Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Colleen,
Great to hear! Sounds like you have a plan that is working for you. You are offering student centered instruction that keeps students moving forward in their instructional efforts.
Gary

Dr. Gary Meers

Colleen Hamilton

15-18 minutes seems to be a strecth for my students. Luckily there are a lot of different subjects to cover in a lecture so going from one area to the next serves as a break for paying attention to one thing for an extended period without actually taking a break. The mini-lectures seem to fit what I do well.

Marissa Gallegos

Yes this is very interesting i have never heard that.

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Tanisha,
Adults can generally handle a length of time, say 50 minutes but their learning efficiency starts to decline after approximately 15-18 minutes.
Gary

Tanisha Eason

I was under the impression that the adult attention span was at best 50 mins. This is very interesting.

Mark Perkins

I agree - the attention span will most likely be shorter for each individual if they find the material dull. If the presentation is interesting maybe a few more minutes could be pulled out of that attention span.

Brandon Prowell

That is a great tip, I will remember this. It also helps to limit the amount of information on the slides as well to no more than about 5 points

Jason Lewis

I find this interesting as well. I have seen and been told - when doing a PowerPoint presentation to adults 15 slides is the max that you can plan for or 30 mins of presenting.

Jason E Lewis

Edward Gallrein, III

But not so sure that the 15-18 mins considers various factors including the subj matter and motivations of the students, think some may have much longer attention spans, but it must be factored in and considered.

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Hi Kathleen,
Good points about adult attention spans. This information needs to always be in our minds as we plan our instructional delivery.
Gary

Kathleen Ewing

“Studies on attention span .... shed light on why students have difficulty with the traditional lecture format. Adult learners can keep tuned into a lecture for no more than 15 to 20 minutes at a time, and this at the beginning of the class. After three to five minutes of "settling down" at the start of class, "the next lapse of attention usually occurred some 10 to 18 minutes later. Students recalled the most information from the first five minutes of the presentation. Given that students have an attention span of around 15 to 20 minutes and that classes are 50 to 90 minutes, instructors must do something to keep their students' attention.”