Two helpful hints I took away from Module 2
I found two pieces of Module 2 to be great reminders to me in regards to classroom monitoring: 1] If you see distracting student activity - it is best to move to that general area of the classroom as an indication that you recoginize it and your presence will often cause it to cease, and 2] Remembering to not let an individual consume excessive amounts of time in your classroon to the point of frustrating other students and causing them to disengage. These are excellent points.
Hi Brian!
What a great way to engage students in conversation and to get them to share life experiences.
Keep up the good work!
Jane Davis
Ed106 Facilitator
These are two great points, and both have a huge impact on how a class flows. Whenever I can, I try to redirect the question that a student may have for me, back to the class. I feel that this keeps the attention of the class better and may answer the same question for another student. When that same student needs continued help I try to set aside time for them, one-on-one.
I agree. We want to please all of our students. We have to be reminded to watch the amount of time we spend with each student and his/her issues. I like the study group idea, too. Hands-on learning can be very valuable.
I think the hardest part for me is the student monopolization. One of my classes is Computer Aided Drawing - Auto-Cad. I find so many different levels of competency in my students but the ones who struggle the most almost demand my constant handholding. This gets very frustrating for the other students who begin to rely on each other. As soon as I see this happening I resume "floating" the classroom so I can address all levels of inquiry equally.
Thank you very much! I do try to take advice from other teachers and from siminars that I have attended.
Cheryl McDowell
Good for you Cheryl!
Even though it is very important for students' to be fully engaged, they should not monopolize. Sounds like you have a very good approach.
Good job!
Jane david
ED106 Facilitator
I agree. I have had students get sleepy in class or decide to nap during chapter reviews. I just walk over closer to the student to speak and that ususally takes care of the problem.
I have also had people try to consume my time with unnecessary stories about family and other things. I have had to tell them that it is interesting, but we can discuss it in more detail after class.
Those were very helpful - especially about not letting a student comnsume excessive amounts of your time - that helped me set better limits on time before and after class.
