Improving Your Communication Skills
Jane,
Fidgeting. Even as an experienced instructor I find myself fidgeting. I have the old pen snapping symdrome. The why is obvivous. It is annoying. I know it is distracting.
Mark
As an instructor, which communication skills would you personally wish to improve? Why?
I have overcome a behavior that students found confusing. For one, I am small in stature and have a soft voice. Initially, in order for the whole class to hear me, I projected loudly and some students thought I was angry when really I was just using a lot of energy trying to be heard. it is very effective to use 3-5 second pauses and speaking in just above a whisper so that students sit forward in their chair to hear what I am saying. I am loud enough for studnets to hear, yet they have to pay attention.
I think I am effective at giving verbal cues but need to work more on my facial expressions and hand gestures.
Yes, listening may well be the most challenging part of teaching. I have to practice it frequently. As a New England-er, I grew up with the fast speech pattern of the area; thus, if a student speaks slowly, I tend to jump ahead in my mind. Practice, practice...
Picking up the visual cues that "I am losing them", I speak on very complex subjects and sometimes I miss that body language that says, I"M NOT GETTING IT."
sometimes when i ask a question i don't always wait for the answer and i'm already on to the next question. I sometimes get so into routine when i should probably pause for a moment and listen.
I feel that I have to improve my facial expressions. I have been told by many students and colleagues that my facial expressions says a lot. I feel that this is not a good habit to maintain because I do not want my students to feel as if I am not approachable.
There are times when I am teaching a topic that I'm excited about, and I tend to speed up on this material. Does anyone have any recommendations on techniques to slow down?
Moving around the room and feeling more "in command" of my space is the skill I would like to improve. If I am using tools such as board, power points, video clips, I tend to locate myself mostly at the front of the class where these tools are located.
I would definitely improve my listening skills..because sometimes the student may say something and I would interpret it as being something else...when actually it wasn't, I need to learn how to read between the lines on some things instead of listening at the surface.
I would like to improve my communication skills through the use of analogies, this s a great tool to use in the classroom, it hypes students' attention and engages them in active listening.
I would like to allow more time for the students to speak during the lecture to make it more interactive.
Eye contact is not a problem for me, but sometimes the verbal communication is a bit troubling. I always state that I am new at this, but when you do not have any interaction with all of your students, it's tough to understand where they are coming from. So listening and taking time to "see" your students gives a clearer picture of who they are and where they are coming from.
i would like to improve my tone of voice. I think that being monotoned is the largest turnoff for students. I want to use my voice to emphaise important points and stress key concepts.
My ability to answer questions off the top of my head would make me feel more equipped. We teach coding so it is not always possible to answer questions without doing research in class. But it does have its upside because we are teaching them how to find the answer for themselves because that is what they will be doing in the real world. I will learn with time as I progress and need to understand that knowledge is a daily process.
I do a lot of driving so I review my last class in my head and try and think of what I could have said that would have made more of an impact on the class. I practice saying things. Even during class I try and remember the items that made the class perk up.
I want to share with my students all knowledge of the field that I have. Sometime I forget to stop. I need to pull back. I am to excited sometimes.
I smile. It brakes ice. My students are more relaxed if I smile.
Hi Jane,
I would like to learn how to be more confident.
I am orginized, prepared, and dedicated to share my expertise and knowledge with my students. Just need to be more confident.
Hi Anthony!
I like to think of myself as not only an instructor in my classes but as a student as well. The listening is critical because students can help us with our delivery of tough subjects. Everybody has to connect in a classroom to be successful.
Keep up the good work!
Jane Davis
ED106 Facilitator
