Teresa,
So true. If you bring passion for your content and excitement about sharing it you have set the stage for engaged learning to occur.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I think the most important thing is you being excited about what you are teaching. You need to share your experiences. They will be excited if you are
Chris,
Good way to start a course off by connecting the dots between the course content and their future. They need to see the value of the current course in relation to their career goals and employment potential.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I like to start off by demonstrating to students how the material that we are going to cover is relevant to their everyday lives and professionial goals. Often students have a difficult time making that connection, so by demonstrating this on the first day it helps to capture their interest.
Karen,
Great overview of what the climate should be in the classroom. Yes, learning is hard work but it is also a lot of fun and sharing with others as growth occurs both in knowledge and skills is a powerful motivator.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I believe you can motivate learners through a positive attitude. If you as the instructor are happy and excited about the subject matter this will transfer to your students. I beleive that laughing every day in the classroom will also keep students excited. You can add laughter and humor to the classroom through audio/video clips that pertain to the subject matter. If you are having fun while also learning, this will make your class the one the student wants to participate in each and every day.
Karen Grassi,
Adjunct Intructor YTI Altoona Campus
I believe that your students can only be as excited about the course as their instructor. As the instructor you need to have a postive attitude, this will in turn make your students have a positive attitude. I also believe in making learning fun, have your students laugh every class, they will then in turn relate their happiness with your classroom. I think showing video/audio clips that have humor but also relate to the subject matter is a good way to incorporate fun and laughter into the classroom. If you as the instructor are having a good time teaching, the students will in turn have a good time learning and will look forward to come to your class each and every day.
Debra,
Yes, it is. Helping them to connect the dots between the class and the real world is an important part of their career development so the more you are able to help them do this the more valuable your instruction becomes.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I think it's important to show students how what we are learning about is applicable to their everyday life.
Mike,
Students like variety and change of pace and one of the reasons for this is just what you mention, different learning preferences. So instructional planning needs to include such strategies for our students.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Heather,
Good point about enthusiasm and passion being important to the engagement of students. If we don't bring both it is for sure the students won't. They model what we promote so we need to bring excitement to the classroom and lab every time we teach.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
An unmotivated student can certainly be a challenge but I have seen that sometimes this can be the result of different learning styles. Some people learn by listening to the lecture closely. Some students do better taking notes. Some like to see the topic presented with Power Point while others prefer a give and take discussion. I have found that some of unmotivated students can be reached with a change in presentation style moire suited to the way they learn best.
One of the first things that an instructor can do to motivate a student in a particular course is to demonstrate enthusiasm and passion for that course or subject matter. The instructor can share real-world stories and examples with the students. Perhaps a story that demonstrates how a solution to a problem was solved, or a particular example that explains a set of skills and abilities used to complete a task. This allows students to picture themselves better in the field. This also builds excitement in student, giving them the opportunity to look forward to their future.
Here is a question to my classmates. Is their a particular story or example you share with your students each term that evokes a sense of excitement in your course? Do you share the same story each term?
Valerie,
Leave them wanting more is the mantra of a teacher. This will bring them back the next class and they will be excited about what they are going to learn.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Robin,
If the instructor doesn't care about the subject or the students then it is a tough sell for the students to buy into the course. You make a good point about enthusiasm and passion for content and students.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Learning should always be fun. Incorporate consistent student engagement and visual aids. You want your students to leave and say I can't wait to be back the next day.
First you have to let the students know that you love your course content, and that you love them. Motivation is the force that drives people to do what you need them to do. Student Participation, explanation of the competences (task) and modelling of how to continually encourage students to do the task at hand. Keep the learning environment creative.
Regina,
This support is very important because of the common problem of getting caught up in the present while missing the progress that has been made. Good way to help them see how much they are learning and moving closer to their career goals.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Brant,
I have graduates come into my class for the same reason you state. They help the students to see the value of the content being presented and help to motivate them to be successful. This is a win win for everyone.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
It helps to let students know when they have 'done it'. At the end of an exercise or after an assignment is completed, it helps to tell the students that they have not only completed the homework, but they have also performed a task that will be required of them in the work place. Usually the students are so caught up in the assignment at hand that they don't see their overall progress. It helps to congratulate them with something like, 'You have now coded every type of laboratory and pathology service that you might encounter in the workplace. Congratulations!'
