Guest speakers have knowledge and experience of outside environment. When the speakers come to the class room and discuss different issues, students have an opportunity to ask questions about their career and future success. This type of discussions help the students to stay in the class room.
The use of a "been there, done that" speaker is invaluable. The real world examples are much more palatable than the textbook examples of the talking head at the front of the classroom many times.
Hi Bonnie,
This is true! Guest speakers are great resources to utilize to add flavor to the course. Students get the opportunity to pick the guest speaker's brain.
Patricia
Guest speakers are real life people doing a job that the student is working towards. By hearing their stories and feeling their hardships, students develop a bond and can see their goal coming to fruition. They also have someone to ask questions and to motivate them.
Guest speaker into a course can be a great way to bring field trip and valuable interaction without stepping out of the classroom
Guest speakers can re-ignite the enthusiasm for students. They can tell their own stories about failures and success. Guest speakers can instill the Goals students are reaching for.
We recently had a guest speaker come in that was a recent graduate of our medical assisting program and was offered a job after her internship in a local cardiology office. She was able to provide the students with good tips when going out on their externships. She proved to our students that hard work and good work ehtics will get you far. She was offered a job at the end of her externship, when they told her from the very beginning that they weren't hiring. The students had so many questions for her and were still talking about her the next day. She also gave them many study resources that my students used throughout the course.
I stay in touch with students that have graduated for our tech school and always invite them back to speak in my class. They relate to the students and offer great feedback on what is happening in our industry and point out ways to be successful.
In some cases students might not feel that you are an expert and even though you might explain things well, they have a tendency to think does He or she really know? The guest speaker comes in to save the day when they repeat the same information you have covered. Yes it can be frustrating to have the same information believed by somebody else rather than you, but in some cases that is what is needed. Guest speakers when talking on the same subject you are covering re affirm the information and you are credible
Hi Ginette,
I concur! Having a guest speaker is a great way to tie in theory to real life applications.
Patricia
I think guest speakers are a great resource. Guest speakers in our profession always have different opinions. In healthcare, particularily physical therapy there are so many approaches to address an impairment. Guest Speakers help students find their way of managing an impairment. Furthermore, the serve as role models for what the students can expect to be. Students need examples of what their success will look like, and guest speakers provide that.
I think that guest speakers are very benificial and encourage learners.
Having a guest speaker is a great asset for the instructor. Several times, the instructor is being seen as “the one without experienceâ€. Students have the misconception that instructors are just reading the books. Having someone who is practicing in the field bring a mental connection in the student’s brain. Suddenly, the content seems relevant. It is a good way to reinforce the important concepts to be learned.
Hi Claire,
They will love her! I am sure she will be very uplifting and encouraging to the students.
Patricia
They can serve as an inspiration to the students that they too can achieve their career goals. This term, a relative of mine is coming to my class. She got her paralegal degree at a career college and is now a successful paralegal. Hopefully, they'll enjoy the interaction!
The student is able to have conversation with personnel that are from their field. They are able to ask real life situations and get answers from person working in the field.
I have also found that my students have a greater appreciation for learning in the classroom after they have experienced a guest speaker in their field. They are not only more focused on their studies but they seem to take on a more sophisticated air about being in college. I often interject during class lecture something the speaker had discussed and it is so refreshing to hear their responses...they also enjoy helping each other remember what was discussed.
Well placed guest speakers can revive stale classroom environments, break up the "rut" of set scheduled events and expectations, and provide students with a fresh voice, perspective, and stimulous. The value of choosing someone who has faced the same challenges that current students are facing is the "war stories" that can be shared to the relief of students who thought that they were the only ones flagging. Guest speakers are wonderful and can be rented often for the price of lunch afterwards.
Hi Wray,
Perhaps if you are covering a particular topic, you may be able to showcase that topic by utilizing youtube.
Patricia
I teach algebra. I don't see how a guest speaker can help the learning process.
Any suggestions?
