stretching the comfort zone
I realize that we all have an inherrent and/or preferred method of processing information, but I feel we are doing student a disservice if we allow them to rely only on their strenghts. If we allow teaching modality to be goverened by the students preferences alone, we may underutilize the instructors strengths and personality. Instructors should stretch their own ability and dabble in modes of communicating ideas in diverse and exciting ways. As well we should expect students to increase their proficencies and stretch their own comfort zones by expecting them to grow in areas they are not as strong in. I feel we are right to try to adapt to the students preferences, we should not however allow them to neglect the other modes lest they become unemployable. Listening skill in particular are an especially lacking skill with a majority of today's younger audience.
--(Now finally my question!) How can we effectivly grow and stress students weaker learning repertoire while still getting the message across in the most effective and lasting a manner?
Hi Catherine - Sorry to be so clueless, but what is BOH and FOH? Thanks! Susan
I teach in a culinary school as well, my classroom is FOH restaurant, talk about stretching their confront zone. My strategy is to use different teaching techniques in order to associate the consequences of delivery food in the dining room and how it could affect the kitchen. Now they don't think FOH but BOH, the reason why they are in school.
There are some great points here. I teach in a culinary school, in kitchens and classrooms. Most students would rather "slice and dice" than be in a classroom environment. Key ideas for the class room are expressed as learning techniques, much as learning a particular cooking method is a cooking technique. Each key point is related to learning a piece of information t o help make the students successful. Cooking is not enough to be successful in this business, mental skills are as or more important, certainly for someone wishing to be an executive chef or manaagere.
Not only would an in-house production probably be fascinating for students to watch, but you could go even further: what if students made some of this content themselves? Each time I teach Cultural Diversity, for example, I ask my students to complete a group project for the last day of class. While many of my classes are specifically designed for auditory or written learners, the group projects allow kinesthetic learners to get some hands-on practice (which I ask them to video record) or design a piece of multimedia. In other words, no matter what final project the students choose, they are exposed to new ways of dealing with information, and the products of the projects are then presented to the whole class. So far it has worked very well, although some students resist any sort of groupwork at all. There too, I try to push them towards self-improvement--as we all know, it's important to be able to work alone, but also in groups!
Hi Adam - I think that something produced inhouse would be really effective. Students will enjoy recognizing their instructors in "starring" roles and with the proper releases signed you could use student"cameo" appearances! Just be sure the production is top notch -best wishes! Susan
Susan;
Thank you for your feedback. I appreciate that you did not just give me some canned answer. I can see your point that we simply need to mix it up. I consider my job, in part, is to be an entertainer, so I understand the need to mix the medium. I am wondering if you or any of your colleagues can give any hints or advice concerning the visual aspects especially the video medium. The copywrited stuff is so intimidating with all of their rules etc. Is it effective to do inhouse video, which may have lowered production value and less "star" appeal?
Thanks again for your previous response.
Adam
Hi Bruce, first off I agree with your statement and we must give students the oppurtunity to learn in as many different ways as possible. To just say students learns visually for example would be very short sighted. We might want to give them opportunities to use other skills. If you have a reading learner we might use auditory or kinistic styles and monitor their acheivement level to see if we are still being affective.
Hi Adam - i do agree with you. What this course emphasizes is that teachers should not use just one delivery style. I think we have all endured the teacher who basically just lectured for an entire semester! By mixing it up we do stretch our students as they must listen, view and do.
