Hi Eric,
Good idea about letting the students problem solve “real life†case studies. Real life is what they will be experiencing in a very short time and if they can't “trouble shoot†situations they are not going to succeed.
A suggestion would be to keep a notebook or a computer file of these “real life†situations in order to refresh yourself when teaching future classes on what case studies really helped the students and those that were most challenging.
By letting the students explore the solutions and then gaining the feeling that they came up with solutions that were creative and effective, and even better than your own are all good ideas for motivation. Keep up the good work.
Gary
Giving the class examples of real life situations that you have been in, and asking them how they would handle it, and then compare that with what you did to see if they had a better solution.
I find this works especially well when it was a situation that maybe I didn't handle as well as I should have, so that the students can actually feel like they did better than me, this helps build their confidence.
Hi Ken,
Isn't it amazing how “live†work can challenge and motivate a student? These adult students with all of their experiences still need to be reinforced that what they are doing is of quality. When a local purchaser indicates that the level of work that has been completed by the students is of industrial standard, the students know they are making progress.
The real challenge is to keep the student engaged in the learning process long enough to develop a foundational base of skill and expertise to enable them to produce goods and services for local shops. Make sure you provide the stimulation and examples needed to get them to that point.
Good luck with your classes. If you have any questions or comments please let me know. I will be glad to respond.
Gary
