Emilee,
My students really like doing this types of activities as well. These activities help them with their problem solving and critical skill development. Good strategy.
Gary
I have found students are engaged when I bring in challenges that I have previously worked through in the field and challenge them to work through it. They see the direct relation to the career field they are seeking to get into and it reinforces the topics we are talking about everyday.
Regardless of a student's initial motivation for coming to school, every student can be motivated by success. In some cases, that's the personal success from applying knowledge and achieving good grades.
Almost all students respond well to success stories. Having a guest speaker (preferably a previous student who has since graduated and obtained a position in the field) can show students more concretely what success "looks" like so that they can visualize themselves there in the future.
Natasha,
Good points that we all can use to set the stage for a successful class. Thanks for sharing them with us.
Gary
Mindy,
I like this method a lot. It sounds like it was fun and really engaged the students. Thanks for sharing it with us. I am sure it will be of help to other instructors.
Gary
Helping students to realize their goals and reach their potential.
On occasion I walk into the classroom with a big hello and an immediate question of, "How are all of you today?" If you smile and have a good attitude normally students will pick up on your energy and emotion. Students are often coming from a hard long day; they may be seeking motivation and a pep rally from you. Don't disappoint them. I realize that everyday is not exceptional for all of us but teaching is also acting. Acting and behaving in a way that we empower, move, encourage others.
I try to instill the desire for a better life through continual learning. Also, one needs to mention the increased income that will come from obtaining a valuable skill set.
Changes in stratagies...shakin it up a bit.
I find it very effective when students apply new concepts to real-life experiences. This technique was very effective when used in a Customer Service class that I taught recently. Students became active listeners at work, during their daily shopping trips, etc. The resulting class discussions were fun and exciting!
As I am teaching I will often use vivid, expressive, real life animations of experiences that have been witnessed or experienced in some form in my own career. When you re-live real events through direct "story-telling" that will relate the material being taught that day to actual"emotional" events, the students will always become engaged and will have lots of questions that will afford an opportunity to convey my expertise in the field and reinforce the relationship to their future careers.
Hello Lorelle,
So true! English composition is one of those classes, so connecting the content to students' personal success goals and showing them the many applications in their personal and professional lives motivates them and gets them a little more excited about the course, and then with each small success, they become even more motivated to learn from their mistakes and become more effective writers.
Cheers,
Cynthia
Hi Jeff,
I use the same strategy to reiterate the importance of learning how to communicate effectively in writing.
I laughed when I read the comment about your wife not understanding how you could get excited about a lecture you had delivered 20 times previously. No matter how many times I have delivered the same lecture, I am always enthusiastic; after all, I have a whole new set of students, so I am excited all over again.
Being enthusiastic and knowledgeable about the content and sharing professional experiences working in the field. I teach English composition, and many students are intimidated when it comes to the writing process and their skills, or they wonder why they need a writing class when they believe there will be little writing required in their own professions. So, I give them examples of how writing is important in my own profession as an educator, and I ask them to share their workplace writing experiences -- writing Emails, memos, resumes, cover letters, researching information for their boss or colleagues, etc. I also discuss the concept of writing across the disciplines or writing across the curriculum to stress the importance of learning to communicate well in writing because it is valued in their classes, but also valued in the workplace.
Effective motivation can be a refelction of your enthusiasim in the classroom. Giving your students the confidence they need to succeed is also a motivator. By reinforcing your students in their achivements you motivate them as well. Setting up your students with acheivable goals will also motivate them. Once they reach one goal they are more motivated to reach the next because they now have a "win" in the cap.
Thank You,
Ian
Use the exitement of our field and the example of successful graduates for motivation. Let them see the success of others.
Giving the students a chance to "play instructor"
I used a variation the other evening for the students when we reviewed medical terminology words. I called it "stump the student." I wrote a medical term on the board and had each student in turn come up and erase the part of the word that was not on their handout for the week, then define the word part that was left. They had a lot of fun doing it, it was a departure from their usual way of just going over each term by rote. It gave them a chance to see the word part used in an actual medical word. Mindy Smith
I think that giving them "real life" examples can help to motivate them and clarify why they need to know certain things
talking to students about their goals they have set for their future.
One effective motivation technique is for the Instructor to have enthusiasm for the course which automatically engages students for learning the material
