Does anyone have the magic potion that gets unmotivated students to work I teach at nights and a lot of students that take my course are tired and it is extremely hard to get them motivated to learn in class if anyone has an idea let me know

I am a teacher by profession and early in my educational experience I had a great teacher who told us it is ok for everyone to get an A on a test. He told us don't think the test was too easy because everyone recieved an A or you need to fail students. What we need to do as teachers is make sure we only test on the material that was covered in class. DON"T try to trick students with silly questions- don't add extra words to the word bank if you are giving a completion test- don't add extra words to a matching test- and watch true and false questions. I believe we owe it to the students to test them on knowledge learned!

I teach early childhood education classes and if I had to choose one topic that is not covered in the textbooks it is, effectively communicating with parents. Soft Skills are extremely important in the educational field. If you teach in the early childhood field- make sure you cover this topic!!! Your students will thank you later when they have their first negative encounter with a disgruntled parent.

Any student can learn. Teaching strategies are important.

This is a useful idea. Students will know that the instructor is involved.

Patience and student support are the keys to produce a successful student who may have a language barrier.

This is very effective in motivating the student who may need additional support.

I would sometimes like to get to know the class first, and If I see that one student is willing to help another student that is struggeling, maybe ask that student if she would mind sitting next to the other one and help her if she is able, and if there is still questions the student can come to me.

When starting a new class. I take a few minutes to go around the class to have all students to say their name, where there from and what other schools they have been to

I would like to ask the students that may have a disabalitie to sit in the front of the class as not to be distracted easilly.

I like to give a topic to the clas, and listen to different discussions, and then give my feed back.

An instructor should always be well prepared for the subject being taught. This includes having a lesson plan (and following it), being familiar with the material, and above all teach in a manner that will interest the student. Instructors should not: just read out of the textbook, constantly sit behind a desk, say the words 'shut up' or not answer a questions from a student. Instructors should walk around the class while lecturing, ask questions during the lecture, use visal aids like power points as much as possible, get the students involved in group activities (which help develop critical thinking skills).

I have been in education for 10 years and I have learned that the first day of class is the most important. Instructors should set guidelines, rules and regulations, objectives and of course do a meet and greet. I always start by introducing myself and giving my background experience and certifications. Then I will ask each student to stand and give their name, and why they chose to enroll in Medical Assistant school. I hand out my class rules and regulations, along with the syllabus, and we go over each one. First impressions are lasting. If an instructor starts a class off on the wrong foot (i.e., being late for class, being impolite, not having the course syllabus, etc.) this will cause the student to be unmotivated to do well in the class. Throughout the class, if any student is struggling, instructors should always offer tutoring and encouragement to the student. After all, the students are why we are here!

I always introduce myself to a new class, and write my name on the board. I also give a little bit of my professional background. I also let the students know that I am here for any queastion and they can ask me questions at any time. Is there such a thing as not giving enough of a professional backgound?

Using the 3 M's model will help me to stay on task with my class. I also like to keep my class interested in the subject, by asking them questions, and interacting with them. Even getting them up and doing a small stretching exercise wakes them up to stay focused on the task at hand.

Have a group of students who tend to be rude to the new kids on the block. Makes the class setting very cold for the students involved. How do you handle having rude,unfriendly and unwelcoming students in class. I am new at this and do not want to show partiality amongs the students.

I use this tool quite often when I sense that the students in my classroom have encountered similar problems and can identify with the content and each other.

In teaching a composition course I have stressed how writing skills will be needed throughout the students' life experience, i.e., resumes,proposals, etc.

so with all this knowledge how do we initialy assess the students learning styles. Second, how do we help them to better develope the styles they are not good at but will need in the work place.

I am a new instructor and would like to know how to get a student motivated to participate in class?