Common ground
For me, finding a common ground with the students seems to help the most.
Students answering either of your questions will pretty quickly give you an idea of their motivation. I do something similar, and when the answer is "I need these last 3 credits", I know I have to work hard to hook them in early on or they'll often muddle through without much interest. Not all courses in any program are going to be thrilling to all students, but we can help link even a not-very-exciting required course into their long term goals and help students see the value, and hopefully motivate them to jump in with both feet.
I teach culinary and open up with a classic cooking tecnique and then get students to comment on what dishes that they had growing up that mached with the tecnique.Letting people talk about there personal stories and experiances is a must for every relationship in the class.
Hi Shantana,
This is a good way to make it "real" for your students. Plus, they get to set the tone for the discussion since they are bringing in the most current topics.
Gary
I like to start my class by asking what is the latest in the news about whatever subject matter the class is about. You would be amazed at how quick everyone jumps in to discuss as soon as one person mentions a hot story that they all have seen.
Hi Jason,
I don't have a sure fire question that I use but I have an approach that has me asking, "What is your career goal?" or "How do you see this course helping you toward your career goal?". Another approach is to ask "What kinds of work have you done in the past that will help you with this course?". What I do is to get the student talking about him or herself. This is something they know and as a result they calm down and start to feel a part of the class due to my personal interest in them and their lives.
When I do class introductions I have them share a significant fact about themselves or something interesting they have done. This activity brings a lot of excited into the classroom as the students have done many different things and are glad to share. The answers range from just getting married to climbing a mountain. We share this information have a few laughs and are then ready to get on with the class.
Gary
Relating life experiance is a great ice breaker at the opening of a new relationship in the educational setting. It can open braod topics of life experiance and were the mind state of the student is.
Is there a sure fire question that you have to break the ice with a new student?
I agree with you, Johnny. I find that establishing common ground with your students makes the classroom environment not so formal & stuffy. It's a delicate balance though, you must keep your authority, but demonstrate that you are not out of touch with the times. I found an activity that works great to establish some common ground while simultaneously providing a way to learn more about your students (& for them to learn more about you): when taking attendance, I ask a "question of the day" that deals with fun topics. One example is: "what was your favorite toy as a kid?" Questions like these, while initially are perceived as silly, will eventually get the students to open up with each other & you, and can form a basis for students to interact with each other (shared/similar answers promotes discussion).
