It has been my experience that students who have put forth a sincere effort to reach their goals feel more successful when they finally do reach them. Students feel patronized when we instructors praise them for lackluster efforts. They know that in the real world, success is measured by effort. There really are no shortcuts.

Different tactics can be used to try to make the "retention demon" go away but for me what has worked best has been keeping the students involved, in charge, and interdependent to one another.

Over the years I have observed many reactions & behavior styles, especially when the two groups come together. Some assume “parent’s figure” and others “kid’s figure” but sometimes it is surprising to see the role being reversed…

ALL INSTRUCTORS/STUDENTS NEED MOTIVATION FOR CONTINUED LEARNING PROCESSES.

Wines 1 course, I had a variety of ages and my concern for the non traditional students were they would not answer what they were smelling or tasting in the glass for fear of being wrong, lack of confidence, (being out of school for 10 or 18 + years)and/or new situation. My catch phrase was "It is your face, no one is wrong". many factors dictate what you are experiencing: breakfast, lunch, smoker, non smoker, cold etc. The result: more people participated.

When a student hears an instructor make a mistake and the ability to blush, giggle or a hearty laugh it does foster the human side and I think students will respond better and feel more comfortable in approaching that instructor.

As my classes are getting larger, I am having a hard time finding the time to be the one on one chef instructor to everyone for everyone. I traveled last weekend and visited another culinary school and talked with one of the older chefs that has been teaching for a long time. I told him my issue and he gave me two great tools that I plan to utilize this upcoming week with my new class. The first tool is to come into the classroom 30 minutes early and just plan on being there for the students. No admin work or anything. Just be there for them. This will make you much more approachable and open yourself up to making those contacts with each student. Another tool he gave me was to use my daily roster as a tool. He puts check marks by the names of the students he makes personal contacts with every day and his goal is to have a check mark by every students name at the end of the day.

This rotation I found myself teaching at night. These students have jobs & have no time for messing around. They work faster so this can give more time for demo & discussion.

During production I make it a point to teach one new trick to every student, every day.

I have founf that students who are further anlon in life are a little more sensitive to critisizm than most younger students. Sometimes kid gloves are needed for the grown-ups.

It is very difficult to get students motivated particularly with subject matters that may not interest them within their chosen field at his time. Why do I have to know this, they have folks that will take care of that for me... The challenge is to show them how and why this is important; maybe it won't be apparent today, tomorrow or next year, but it will become an issue. Real life experiences and instructor experiences / history will become of interest at this point. Jeff Emmons

From time-to-time, I find myself wanting to help peers refocus. What are some suggestions for helping fellow instructors "refocus" without coming across as condescending, especially when addressing someone with more years of teaching experience?

NOT ONLY STUDENTS NEED TO REFOCUS, BUT INSTRUCTOR DO TOO.

WE NEED TO BE GOOD ROLE MODELS FOR ALL STUDENTS, YOUNG AND OLD.

Education provides benefits for pupils of all abilities and aspirations. Success in the outcomes of education results in pupils who are better informed and have more positive attitudes and better skills for life beyond school. Successful programs meet the needs of higher achieving pupils, as well as those with additional needs in terms of learning difficulties or challenging behaviour, or those at risk of exclusion

As instructors do we recognize students with specific needs and disabilities? Are we patient enough..

I like to use an exercise where i have them think how the food item is processed before they receive it. Example we all know that ketchup comes from tomatoes, but what type of tomato? Where are they grown at? What are the initial processes that this product has to go through before we receive it. The results can be quite rewarding to both the students and the instructor.

I have a question of need to all of you. Lets say that you have a class of students who are angry and frustrated with the schools policies and brings this negative energy into the classroom every day. We do our best to keep the energy positive, but in the end it always turns negative. Could it be a case of senioritis or a case of why bother anymore.

I find that by acknowledging students who follows your direction well and meets the competencies goes a long way in boosting their morale. But i only allow them to cherish that moment for that short moment so that they do not become over confident of themselves.

Often times we have a student who has special needs and many times we are not capable of assisting these student of need. How does one accomodate these needs while trying to dedicate your time equally amongst your class? Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Glenn