I think it is very important to be organized, and for the instructor to be uplifting,with an positive reenforcement of the topic because it helps bring an environment that the insturtor love what he or she loves what they are teaching. Showing that you love what you are teaching help them feel secure on what is being done in the class romm.
It gives the student a sense of stability. That the classroom is going to be a safe learning environment. It is also important to make the classroom your own if you can. The students like to see tools, diagrams, and things that they will be using. They can see the purpose in what they are doing and soon they too will be able to do what is on those posters.
Does anyone have any suggestions on how to keep students focused when the learning environment is not optimal for teaching. E.g Heater is broken, air conditioning is not working ect.
The enviornment should be comfortable and nontreating. It plays an important role because it allows a conducive learning inviornment.
An environment that is conducive to learning is the foundation for the motivation of students. Efforts to improve the learning environment can inspire students to engage, excell, and remember learning experiences.
I think a student needs to have an environment that is condusive to learning. They need to feel safe and secure.
The learning environment should be a physically comfortable setting, with all the material I need, conducive to learning because it sets the tone, right from the beginning, for how the students perceive their surroundings and instructor.
The checklist included in the course material will be very helpful to me as I soon start with a group of new students.
It must be a non-treathening environment. If there are new/unknown equipment and machinery the instructor should explain the uses and safety features at the beginning of class (during orientation). This way the student knows how to work with the machines without being intimidated.
Well, the role the learning environment makes a statement that "we want you to succeed." Not only should the environment have all the tools necessary for effective teaching, as well as a level of comfort for the student, it should also have components that will block distractions for those adult students who are in need of help in that area.
Learning environment is everything. Students do not like to feel pressured in answering questions. A more relaxing environment is better for discussion and learning I feel like.
Students need to feel safe and comfortable. The elements that effect this are many: room color, size, set-up, temperature, smells, sounds, other students, the instructor.
As an instructor there is limited control over some qualities of the room environment, however our attitude and ability to adjust or make minor changes to alleviate situations like a hot room are key.
Environment is also the human element, there may be students who are intimidating or hostile toward others and it is our responsibility to pick up on these behaviors and manage them.
The smaller behaviors like always wanting to answer questions or constantly texting during a lecture can make other students feel uncomfortable as well. Again it is up to the instructor to redirect these behaviors so that all students feel comfortable.
As in life, the more excited you are about something, those that you share with, will be excited too. When you bring enthusiasm to the classroom your students respond and in turn become excited about your knowlege and what you're sharing.
Sandy,
Thank you for these great comments. You have zeroed in on what needs to be a part of instruction each and every time the class meets. We, instructors need to be role models and maintain high standards in our classes. If we don't we are not being fair to our students nor supportive of their career development.
Gary
The learning enviorment I strive to have in my class in one of mutual respect for one another and a postive enviorment. This way all students learning on different scales help one another with what the other might not be getting. I have senior students and junior students. I try to pair up one of each together so the seniors can help the new juniors understand the material better. Also that the new junior can see that someone who was once in their shoes will make it and soon become more comfortable with the material being presented. This also helps the senior feel proud that they mastered what they didn't think was possible just 12 weeks ago when they began their path to a new career.
Class discussion is crucial in an English course, so I always try to make the students feel confident and comfortable in explaining their thoughts, whether it is towards the process of learning or a controversial issue in their field. Creating a dialog is a tricky balancing act at first because some students must learn how to stay on topic or must tone down their opinion. However, once this is accomplished the environment becomes ideal to learn how to both write and give speeches. I actually always look forward to the second week of classes as most the class have started to be more comfortable, including myself.
Educating our staff to the importance of a positive first impression and having a safe, secure, well planned class is essential for the student population we serve. This has been sometimes difficult to get them to understand. Even though they (students) are adults, they emulate what they(staff and students, alike) see in our culture. The encouragement of Casual Fridays seems to have become "casual everyday" in the work place. Many of the newly hired instructors are coming to us from this more relaxed environment and seem to have difficulty with one of structure. In fact, it is hard for some of them to understand that they do set the tone and that they are the professionals that the students will copy. ED 101 has been a great learning tool to guide discussions about dress code, well organized and structured classrooms, detailed and focused lessons as well as having only 1 chance to make a great first professional impression. The learning environment research done by Charlotte Danielson for enhancing student achievement in her book "Enhancing Student Achievment: A framework of School Improvement" clearly addresses the need for a safe and positive environment, a culture of high expectations, well prepared lessons and consistency in the expectations of staff. In fact, her research has proven to have the very same positive and energizing effect on the teaching staff, as well as on the students and the overall environment.
The work is ongoing, but we strive everyday to instill a sense of positive learning in the teching and learning environment with the entire school community. Any great ideas out there would be greatly appreciated.
Sandy Gecewicz
The learning environment is a critical variable, which can predict the outcome of the objectives. The environment can influence one's mood, which can either accentuate the learning process, or dampen the learning process. Reasonable accommodations may be required for certain students, as learning styles differ, often.
-TWB
Perhaps especially those who have learning difficulties and personal challenges. Many of our adult students who are in college for the first time have had negative educational experiences, the consequences of which have the potential to negatively impact their learning now. If we can provide them with a comfortable learning environment, both physically and emotionally, we can help them to perceive this new learning endeavor as a new experience and, hopefully, unload some of that old "baggage."
Being in the clinical setting, the learning environment plays a crucial role in the instructional process. It is the application learning phase. Often times, the students come into the setting with certain predetermined expectations of what or how the processes will be executed and are surprised by how different it is realistically (i.e., how much time a procedure takes them in comparison to how long it takes a seasoned worker). For the most part, they are excited to finally see the "rubber meet the road." The most exciting part is when they come to the final evaluation point and see how much they have progressed compared to when they first started their externship. They are surprised by how much practice is required in order to learn a task completely.
Hi Rena,
You make a very good point in terms of helping students "connect the dots" between classroom and the work world. They need to see and experience what they are going to be doing upon graduation. By you working in the field as well as teaching you are bringing current experiences to them each time the class meets. This is so valuable.
Gary
