I like to ad lib a lot during my lectures. My students seem to like hearing examples of how what I am teaching them will benefit when they are out in the field.
I agree with this concept. Sharing knowledge of the "happenings" in the current industry is a great way to show course relevance.
I have researched the current state of the industry so that I can lead with facts and inspiration.
Hi Joseph,
Right you are. This to me is part of the fun of being a teacher. We get to be creative and come up with different ways of presenting the material. This helps to keep us excited about the course as well as the students.
Gary
I find that most subjects can be taught in variety if ways. It is up to myself as an instructor to reach outside the box to find the means to teach subject in ways that reaches all learning types.
First I have to determine the learning styles of my students. Some will have traits of all three of the basic learning styles; visual, auditor, and kinesthetic. Once I have an idea of the dominant learning style of my students, I can then plan my lesson accordingly. I will create lessons that utilize multiple learning styles. By respecting and accommodating the different learning styles of my students, I will ensure that they are all getting the most from their classroom experience.
Hi Evan,
You are fortunate that you have this kind of support from your college. This way you can personalize the content to fit your instructional style and you are good to go.
Gary
Hi Jeris,
This is a great idea to get and to keep students invested in the learning process. Ownership is critical for students. They need to see the value of what they are learning. By having the opportunity to select a project from among different options helps them to keep engaged and excited about the content.
Gary
I teach from a prescribed syllabus and set of instructions. However, the school does a great job at providing material in both text and A/V format. A lot of material can be downloaded in podcast form. I remind students that there is basically a format covering the material for every kind of learner: text, audio or visual.
I post links to current events that are relevant to the subject matter we are discussing. I also try to find television programs or videos on the internet that they can access for examples of how what we study can be applied in the real world. These make for case-study style learning. During our actual chats, I create multiple choice questions to test students on what they've just learned. I try to create humorous examples to engage them and help reinforce what they've just learned. By using a variety of methods that relate real life to our material, it helps students see the relevance of the coursework. I also think by drawing from outside of the classroom, I can take advantage of different formats, such as audio-visual.
Sometimes I find it useful to offer students a few different options for a lesson on a given day, and then they are able to select what they feel is most applicable and engaging for them. While I am careful to offer only options that are valuable for them from my viewpoint, it still provides students with a sense of ownership over their own learning.
I present real world scenarios in my career filed and demonstrate how the course material is relevant to the field of operations. I ask the student to identify how the course content may be applied to his or her personal or professional life.
I use a combination of techniques: demonstration, group problem solving,case studies, and computer based format. This is not necessary in this order but it works quite well. Then provide a real world application and see what different solutions that each group can come up with.
Identify with students needs and work towards that aspect.
I prepare powerpoint presentations, illustrations, diagrams, as well as, keep the lecture interactive.
The first day of class I had each student write something about themselves. This also included how they learn. This allowed me to use different methods to accommodate those learning styles.
Hi Richard,
Good plan for keeping the content flowing and the students engaged. Your support of those students that miss a lot and what to make up the work is good. For those that miss a lot and don't care then they have to pay the consequences of their actions.
Gary
I try to show the students why the material has relevant to their creer goals. This can be difficult when, for example, criminal justice students are learning the quadratic equation. So I explain tht it's more about learning how to process data and get the confidence to critically examine numerical results than just to push numbers around.
It is very difficult in math to vary the material, but I find a sequential way of practicing works well: A review of the previous week's material, fairly short lectures on one or two new subjects, with them following in the textbook, a number of problems (real world when possible) from the text. These they can work on in small groups (with me circulating around the room to help), online homework they can practice and review all week, and an occasional in-class chapter test. So in a sense it mixes lecture and interactive work with practice.
The only problems are students who do not come to class and quickly fall behind, or skip the homework and quickly get lost. I help them when they make an effort to catch up. Also, during class the more advanced students are encouraged to help those who are struggling. It seems to work.
To make course content both relevant and effective I have used breakout groups charged with a specific objective that is to be presented to the class as a whole. To a certain extent I have success with guest speakers as well. If the subject matter is complex demonstrations are both useful and engaging.
I teach math. As such, students have a variety of propensities to learning math as well as needing a variety of techniques and explanations. Also, since I teach online, I am limited to lectures with a powerpoint preso. Given this scenario, I try to present each technique in multiple ways with different explanations, including real world applications. I also include many examples.
In this way, I try to provide maximum covereage for explanations so the largest number of students are likely to comprehend.
