Eric,
What are some of the ways you do this with your courses?
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
You can motivate the students by making the course exciting and interesting.
Thane,
So true and so important. You need to display passion for your field and then enthusiasm for teaching about it. This is a winning combination for engaging students and maximizing learning.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
The foremost part of motivating students is to be excited about the subject you are teaching. In that excitement you can show your students how, when, and where the subject matter will be used in their everyday and professional lives. Challenge your students for examples of math, english, and science that they have used in the past week or month.
Karen,
Great way to get your students involved and thinking about how to be problem solvers as well as effective communicators. As for a less complicated way to pull this activity off is you might want to assign students to groups, say 2-3 students each. Have them break down the task/problem into equal parts depending how many students are in each group. When I do this I have them present for 2-3 minutes each for no more than 10 per group. I put them in front of the class seated behind a table as a panel. This lets them be comfortable and have the support of their fellow group members. My students really like this format and it reduces the individual workload. I don't mind assigning my students plenty of work but this way I get to repeat the activity with different topics since each topic is not completed individually.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Gary:
Thank you for your response. I did create a case study "project" for the students. The requirement was to take one pathology from the first 5 chapters and research it, including updated research on traditional treatment and include alternative treatment with a huge emphasis on how massage therapy might benefit this condition. They were to include contraindications, benefits, how they themselves might process and handle these clients and they were to present on their topic to the class. The presentation was to be only 10 min in length and write a brief paper on their case. This paper was to be referred and I chose APA format.
I got considerable "grief" because the students did not want to write a paper and they did not want to present in the class. My purpose for the project was multifold. I wanted them to start thinking of how they might handle different medical scenarios in their massage clinics, from understanding the disease, to applying the best technique for their client, and if massage was contraindicated I wanted them to acknowledge this and the presentation portion was not so much for them to be giving public "talks" but to help them feel comfortable in expressing their ideas and client management with other paraprofessionals. feel that these skills are necessary not only to treat the clients but also foster a great working relationship with referring professionals.
The students all did excellent in their reports and the project grade brought up many of their total class grades.
I am looking for a less complicated way to present this project to the students going forward so that they are less intimidated by the process and actually look forward to the small amount of research they need to do to compile their data.
Any thoughts?
Karen
Bruce,
This is a very good way to get student interest because you are showing them why they are in school in the first place. They need to see their future and how they can create a live style for their families and themselves.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Explain how your profession has provided for you and your family. The opportunities you have had and how you enjoyed your work. Make them feel they can be successful in the profession you love and they can make a difference in their lives and others.
William,
This is how the students will come to connect with the course content. The more of these connections the better. The examples from your experience will serve to validate what you are teaching and the importance it plays in career success.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I match the material to be learned with how knowledge of the material is utilized in our profession and give examples from my own experience.
Michelle,
These connections are very powerful when it comes to student engagement and motivation. You are showing them relevance and application and these elements are what increase the ROI of the course to and for them.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I am trying to take my education and experiences to my students by showing and giving examples. I bring products from the field to demonstrate to students have them use and hold items. It brings knowledge and confidence to them if they have seen the items we are discussing.
Karen,
You might try blending the two by creating case studies out of the cases you see at your office. This way they are gaining real life experiences while using the coursework to solve the problem presented in the case study. This should reduce the concern students have that the examples are taking away from the coursework.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I teach Pathology for massage therapy college and I teach in the evening class. I often find that my students who work all day and are in evening classes are burned out in the evening and I try to engage them by presenting real life cases I see in my chiropractic office. These cases are conditions that correlate with the lesson we are learning.
I find that half the class is very interested in the practical application of the material, but there are others who look at this as a distraction from the coursework.
Can I have some strategies that might help me incorporate these practical applications more smoothly so that the students appreciate that they are in fact getting the lesson material and then some by this introduction?
Hugo,
You have made a number of excellent points in relation to instructor engagement and passion for one's field. Without these two elements it is hard to convey the content in an enthusiastic manner that will keep the focus of students.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
It is important to acknowledge that we, as instructors, must be engaged to our teaching topic before we deliver the information to students. In addition, we must let our students to express themselves freely, but respectfully, about the topic that is being discussed. The key to motivate students, based on my experience, is to listen what they have to say and understand their point. Understanding their perspective, especially in classes with students from different cultures, allows me to identify if the information needs to be reinforced or explained differently. Using this technique, my students have shown more interest in the class material.
Laura,
I think you are on the right track with your approach. My suggestion would be on the look out for unique ways to present the information that will engage your students. You are bringing food to class for show and tell. Can you bring other objects that will illustrate the composition of a food substance and how it provides different types of nutrition? How about role playing using the students to portray different foods or cells in food. Just streaming some ideas of how to engage them. Not sure they will work but the idea is to be creative while getting through the material.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I teach at a culinary school where the students are hands on visually orriented. Teaching nutrition without getting bogged down in lecture is difficult on a day to day basis. I try and change it up by bringing in food ( not to eat but to discuss!) 1x a week and hitting the computer lab 1x a week. Any other suggestions would be appreciated >
Heather,
Thank you for the kind words. You can be a model and inspiration for your students as they focus on creating a career path for themselves.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Heather,
Love your enthusiasm and passion for your field and teaching. I know both carry over into the classroom and lab. I wish you continued teaching success and know you are going to continue to impact the lives and futures of your students.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
