An adult learner is likely only to retain 25% of the information from what they hear, and 40% of what they see and 70% of what they do. With this knowledge, I attempt to have multimodal teaching strategies for each topic in the class. Just as there are different learning styles, students need to be instructed as to what the important issues are and what can be marked for 'deletion'. showing the students how this topic applies to them personally, helps them engage and invest in the knowledge.
Understanding the basics of learning will help me as an instructor determine how my students learn. I use repetition with my students to keep our course objectives on their working memory. This also helps to move information to their long-term memory.
Understanding how learning works can benefit us in the classroom. A good mechanic understands "how" an engine works, they do not just replace parts and hope for the best. The same is true with good teachers. If we understand how someone learns we can approach them with the proper attitude and teaching style. Knowing that adult learners want to generalize information, a teacher might explain how a lesson plan applies to their industry.
by getting to know your students strengths
Miriam,
You have a clear understanding of how you can use the life of experiences of your students to connect with the content being offered. I like the way you are helping your students to see the value of developing their "soft skills" as well because they are essential in career success as we know.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Understanding the basics of learning will greatly benefit me as an instructor as I will have more knowledge regarding the science behind learning. Understanding the process of learning and how it occurs will help me to develop better lesson plans and apply my new information to the students in a way that will help them learn better. An example would be to develop exercises where the student's recall (episodes) moments in their life when they had to use a skill that translates to their job skills (i.e. courtesy, communication). I have found that some of our daily experiences can translate to job skills - something as simple as courtesy and learning to respect your elders can be translated to a job skill that some people may not recognize.
Anna Marie,
Good way to keep the course current and relevant for the current enrollees.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Each class is unique and I adjust my lecture based on the feedback of my students.
Khalda,
Good point about how to attract and hold the attention of the students. This way you are getting their buy in in terms of the course and the assignments they have to complete. The more you can do that the greater their performance is going to be.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I agree with this comment. One because the classroom is filled with the variety of students who have different levels of understanding. They require different approach to understand the material which is being taught by the instructor. At this time using differnt tactics of learning such as demonstration, group work, hands on experience,and strategies, or even one to one session would be beneficial to the student's learning as well as for a succeful teaching experience for the instructor.
Cheryl,
This is a very important part of being a teacher. Through observation you are able to see and address support needs of students as needed. This keeps them moving forward in their learning as well as making progress toward their career goals.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
understanding the needs of the students and observing their participation in class will help in adapting your teaching strategy
Alain,
Yes it is a good way to show how the senses can be used as learning tools. Greatly enhances the engagement of students.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I teach in the medical field and I have seen that the a good way to teach a class is to incorporate all aspects of senses to the topic at hand (if applicable of course).
Robert,
Great to hear of the value you got from this module. I am excited for you and your continued teaching success. You have a great understanding of how the learning process works as well as how you can engage your students throughout each class session.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
The benefit to me as an instructor in understanding how different students learn is that I can tailor my teaching methods to the needs of each class. I move from class to class every 20 classroom days. This means that I have a new group of students that I have to evaluate as to which teaching methods will work best for each class.
This module has helped me to see the benefit of something my technical school instructor taught me years ago. He said that in order to learn something new you have to see it, write it, say it, and hear it in order to remember it. I now see that this method incorporates all of the different sensory modes to achieve lasting memory of the subject material.
Knowing the basic learning patterns help you adapt your material to be taught for the students to gain the most out of the class. Keeping the class on task and point with different learning patterns
Richard,
Variety in instructional delivery is important for students to have. You have a number of different approaches you are using so you are going to appeal to a wide variety of learning preferences within your students.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
It would affect how I present different kinds of material. for example, some information might be communicated best through a DVD with group interaction afterwards. Some work might require a written assignment with peer review. And other information might best be learned by having the students relate it directly to their own experiences.
Amie,
This is why change is a constant in teaching. We have to be flexible in order to meet the needs of our students each time we meet with them.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
