First day of class
I believe it would be a great idea to administer one of the on-line, individual learning assessments on the first day of class. Great Icebreaker!
I actually like to have the students stand up, move around the room and introduce themselves and shake hands with the other students in the room to get to know the people that are taking the class with them and hopefully it will help them out to help each other out as well.
Manuel,
Unless you give them an assessment you really can't. What you can do is observe the students during the ice breaker and introduction time and you will start to quickly see how the students use their different learning preferences. This will let you group them according to visual, tactile, and auditory preferences.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
how do you determine their learning style on the first day?
Alyson,
This type of information is so valuable in helping you to select the instructional strategies you are going to use. Each group of students are different so the more you know the more accurately you can program for them.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
These assessments seem great. I wonder if there are any other exercises that can be administered at the start of a semester. I have also found it helpful to collect general information about how my students learn by asking open-ended questions. They each fill out a form on the first meeting that provides them with room to discuss learning methods and tools (e.g., reading, group work, projects, videos, audio recordings) that they find most and least useful. There is, of course, always a variety, but it can be really beneficial to look at the approaches that students are (and are not) using to learn.
Bruce,
This is an important step on day one. Your approach is getting all of the students to a place where they feel they can be successful in this class. This is how you keep them in the course as well as feeling confident about their future.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
ROBERT,
Good way to create a positive and fun atmosphere on the first day. This is how you can catch their attention and show them the value of the up coming course.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Dan,
I think you will like the information you get. You will be able to customize your instructional delivery more accurately as a result of having this information.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
In the electrical clinic that I instruct I have found that if you break down circuits down and go through them 1 by 1 the students are not so overwelmed and they dont feel "not smart"
The first day sets the tone of the class for all other days.Get to know the students,give a mini lecture,hands on activity,and if you can find out about their learning stlyes. And do not forget to tell them how this class will change their lives.
I think I will try the on the first day of class. I need to know where each student is at. I need to test them to see there level of understanding. So I can make the proper adjustments. Thanks for the advice.
Rose,
This is a very important part of setting the tone for the upcoming class. Feeling comfortable in the class and confident that success can be achieved helps to get the course off to a good start.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I think it would also be a great way to erase some of the negative thinking some students come in with of "not being smart." This would show them how they learn, and that they have their own strengths.
Peter,
I think you will really like the results you get from using this strategy.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
WOW! i like it, im going to utilize this on my next start.I have students take an assessment using a point system on strength and weaknesses.
Michael,
Good information to have as you start a new course. How to you get this information from your students?
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
The first day is to get to know the student, there learnin style,and talk about whatr you plan for the class
Jill,
I would suggest you do a bit of research to find a free on-line learning assessment. Look on the secondary education websites because they have some very good ones. The other area is community college sites. They have some very good assessments that you can use.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I really like the idea of learning more about how my students learn on the first day of class. This is valuable information. Where could we find a great free on-line, individual learning assessment for use in the classroom?
