We have training aids in class. Engine components they students will be working on for the next 3 weeks.. When I talk about each one I pass them around the classroom. This way the students have a touch sensory to go with the sound sensory.
francisco,
yes, this is a great plan for helping the students manage the information.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
Planing intervals of max 20 minutes of information followed by a short in class brake of 5 minutes.
Irina,
great strategy to help connect the concepts & assist with recall.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
I prefer at the beginning of the class to review previous material using diverse memory clues.
ron ,
yes this provides the peg on which they can hang the concepts.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
The way memory research can be used to facilitate student learning in the class setting is to use visual clues (power points, movie clips) so that students can have some sort of visual or linguistic image to learn about a particular subject.
elizabeth,
yes, so these are the places to really hit the key ideas.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
I'm going to make sure I leave time to review the learning objectives at the end of class. Because of limited time, this has not taken a high priority, we covered them at the start, but haven't been driving them home at the end. I'll start tomorrow!
I think that by using visual aids passed around the class is a great tool. Training aids or visuals help to reinforce what we are trying to get across to the learners. I belive they need to put their hands on the components to see how the work and what they are used for. It just helps them to understand and to know what we are teaching them is real world .
Depending on which class I am teaching at the time, I involve my students as much as possible with hands-on learning. We use a white board to play learning games. In my Medical Terminology class, we review combining forms, suffixes, prefixes, and abbreviations on the white board. I also create crossword puzzles and word searches for the students to learn medical words. I think these activities make the students think about what they are looking for and it also makes them aware that they have to spell the words correctly.
That which is presented in the very beginning and at the very end will increase retention. Good to know.
This is a great idea to get them thinking from the get go!
charles ,
you are so right regarding the value of tying the various threads of the class together.
Dr. Ryan Meers
Marcia,
I think this is a great strategy & will really help your students in the retention area.
Dr. Ryan Meers
I am going to explain the application of the subject they are learning
I try to repeat important concepts and connect the new to the previous. I find students tend to retain the details when they see the threads that make the whole lesson tie together.
From the memory research about primacy I will start our post conference referring back to special learning objectives for the day and try to think of/plan for an exercise, case study, or visual that can elicit emotions in my group of students (which also refers to the learning objectives). I will need to research some clip art or cartoons to help emphasize key learning points and foster memory and retention
As most of my lectures are 440 minutes with a ten minute break on the hour, most of the students are engaged at different times throughout the hour. Listing learning objectives and regularly referring to them allows the student to comprehend importance of material, although I find this is not sufficient to captivate them for long periods of time. A mixture of visual, auditory, and tactile learning is used. Also, I try to avoid lecturing more than 20 minutes at a time. Leaving a short time for class instruction, a relevant tangent, joke, relife example, or open discussion on topic allows a period of intermission which traditionally refreshes their spirit.
Lorraine,
I think being able to talk through a process really does help solidify the learning in the mind.
Dr. Ryan Meers
