When children are in school there is a focus on their education. Adults have so much going on the focus is usually on other things. They do not have a parent or family encouraging them in the same way children do. It is important they get the encouragement and acknowledgement from some source so they know their efforts are important.
Hi Christopher,
Good strategies about how to motivate students. You should be able to capture their attention and then share your excitement about the field with them as you proceed through the course. Passion goes a long way in selling the idea that through hard work and effort the students can have a successful career much like your own.
Gary
Hi Celia,
You might not have a subject that is easy to motivate the unmotivatable, but there will truly be at least one student that thrives on excited and I always like to show them it is still a great subject to teach and learn from. Thanks, Chris.
Aimee, I totally agree with showing passion for what you teach! That really seens to help get the students pumped up for the class and helps them remember the content much better. Thanks, Chris Graves.
Warm and inviting is very true! I like that you mention having bad days, I might have had one or two myself and it never ceases to amaze me that once I turn on my microphone the bad stuff goes away for that hour because I know I have a great audience and that it is my time to have a little fun, that way the students can enjoy their time with me as well. I wish I could take field trips, but we have to use our imagination in class since I teach online.
I agree that we can relay our own personal experiences in order to show the student why things are done a certain way, but I also believe we need to lead them down the road to help them make their own conclusions as well. Good posting James, Thanks, Chris.
I believe I can help my students become motivated and excited about the course by showing them I am excited about it. I believe the key is to let the students know it is a topic/discussion that I enjoy and to show them that I have a passion for what I am teaching. By doing this, my goal is to impress upon the students the "joys" of learning the subject and that they too can enjoy it as well. I have stayed motivated in the past through Instructors that had a passion for the subject and that always helped boost my morale as well as the level of education I wanted to recieve. The more passionate, the more I wanted to learn, that is how I would help motivate students, besides of course telling them they are doing great and/or working with them as individuals to get past a task or theory that may be slowing them down.
I strongly believe to motivate your students you have to make the environment fun and relevant to the real world. I always have a guest speaker come in who's message is real but motivating based on their experience and over coming challenges.
It's the instructors responsibility to make the classroom welcoming, inviting, and positive. There's plenty of times I've had bad days but I tell the students I check that attitude at the door. Then they follow as well, every student has different stressors their dealing with but they come to class if they know everything will be ok as soon as they walk in my classroom.
I like idea of field trips and I may start to incorporate that into the class.
By being excited about the content and being able to give examples of your field and when/where you use the topics in your carreer.
Hi Jeremiah,
I like this approach. You are engaging the students in the learning process by sharing a fact or bit of information that catches their attention. I learned something about deer as a result of reading your comments as well so now you have me hooked as a learner.
Gary
Hi Julie,
These are great ideas and will really help to keep the students engaged in the course. They will see application and relevancy to what they are learning.
Gary
I think one of the best ways to get students involved in a biology/science course is by answering questions that they have regarding the material. There are a lot of misconceptions and little known facts. If you share a couple of these with the students, they will feel they have genuinely achieved something and will be more engaged. An example is telling the students that deer do not eat grass, despite what they may think.
Showing the students the future benefit of your course to their professional life after college.
Staying motivated and excited about the course myself. I like to talk about scenarios with people (names withheld)in it that I have dealt with and ask how they would handle the situation. This gets everyone involved. I could have speakers come into the class to show relevance to the material being taught.
Dear Payel.I know that I am the instructor, but I get a kick out of letting my students know that I have discovered something in what we are studying. Everything old can be new
I try to motivate my students by providing them with interesting experiences that I have encountered on the subject matter. I also try to engage them by offering interesting articles and latest news on the subject matter. I try very hard to be a consistent cheerleader as they progress through the subject matter.
Hi Loretta,
You got it! This is what makes learning and teaching fun. Get the students engaged in the delivery and content and you will be able to move them along as needed. They will be excited about what you are doing and you will enjoy teaching that much more.
Gary
Offer them something that no other instructor can offer; be fun, but keep that professionalism piece in mind. Be enthusiastic about the subject matter; offer a cliff-hanger type of lecture, that will keep them engaged and wanting to come back to hear more.
Hi Carla,
Go for it. Be excited! If the students think you are too excited about your field so be it. I know I love my field and the fact I get to teach about it. I am going to share my excitement, experience and expertise with them and hope to engage them in excitement about the field as well.
Thanks for your good comments.
Gary
by being motivated myself and show them passion