One of the main things I believe introducing oneself and have the students introduce themselves is break the ice. It gives them the chance to get to know a little bit about me as their instructor and it also allows me to learn more about them. It is also easier to learn their names when you associate them with the experiences they've shared.
Maria,
So true about the bad attitude. We need to bring passion for our field and enthusiasm for our teaching each time we meet our students. If we don't it won't be long before negative feelings start to surface.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
A proper introductory in to a classroom is everything. No matter if its the instructor or the student, bad attitude will bring the moral down really quick.
Jacqui,
Yes they are a good way to get everyone talking and getting to know each other. In addition, starting a new class with this type of activity helps to get the students settled in a feeling comfortable with their environment.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I learn so much from student introductions. It also serves as an icebreaker between myself and the students as well as between them. They learn about each other and usually can find commonality between each other. That helps to break down the barriers and they begin to communicate with each other and build relationships and a rapport.
I always gauge the ability levels of the students in my classes by asking them to introduce themselves and their current experience levels with the technology we will be covering in the classes. I can decide from that point whether the students are capable of grasping more advanced material. I can also decide if we can not spend as much time going over some of the more simple concepts in the class. For instance, if the students are familiar with configuring a Cisco router, I may not spend so much time on introducing them to the different router prompts that are presented during Cisco router configuration.
Of course, the reverse is true if I have students that are NOT familiar with Cisco routers. I will know that I need to spend the extra time to go over every aspect of the Cisco router and its configuration.
I find it enhances the experiences of the students if I can adapt the class material in this manner.
Wayne,
Good points about how to set the tone for the class. Knowing about them and their goals helps with instructional planning and letting them know of your experiences establishes you as the learning leader. This is a win win situation when developed in this way.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Joy,
You make a good point about the fact that you are a former student yourself. Student sometimes forget this and don't realize that you are there to support them in their learning environment. You do know what they are going through because you have been there so you have an understanding of where they are at in their career development.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
The first lesson is important to get to know the students and their aspirations for the course. I think it is good to let the students know that you have extensive experience in the field and this can establish your credibility with them.
I think this really makes everyone feel a little more relaxed and comfortable with each other. It's nice to learn about your students and it's also nice for them to learn about each other. Students get to see what they have in common with each other. They may have connections to each other that they didn't realize. It's also good for them to hear about you. I always try to include educational, professional, and personal details in my introduction. That way they see that I, too, was once a student; they see how much experience I bring to the classroom; and they see that I'm a person, just like them! :)
John,
The more you know about a student the more accurately you can plan your instruction around their needs. Your point is a good one and one we need to remember as we select our content.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
As a massage therapy instructor it helps me to understand what field the student would be most interested in and will help me to better understand their needs.
Lacy,
I find them fun as well. Just started six new classes and I really enjoyed learning about the experiences my students have had. They have done a lot of living in just a few years. Helped us all to develop an appreciation for each other.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I really enjoy doing student and instructor introductions. I like to get to know my students as people not just students. It also gives me an idea of their background and past experiences with the subject. This is an important part of the first class.
Robert,
Thank you for sharing this evolution of your approach to the first class meeting. You make a number of excellent points that will be helpful to new instructors that are just starting to develop a feel for how they want to run their classes.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
When I started out I wanted the students to know and respect my credentials. I wanted to get to know my students names, their introductions were helpful in that process. As time moved on, I found that I made the introductions less important in the first class. I was more concerned about covering the syallabus and class expectations. As more time has passed I am coming back to the introduction exercises with a slightly different view. They do help with name memorization and establishing my authority as instructor, but there are additional benefits to be had. It does allow me to guage the class dynamics by seeing the personalities. I can also take the oppotunity to encourage the students in the challenges they are about to enter into. Attitude is a very important aspect of being successful in the learning process. It takes very little hardship or fear to shutdown the motivation in many of these students.
Korey,
This is a must. You have to establish yourself as the learning leader. Once you do that you have started the process of earning the respect of your students and then moving forward with rapport development.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Glenn,
Good way to set the stage for the course and get the students settled into the course. Sharing this type of information helps everyone to get comfortable with each other and that will pay off when they start working together.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
The first thing you are doing is positioning yourself as the leader of the class. By giving a brief background into who you are and your professional experiences, the students will begin to see you as a trusted expert. Having the students introduce themselves is a great way for an instructor to get a feel for the class as a whole, and to find common bonds between each individual student.
When conducting introductions to yourself to students you opening up the lines of communication and creating a welcoming environment. To do so, it is important to give some background about yourself and your experiences in the field. Furthermore, having introductions of the students helps create a sense of community among the entire class. This can be extended further to gather information from them about why they chose the program (if you are teaching a non-gen ed course), their course expectations, and what they hope to achieve when entering the workforce. You can use this information to help improve student motivation in your course.
