Hi Ken,
Yes, it is. I teach a general required course and my students are there because they have to be. I take this as a challenge and try to draw each one of them into the course and show them how what I teach can be of benefit to them in the future. This makes teaching fun because I get to be creative in my delivery while enjoying their growth in the course content.
Gary
In my industry, Information Technology, it is vastly important to understand underlying motivations for enrolling in my course. Typically I find a wide variety of these types of motivations, ranging from those that simply want the units (not that they would admit this up front) to those deeply serious about applying the skills learned to their career or potential career. Motivating BOTH types (and those in between) is, of course, the ultimate challenge!
Ken Orgill
Whenever I can personalize a message to my students, there seems to be a more positive response to learning. Making personal connections with my students allows me to better understand the pace of their life and perhaps why they are making mistakes.
Hi Heather,
Thank you for sharing this great success story. This shows how much impact we instructors have on the lives of our students and how much they value our opinions. This is a very important responsibility and we need to always think about the advice we give due to the career shaping we are doing with our students.
Gary
I teach IT classes, and have had students who were pushed in by parents. This field, like many others, takes dedication and hard work if you want to be successful. Knowing how to format a disk will no longer get you $80K/year.
Occasionally, I've had students who were just not cut out for this kind of work. They weren't happy doing it, and it showed.
I ended up talking with them about what they really wanted to do, and they realized they were in the wrong program for them. One switched to Business, and came back to say "Thank you for talking to me. Nobody ever did that. They just said I needed to improve in IT, but never asked if that was the right field for me."
She stayed in school, and graduated, but more importantly, she graduated with a degree in something she really wanted to do.
You have to know the reasons behind enrollment for the students in your class to be effective in getting and keeping them interested in not only the class content, but also the facility they are attending. If you know what has motivated them to return to school you can identify possible barriers that may be present from extrinsic situations, and that the facility as well as the instructors will give them the resources they may need to continue their classes and finish the program.
I would have to second this agreement for many reasons,people do appreciate remindings.
Knowing why students enroll in my program helps me be able to tailer the information I am providing to help meet their needs and goals. If they are enrolled only because they have to be to meet a required course the information I provide and that they want is considerably different than if they enrolled because it is an area they want to make a career out of.
I feel it definitely benefit me to know the student's background as well as what there short term and long term goals are so I can incorporate some of the material presented and make it realistic to their potential situtations they may encounter.
Hi Reese,
You are teaching in my opinion a very valuable course. I am pleased to hear that some students recognize that and take the course for their own growth. Effective communication is essential for career growth and success. I am sure those that take it as a requirement also see the value of it as a result of your efforts to make your content relevant.
Gary
Knowing why a student(s) are enrolled in a course can help me target the variety of attitudes, wants, and needs of the students. For example, if a student is enrolled in my course because it is required (Public speaking, for example), than I try to show how the class is going to be a positive impact in both their professional and personal lives.
One group of students enrolled in courses are those who have been in the workforce/ outside world for a period of time. These students are usually seeking a specific skill in order to advance in the workplace. I have encountered many students taking a Public Speaking course in order to receive a promotion or to take on new responsibilities in the office. I make a point in my classes to have an open discussion about the students’ reasons for taking the course. For most it is a requirement, but there is usually a population who voluntarily take Public Speaking classes in order to develop a new skill. During lectures I make an extended effort to point out the practical applications of Public Speaking. Whether we are discussing nonverbal behaviors in interview situations, or delivery techniques for presentations; I make sure to show students how the skills will be used outside of the classroom.
It will help me understand the student on a more personal level...work conflicts, child care issues. Sometimes there are agencies/organizations that we can help connect students to that will help with their attendace and concentration levels while in class
At the beginning of the first day of class for the course, I try to get the students to tell me why they chose this particular field. I then tell them what got me started in this line of work and relate a few experiences with them throughout the course. I have found that relating both positive and negative experiences helps them to understand what they are getting into in the medical field.
Knowing why students have enrolled in your program will help you understand their motivation.
Hi Charlotte,
You make a good point with your comments. The more we know about our students the better we can focus in on providing them support. Those that are on the bubble of deciding if this is the career for them due to the influence of someone other than themselves really need our input and support. With our input they can decide that this is the career for them or try to find something that really gets them excited and move into that preparation area.
Gary
Because you can focus on the end. In other words, if you can plan your instruction around their goals, you can make sure that everything that is taught is in someway tied to how they will use it to achieve their ultimate goal(s).
I find that we have a wide range of motivational factors driving our student's enrollment. Everything from desire to work with patients to a situation where the student's parent selected the degree program for their child and are "forcing them" to do it. If it's the latter, I have my work cut out for me. I like to know early on what I'm working with so that I can help these students find motivation to succeed for themselves, rather than others. It can be a daunting task!
It's important for the instructor to meet the student's needs. The instructor can tailor the class - to a certain extent - to the needs of the students. Knowing the objectives of the students enables the instructor to deliver a classroom experience that is more meaningful and beneficial for the students.
We're brought in as instructors or subject matter experts (SMEs) to focus on a specific topic according to the situation/environment, based upon our professional life skills, experience and ability to teach, mentor, coach. The environment may be elective in nature but it's certainly required for the students to progress in their local community and highly scrutinized by the international community. We have several age groups but also break it down into individual capabilites for example, understanding and speaking the targeted language. Knowing the motivation for enrollment and where the students are traditionally assigned and working is critical.
Because students enroll for a variety of reasons, you have to get to know them by talking to them on a personal level. I try to do this at some point. Having frank discussions in an informal setting can really bring out feelings and views that they may never mention in the normal course of the classroom. I can better decide how to prepare and present material if I know where a student is coming from. I can address issues that can help motivate.
