Classroom appearance as a plus in learning
I teach at a large technical school, and the instructors are encouraged to dress-up the classrooms. My students are happy as long as they aren't bored, so I try to keep them entertained during lecture. My course is Advanced Diagnostic Systems, and we have two large cans hanging from the ceiling about 8 ft. apart. They are connected by a string which has a sign attached "CAN NETWORKING". We do cover controller area networks, and the students get a laugh when they notice it.I also use posters that relate to the automotive industry to brighten up the room.
Doug Ramsey
Instructor
UTI, Avondale
Hi Glenda,
I think this is a great idea and lets you bring all kinds of creative ideas into the setting. With all of the different eyes looking at the restaurant I am sure you get many diverse suggestions. This way the students can see many different approaches that they can use later on when they do have their own restaurant.
Gary
I assist at a culinary arts college and our classroom is a fine dining restaurant. We are always looking for ways to improve the appearance. One of our classroom projects is "What Would You Do If This Was Your Restaurant?" The students enjoy this and it brings a lot of new ideas, some of which we use.
yup we just went thru a massive reshaping of the class rooms and so far everything from it was a postive result.
Hi Michael,
You hit upon a often misunderstood concept. "You, the student are paying a lot of money to receive content and training to be able to earn money in your chosen career area." So the more time that is spent with distractors, such as class management issues the less time there is for instruction. Also, these students are supposed to be adults and thus should act as such, though many times this is not the case.
Good luck with your teaching, you have a very good grasp of what is needed for good learning to occur.
Gary
I teach in the marine industry (boats) and have simular situations. but i found that if you point out the time thay are missing because you have to remind them to tuck in there shirt at the begining of the course i dont have as much of a problem for the rest of the course. after all they did pay to learn and me reminding them to tuck in the shirt is a waste of there time and money when thay could be learning
I love the idea of visual aids in a classroom. As long as they have to do with the subject they are learning. Who would want to go into a plain white walled classroom, right?
I agree with this. We even let the student draw on the walls of certain diagrams and valves. This helps alot during lecture because we can refer to wall on a large scale so everyone can see it.
Hi Keith,
As a student I know I was very excited when I walked into the classroom/lab and saw items that I could pick up and handle. I knew I was going to have a good day when I could bring application to the content I was learning.
This is true for your students as well when you have items available to them. It sure brings it home to their learning.
Keep up the good work.
Gary
We use training aids live suspension components ball joints tie rod ends shocks and leave them out on the students desks to help keep them engauged in the subject
Doug, I also find it imperative to have multiple displays and "hands on" goodies for my students to examine. For every subject I cover in my lecture, I try to reinforce the theories with pictures or physical examples.
I agree classroom appearance can definitely add or distract from the learning enviornment.
LaVonda Martinez
In HVAC we have uniforms and I have trouble with the guys keeping their pants pulled up, have to be on them all the time
I fully agree, a student who works and goes to school struggles to stay awake. An active room helps them stay awake. Steve Fair
uti
Teaching a class wit humor and creative aids can really make a difference. What I do when I'm teaching a subject, is related to work experience, however my trick is to exaggerate when it comes to a certain personal experience in the field. That humor always keeps students focus.
I think thats great that you can add a visual display to your teaching environment.
Hi David,
That is why being a model is so important. You need to reflect the professional standards of the career area for which your students are being trained. "Scrubs" reflect such a professional standard.
Good luck with your teaching and being a role model for your students.
Gary
At my college, the medical instructors are allowed, and encouraged to wear "scrubs" to give the students a "model" of professional appearance...
Hi Doug,
Good job with the visuals. Anytime you can use pictures, models and graphic examples of what you are teaching you will be helping the students to put that knowledge into their memories.
Keep up the good work.
Gary
