Multiple ages, backgrounds and experience levels.
It poses an interesting challenge for the instructor when the class has multiple or a wide range of ages, backgrounds and experience levels.
Making sure that the novice is taught while keeping the more experienced students interested.
Hi John,
This is a good strategy for both you and the students. They get to exchange and learn from each other while get to offer them content that they don't have. This way you can earn the respect of your students while they can help each other be successful.
Gary
I have a big challenge with this in my classroom too, but I also have a bigger problem that I'm the youngest Instructor at the school. I have to show and teach the students that I have the ability to be their teacher. I find that if I arrange the students in groups that I mix up the ages, backgrounds, and experience levels, they tend to learn off each other, but I only keep them this way because the different groups tend to rely on the other teammates.
Hi James,
Thank you for sharing a very good foundation for your instruction. You are keenly aware of your students, what their goals are, how they differ and what they want out of the course. All of these different items all contribute to the mutual development of quality instruction.
Gary
This is probably one of the most difficult challenges that an instructor faces. Most important is to convey that everybody is in the same boat (here to learn and eventually realize their career goals)It is imperative that all students understand that they are all equals no matter their life circumstances. Yes, they all have different individual needs and learning styles that need to be addressed on an individual basis by the instructor. Also, if there is a sense that there could be a little generational friction the instructor needs to clearly state that anybody who interferes in the learning process of each lesson will face consequences. It's all about fairness, respect, and learning.
Hi Charles,
Good job of spreading your educational approach around to meet the individual needs of your different levels of learners. This method gives you the ability to balance the instruction for the different students.
Gary
I try to have extra activities planned for the advanced learners so they can continue to learn new things and be intellectually stimulated while I continue to work with the students that are having a tougher time grasping the basic concepts tought in my classes.
Hi Brian,
Not only do you and the younger students get to benefit from the live experiences of the older students this kind of interaction really helps the older student to feel confident in their abilities to be successful in the course. So both groups win.
Gary
I agree with your statement, and taking it alittle farther, alot of times you can use the older more experience student as examples and also group mentors to the younger less experienced students
I agree with you i have seen many talented instructor who truly know what they are doing but cannot present the information in a manner that is attainable to the student. Being able to change and adapt is very difficult at times but vital in this field
It's always a challenge to relate to different ages as well as backgrounds of the students in your class setting.
It forces you to constantly reevaluate your approach to teaching as well as the methods that you employ in getting your message across to the students.
Education is the process of educating. You can be one of the smartest instructors in your field, however if you can't get the point across to where the student can apply the knowledge and understand the reasoning behind it, you've failed as an instructor.
Communicating and relating to all the different age groups with diverse backgrounds is in itself a challenge. The goal is for all the diverse students to feel comfortable with the instructor and have a relaxed learning envoirment.
