Reaching students from various backgrounds/technical levels
What are some good ways to instruct a large class comprised of students from vastly different backgrounds and technical levels?
I agree. i feel it builds confidence in the students and makes them stronger if they can apply their newly acquired knowledge.
Steve,
Students really like to work through case studies such as the one you cite. This lets them make immediate application of their newly acquired knowledge. The result is more engaged students and a higher retention of the content.
Gary
Dr. Gary Meers
I often use this system as well. In addition I also try and break it down into simple terminology and a action/reaction type of discussion which seems to work well in healthcare education. Such as Pt A has a GSW to the chest,and is bleeding out and you have X Y and Z at you disposal what do you use first kind of thing.
I assigned random groups and had students discuss a given subject. All must participate in the discussion and present to the class. At least three students in each group must present their discussion results. I found this allowed students to open up to one another and feel more comfortable. This also aided me in identifying some of the stronger/weaker students.
David,
I like using this method as well and it has worked very well for me. The pairing has to be done carefully as you mention but the rewards for both participants are well worth it.
Gary
Dr. Gary Meers
Hello. I can used the buddy system to various degress of success depending on the subject matter. When I teach, for example, Excel, I will have identified the strongest students and pair them up with a weaker (in terms of skills) "buddy". I will assign seating accordingly.
Brenda,
Good but tough question. Not sure what large means in your school. Most of our classes are around 70 students which is too big for the advanced classes. In my classes of this size I do a lot of role playing using different students, student panels that report on topics and learning groups. This way I get everyone involved in some way but keep the class moving forward in terms of content.
Gary
Dr. Gary Meers
