It will help the student relate their life experience with the content so they gain a better understanding of the material covered.
cornelius,
it is always great when we can share our learned lessons with our students.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
using my life experience help student to stay in school instead of leaving early and taking chance of working without proper paperwork
Jason,
yes, it gives them that real, tangible idea to hang the concept on.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
It will help them to connect to the lesson and better understand how the topic traslates into their own lives.
The students enjoy hearing about what I call "real world" scenarios and it also helps them to better understand and visualize the concepts that I am trying to teach them. If they can better relate to the material it seems to feel more relevant to them. Using personal experiences in the classroom is very helpful when trying to make a point or get a student to remember certain things.
Russell,
exactly, we can help prepare them for situations that might otherwise have shocked them.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
My life experiences are important to relate as an example of situations that students may encounter after graduation. They may have never considered these situations and their background may have led them into a very different path of action. This discussion is the important reason for for using life experiences.
Jeffrey,
great point, that the real life stories can remind them of why they are in the program to begin with.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
They need to feel that by them pursuing an education to further their career path that the end result is tangible and worthwhile.
irina,
this is great as it can help the students understand the customer's point of view & be able to "walk in their shoes."
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
I try to use their experience with skin care to show how it may be different from a customer point of view and from a professional points, very often it doesn't match
I use my life experiences to help students related to the topic being lectured on. I find it help for them to share their life experiences also. I do have to be careful not to let the experiences take over the classroom.
Maryl,
this is true. Another idea is to write them on the white board & then at the end of class, snap a picture with your phone or camera. Then you can go back & look at them & maybe address the really key questions briefly but thoroughly in an email. Like, "Thanks for the great discussion today. Here are a couple of questions we didn't get to, but I want to answer..."
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
I fully agree that using real world life experiences in the classroom helps improve student retention of the material. My problem comes when the job stories take up too much of the class time, and getting them to stay focussed and on task with the material being covered.
I am considering devoting half of my white board to questions that students have that deviate from the topic, so that we can come back to that later, or during a break, instead of dealing with them as they arise, and not finishing the assigned work. I think that the students enjoy getting the instructor off topic. I want to answer any questions or concerns that they have, but I also need to stay on task.
When adult learners use life experience in the classroom, it builds their self-esteem as learners and motivates them toward success. They feel like they are on route to becoming successful themselves, and it helps keep the "big picture" goal in mind.
Using life experiences helps my students remember key concepts.
It is always a good idea to allow students to share their experience that they feel is related to the subject matter. Sometimes I do not see the relevance, but it still gives the student a chance to share and attention from the other students. This can be self-affirming when done in a non-judgmental environment.
Tracy,
this is so true & by having them share we validate their previous experiences & they will be more likely to engage with the material.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
Using life experiences helps the adult learner to clearly understand the subject matter. This concepts allows adult learners to know that someone else has experience or can relate to the challenges that they may face.
