This is by far the most amazing idea!!!! I am so excited to incorporate this into my class. Time and time agian I have students that contiue to have conflict with life, home, childcare and money. The part that they are not aware of is that we all have it and are dealing with on a day to day basis! Thank you
Nothing trumps experience and having a guest speaker in class puts experience right in front of them. I've found it be beneficial for students to hear "how I made it" stories from established professionals. It demystifies the process and helps them, who may be discouraged by seemingly unattainable goals, see a path to success.
Hi Linda,
We certainly can not let our students give up easily. We must do all we can to motivate our students. As instructors, we need to be our students biggest cheerleader.
Patricia Scales
What value is anything to a student who is about to
quit your course? Do you just give up and wish them
luck? As far as I'm concerned, as long as they are
still there, this is your opportunity to probe and
question why they want to give up, and if a speaker,
perhaps a former student, can talk to them and share
their experiences which may be very similar to your
students, why not take a chance and see if you can
get them thinking that others have been where they
are and were able to get past it and succeed. This
is a difficult course not suited for everyone, but
hearing various stories of what others did to help
them proceed is certainly worth a try. Plus they
may learn of other areas in which to use the skills
they have attained, maybe in an area they were not
even aware of.
This is a great idea. Guest speakers can motivate students that may not have connected with their own teacher. They are an extention of their career goal but also can also help the students see themselves and their success
Hi Christine,
Guest speakers are priceless, and students can gain a ton of knowledge as well as motivation from guest speakers.
Patricia Scales
I have had guest speakers that were funny but shared their experiences in a genuine way. The students learned a great deal about the guest speakers disease process, treatment and nursing responses. The students gleaned a great deal about their profession.
Hi Stephanie,
Graduate guest speakers are the best! Students can relate a lot more to graduate guest speakers.
Patricia Scales
I have had past graduates come back and be a guest speaker for our class, and the students love it. They get very excited that a graduate from their class is successful and shares their stories with them. They ask the guest speaker so many questions. I think they enjoy a graduate guest speaker because they can relate to them and see the outcome. The students that are "dragging their feet" get excited too and see that they can do it also.
it brings a different view point to the class. students can learn for his/her experiences and they may appreciate taking the course a bit more.
Guest speakers, especially graduate students who had struggles in school, have more creditablility with current students. I had a past graduate come to me and asked if she could speak to the class. I actually had a few students do better after her talk. I'm a believer.
We just recently had a guest speaker (school graduate) and the students thoroughly enjoyed the hour. She was inspiring to all of us and we were able to relate her information to class work. A wonderful choice.
Guest speakers are greatly underutilized. Guest speakers can motivate students in addition to their instructors. They can offer their experience in the field and also discuss what it was like being a student. They can also further reinforce the goal of graduating and finding gainful employment.
I think a guest speaker is a great boost especially when the student is employed in the field of study and loves the job. I can sit and lecture and tell stories about what it is like out there but hearing from a former grad is even better. They know what it is like to look for the job right now and they can tell students what they should be doing to land the dream job. They might be saying exactly what I am telling them as well but when it comes from a recent grad, it seems to have more validity to them.
Using a guest speaker as a resources is a great tool to use. It will help motivate the students, and give them an opportunity to talk to and ask questions of an expert in his career field.
Guest speakers can present a first hand account of what it's really like out there in the "real world". When I was a student I loved to hear from someone out there actually doing it, what it was really like. I wanted to know not only the rewards and benefits of being in the profession but also the challenges and problems that they faced.
BY incorporating guest speakers into your course, it not only offers the students the opportunity to hear the subject matte from another source, but it also gives them the opportunity to incorporate the matter into everyday life via a live person.
Hi Casey,
Guest speakers are awesome! They bring reality into the classroom. Students love hearing from other professionals other than the instructor!
Patricia Scales
Bringing in a guest speaker who is tied into the subject at hand gives the students an idea of how they can apply what they are learning in this class, or some ideas of career plans to pursue
I think using guest speakers is essential to the student population. It really does open there eyes to the career they are choosing to embark upon. I have always had great results from guest speakers.
