
The cell phone issue has been discussed at my college as well. However, most of our students are parents and many are single parents who want to make sure that they are available 24-7 for their child(ren).
Our day classes are 8 am 'til 2:30 pm. Our evening classes are 6 - 10 pm. I'm a parent myself and I want to be able to be reached in case of an emergency with my daughter (or any other family member).
My solution is that I tell my students on the first day/night of classes that if they have a cell phone, make sure it is readily accessible (not in the bottom of her purse). Answer it IMMEDIATELY and get OUT-THE-DOOR. That way they feel secure knowing that their family can reach them and they know how to answer it so it doesn't disturb the other students.
I also tell them to make sure that they have informed their family of their class schedule. This way, the family KNOWS when NOT to call them during class time unless it truly is an emergency.
Hi William,
Good job with improving the learning environment for your students. No one likes to work in a mess. By improving the classroom/lab setting you sent a message to your students that you are a professional and that you what to establish a quality learning setting for your students.
Another critical component of the learning environment is the sense of community you give your students. They should feel comfortable and secure when they are in your class. They know you respect them as students and will do everything you can to help them learn. Bringing these two components together helps to maximize the learning for everyone.
Gary
I think the learning environment is very important. When I first started at my school, there were messes (boxes of stuff, piles of equipment on tables, etc.) all around the classrooms. Complaints were high and retention low. Soon after I started, we cleaned it up and student complaints dropped and student performance and retention improved. Since then, the proprietor has added new materials and things continue to improve from all aspects, especially educational performance.
Hi Kiran,
You are welcome. The insight only comes after years of experience and being able to observe and work with many great educators.
Gary
Thank you for giving me a good insight and an explicit answer.
Hi Kiran,
A comfortable secure learning environment is a necessity for students. The learning environment has two components and you hit on both of them. The physical setting has to be safe and supportive for learning, the equipment current, and classroom layout conducive to student flow. The other component of the learning environment is the instructor. The students have to have a feeling that they are studying with a person of knowledge and they will respect the instructor for that knowledge. In addition the students have to feel that the instructor cares about them and their success. Both components have to be in place if learning is going to occur to the maximum extent possible.
Gary
Hi Gary,
I find physical environment to be important and the equipment are necessary means to providing instructions. but the key remains for the instructor to be knowledgable of the material been presented especially with the adult students.
K Malhotra, Instructor
