I too use life experience in the classroom. What happens wih educators that don't have life experiences, should they teach without adding them?
Stephen,
and we can set the example of how to tell a relevant & concise story about a real life experience.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
Tamikah,
yes the sharing of life experiences is a great way that students can learn from our experiences & also reflect on & learn from their own.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
One thing I have noticed is that by sharing a life experience, the individual seems to take pride in his experience and being able to share a story. It also seems that the other individuals in the class will listen intently. However, this only works if the life experience closely matches the classroom/ lab activity. You have to be careful that the story is relevant and concise. A rambling story tends to lose it's value. Also, you have to monitor the individual telling the story. Occasionally, the story will appear to be a bragging/gloating story which will lose the audience. Getting to know your students will give the instructor the tools to monitor the individuals offering the life experiences.
it's a form of motivation to students.Gain respect from students,make them relate their course to the real field.Also a form of ice breakers to new students.
The adult learners can relate to the classroom concepts by providing live work experience.
In transitionin from the IT world to and instructor proving my expertise and knowledge with the students develops great teaching concepts and scenarios.
The adult learners in the course can also create a great learning environment for younger students as well. By relating their life experiences in the course it can help put the pieces teogether for new career students entering the workforce.
Richard,
and it's neat to see how various students will relate to the different stories that are shared. These can become great connection points.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
Besides giving the student the feeling or ability to be successful, it allows them to share with others and become inclusive within a group setting. I think this is very important in creating a good learning environment for everyone as it allows individuals to tell a little about themselves.
It is important fo them to interact with the lecture with experiences cause it brings the lecture to real life. It also helps other students to see the lecture in a better light.
Julia,
and it can help provide them with reference points to recall information when they are out in their fields.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
It will help them make a direct application of the lecture material from the class to their life as they have experienced it and then their life as they envision themselves in their new career.
It is important because they can relate the concepts to something in their life. I teach Business, so almost all of the students have had jobs at some point, even if it was just in fast food. They can relate the concepts to their prior jobs.
David,
and this also gives them pegs for recall when they find themselves in these situations in the future.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
This is a big bonus if a student can relate the subject matter to his/her life experience they will creat ownership in the content. As well will be able to help other students that dont understand.
This is a big bonus if a student can relate the subject matter to his/her life experience they will creat ownership in the content. As well will be able to help other students that dont understand.
Justian,
this is a great point & this can help them get that valuable feedback & support.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
Sometimes people feel that no one else has the problems that they have, by letting students express their life experiences,troubles, and how they overcame the situation may motivate another student to overcome a situation they are facing.
Bryce,
and it provides the opportunity for them to learn from my experiences & my successes & failures.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
I believe it gives the Learner a certain amount of comfort to be able to reflect and use the past life experiences, giving them a better opportunity to learn. being comfortable is conductive to learning in my past experiences.
When adult learners use their life experiences as positive or negative examples, we all learn from their experiences. Each and every student comes from a diverse background and has a lot of relevant experiences to share amongst the class. It is the responsibility of the instructor to leverage this valuable material for the benefit of the class.
