Managing Class Time
I have a tight schedule in the Culianry Arts lab course I teach. I make it a point at the beginning of every class to inform the students of the specific time-line expected for the day and call out reminders regularly. It creates a sense of urgency and also creates specific short term, measurable goals.
At close of day, we discuss the successes and challenges, and I remind them there is always time to improve both speed and accuracy... and usually they do, almost without exception.
I teach 100% online and our Live Chat (AKA classroom time) has time requirements that detail that you must fill the entire hour. Not knowing if any students will attend or how many, I prepare at least a 60 minute ppt with practical application and quizzes that require student involvement a participation. I have resources and references ready and have pre-chat time reading required.
I try to have an informality as the students can ask questions throughout the hour.
I agree that having clear time objectives is important in a Culinary Lab setting.
Flexibility is also a skill needed. When a subject is very interesting for the students, more time may be needed.
In addition to a Q+A buffer time, I like to have extra real-world examples and interesting facts (neither extraneous or absolutely essential, but just interesting and helpful) that I can weave into the lecture if I see that a particular class is moving faster than others.
Hi Brandy,
I understand your situation having been there before. The question I would raise to myself is "is there other ways to cover the material besides lecture?". Can you use guided notes, handouts, etc. to reduce the volume of material that has to be covered in the 1.5 class time? If you can then you can lecture on the key topics with more depth and reinforce the content through activities. This will result in higher retention on the part of students.
If I'm not understanding the situation please feel free to expand on it and I will be glad to help explore other options that might make this process easier for both you and your students.
Gary
I have such a tight amount of time to lecture so much content that I just can't do it. I have a problem when I have 1.5 hours to lecture 12 chapters. It gets really tight. Not sure what my best option is.
Hi Christopher,
I like your approach to planning. Since your field is so focused on time and delivery of food the students need to see models of how this can be done. By being organized and having everything laid out you are giving them examples of how they will have to organize themselves if they are going to have a successful culinary career.
Gary
Hello,
I try to do the same thing in the lecture portions of the culinary program. Each minute seems to be accounted for and the day needs to be laid out in full on a lesson plan orelse productivity will suffer. The students appreciate it as well. They are able to see a starting point, middle, and end to the day. I mix it up between powerpoint, handouts, group work, video and discussion. The different media seems to help with retention and flow of the day.
Thanks,
G
Hi Londa,
Sounds like you have a great plan going for how you are going to teach in such a compressed time frame.
The open lab time gives you a chance to develop rapport with your students so they respect you and what you have to offer them and their future.
Gary
I teach a very abbreviated course, allowing only 2/3 of the quarter to cover all of the material. There is a lot to cover in the class, but it is still important to not only address all student concerns/questions, but I agree with you that the time at the end of the class is important. I have added additional open lab time to engage even more of the students' concerns and challenges.
Hi Frank,
This is a good way of sharing both content and application. I am sure your students will see more relevancy to the course as a result.
Gary
In Math 099, a developmental course, I also like the concept of breaking up the class period into first-half lecture, then working through problems on the computer in the lab.
Hi. Gina,
I too teach in a culinary school, recently in the school's restaurant. Your discussion reminds me of the imprtance of setting inteermediate goals to help reach the big deadlines. It prompts me to think about giving students an exercise in setting their own timeframes to meet the ultimate deadline. It would get them to really think about how much time each task might take. They may have to increase speed, rearrange their plans or ask for help based on priority. All very good things for a learing cook to think about.
Gary O. Ackerman
Hi John,
I like your creativity in developing the 3 minute lectures. This is focused targeted information that the students can receive to support their other learning. Well done.
Gary
In my particular class, I have one hour of lecture time before we go into setup and production. Not a lot of time to cover all the material. It has to be organized and concise. I've developed a series of 3-minute lectures for supplemental information to the lecture material that I can cover during production with student engagement that doesn't detract them from attention to production. It's a way for me to cover the core material during lecture and then revisit it with a few pertinent details during these 3 minute "mini-meetings"
I also think this is a good strategy but I always like to have a good backup plan.
Hi Gina,
It is great that you are experiencing such a great success rate with your method. How do you counsel the students that are improving in speed and accuracy, but are not meeting the expected time-line?
Hi Amie,
I also have a long class time. Our Dean of Faculty has suggested that we try to not lecture for more than 30 minutes at a time as we know that the attention span of students for lecture is not more than that. Like you I also use video and discussion and those work well. In addition I teach a science class so we work on problems in groups or play games. Our school has invididual wipe boards and we do quiz contests. If keeps them active and gets them learning in a different way. They have fun.
Hi Tammie,
This is something that is easily overlooked by many instructors since they see everyone appearing to be progressing and working on projects. By having structure they know learning is occurring as well as helping to keep the students on task.
Gary
That is a great idea to offer more structure during the labs. It is easy for students to get off track while working independently. We as instructors need to keep them focused on the task at hand.
