Hi Barbara:
Yes, I agree - stories do help keep students interested. Involving them by asking questions aslo helps develop their thinking and planning skill sets. I think it helps students visualize thermselves in the workplace as well.
Regards, Barry
Everyone likes a story. I enjoy peppering lessons with dramatic stories. Students will recall these because they have impact. They work well with many learning styles and often students will recall the story years later and remind me. I often ask how they would respond in this situation so the students have an opportunity to problem solve which is a big part of a management job and great experience for students.
Hi Andrea:
Good. Engaging students with Q&A, discussion, or sharing can be great opportunities for the student to demonstrate their contribution to the lesson and maybe build their self confidence. People like stories, probably because they can relate to some aspect of the information they're listening to.
Regards, Barry
I agree that if you are losing your students then it is time to get them involved in the lecture. Asking if anyone has anything to add or any industry related experiences on this topic is a good start. Or perhaps simply take a break and ask if there are any questions that one might have related to past or present production.
Hi Jan:
Great point, although sometimes an example from the instructors past can drive home the point of a lesson component. But on the whole, I'd agree that the focus should be on the students need rather than the instructors desire to talk about their past experiences - worst case is if the chatter has little to nothing to do with the lesson.
Regards, Barry
I don't especially like war stories either. They can begin to focus on the instructor telling the story as opposed to the student's learning needs. Our school encourages guest speakers. Bringing in a program alum or person currently working in the field might be more helpful than the instructor's trip down memory lane.
Hi Keith:
Got your meaning. I was relating what I consider one version of not using the students time wisely - in general. Thanks for your participatory post.
Regards, Barry
It doesn't have to be removed from the lesson at hand though (a "war story") in order to be inappropriate... Just above the student's current level of understanding.
Hi Gregory:
Yes, examples can keep students interest. Associating theory of operation, hazards, common uses and abuses, and description along with the the examples are most helpful to accelerate retention of learned information.
Regards, Barry
Hi Keith:
I dislike "war stories" - a term I give to examples or experiences that some teachers will share with the class that are far removed from the topic at hand. Although interesting, it is unfair to students to take their time with an illustration that has little to do with the lesson. So as you say, keep it on topic.
Regards, Barry
Showing students an example from experience helps them transfer ideas into actual hands on abilities.
Hi Jim:
Your working students stories and work experiences should go a long way to reinforcing some of the points you've made - and that lends credibility to what you're teaching. It also give a real world flair to the topics being discussed.
Regards, Barry
The only thing is that there is a need to "keep it on topic"... Using an example as an illustration is great, but you need to make sure that the class can grasp the idea/concept involved.
When talking about field experience, include what the students can input. Some of the students are working out in the field currently and they can share some of their experiences with other class members that are not yet working in the field.
Hi Richard:
Field experience is very close to the kind of work the student will be soon doing for pay. It helps convey the reality of employment work vs. school work.
Regards, Barry
I agree if you can give actual field experience the student's know you can perform the task's and are more eager to learn the subject matter.
Hi Frank:
Stories and examples from the "real world" of the students career choice are usually interesting and well received, I think becasue they're easier for the student to relate to. People like stories. This may assist student's leraning retention, too.
Regards, Barry
Often need to speak of actual field experiences.Mixing things up keeps things interesting and keeps student's from sleeping and gets them invovled.
Hi Raymond:
You're describing critical thinking applications, which, whenever you can integrate that into your lesson plan, the better thinkers your students will be and retention of pertinent learning will be increased.
Regards, Barry
