What to do for a four hour lecture block?
I am teaching at a college that has four hour lecture blocks, and I am struggling to keep attention for all four hours and make the content last. I have introduced games and handouts, but I am afraid that I am wasting too much of the student's valuable time this way, any ideas on this?
Shawn,
Good information about how to handle longer course sessions. They can be a challenge but by being creative and offering variety in your delivery as well as activities the time will flow and the session will be completed with everyone still engaged.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
4 hour blocks? Me too! I struggled a lot with the conversion from 1 or 2 hour classes to 4 hours per night.
I'm glad I read this post, since I hadn't thought of games or physical ways to engage the students. Since I only have a handful of students, I tend to directly engage them on a first-name basis and play to their strengths in discussion. Just yesterday, I swear, 4 hours was NOT enough! Luckily, my course content doesn't allow for much lecture, and frankly, I'd go crazy hearing myself talk for four hours! Thanks for the advice!
Jennifer,
I would use some other strategies to change the pace of the class. Have them do a one minute paper on a topic that has just been covered. (60 seconds is a short period of time and it keeps them focused on what has just been covered.). Bring in a soft cushy ball and use it to generate discussion. Ask a question and throw it to a student and have them answer the question you asked. Then have them ask a question and throw the ball to another student. This is a short term activity that moves through a lot of material very quickly. Use think, pair share where a student responds to a question you ask by writing the answer down, then have that student compare his/her answer to another student and then move the students into learning groups of 3-5 students for more comparing of answers and sharing of content.
There are many different strategies like this you can use to get the students involved, having fun, learning and not wasting any class time.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Jeanne,
I like your plan for change the pace and flow of the class throughout the evening. This is so important if you are going to cover the material you need to while keeping your students engaged. Sounds like you have developed a very effective way to keep your students focused. Thanks for sharing your strategy with us.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I am currently teaching a four hour block as well. I understand the challenge you face. The course I teach is two nights a week completed in 5 weeks. I do spend the first 45 minutes or so doing a review game from the prior class (two chapters per week is a lot to cover without review). That also helps me to know what they learned and what needs more attention. I also break up the chapters with short activities, such as throwing a numbered thumb ball and getting them answering questions that correspond with the number. Each night I try to show a video, show a real-life example, and minimize the lecture. I also try to ask a lot of questions to get them interacting, and give class participation points.
