Bettye,
Good point and well said. This is where instructor accountability really comes into play.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Especially with career college students, it is understood that many of these students tend to be older and have returned to school to improve their lives. They are looking for material of substance. The age old adage of students asking "Why do I need to learn this, how is this going to help me?" is more pronounced and the material needs to be relevant.
Pamela,
This is a good point because the students need to see the value of the content being offered and how it impacts their lives. When they do as you have I'm sure experienced their motivation levels go way up.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
It is much more difficult for students in general education courses to recognize the relevance. That said, use of personal anecdotes from the instructor and other student helps students to relate to the content.
Baneet,
I use role playing and case studies a lot in my classes to achieve the outcomes you are talking about. Getting the students to walk through different situations and then proposing solutions to the problems presented in the situations gives them valuable insight as to how they will need to conduct themselves once they are in the field.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Kelly,
Guest speakers are great for adding credibility to what you are teaching. They are motivators as well because the students get to see and listen to individuals that are making it in their field so they start to see themselves in the same light as these guest speakers.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
The importance of the lesson is often evident when I role play clinical situations with the students. I have devised different outcomes based on student reactions and then a general discussion about which reactions were more effective. logical and relevant to the situation and what they had learned. The students seem to retain more information when actualizing a situation then just sitting through a lecture
Seeing relevancy and application reinforces the wise investment continued learning is. I also incorporate guest speakers from the field who can field questions about the skill application. They can add credibility.
Relevance of material and content is an issue that affects most levels of education. How does what we're learning relate to real-life? Will I use this information in the future, or will it be relegated to the pile of irrelevant content?
This is a tricky path, in that the relevance of material is often not obvious or easily grasped. The content we're teaching might be the foundation for the tangible material.....foundations are difficult to visualize and are often not seen. Identifying and communicating that fact is one way to deal with it. If I'm teaching microscopic information, knowing full well that the macro level is the tangible one, I'll analogize the micro to the macro.
Bottom line for me is it's not an easy task sometimes.
Amy,
This is an important part of their training because they need to see the application and relevance of what they are being taught. When they can use their knowledge and skill sets while still in school the value of their schooling increases greatly.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
When students can apply what they are learning in a lecture to an actual application in the workforce helps students get excited about learning more and being encouraged in what they have learned up to this point.
Seeing the relevancy and application provides motivation for the student because it makes everything real to them. Their involvement, investment, sacrifice, etc, will result in a desired outcome. Constant reassurance they are on the right track keeps students motivated.
It becomes part of their working memory if they can relate a topic to personal experience
Allison,
The more real you can make your content as well as user friendly the better. You are doing both based upon your comments. If you can get them to the point they can speak and write well you will helped them to make a major step forward in their career development. As workers in the field of culinary arts they are going to be called upon to communicate with customers and fellow workers so they need to see the value of your efforts.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I have to admit that as an English Instructor for a culinary school, it can be hard to find the relevancy for some of the material that I feel obligated to teach to my students for their other classes, like APA citation. I try to place emphasis on learning how to navigate the internet to find APA citation rules on their own, instead of having my students commit them to memory. I then talk to them about how this lesson reinforces computer literacy and critical research skills that are applicable to everyday life.
Holly,
Sharing stories and examples from the field really gets the students excited about what they are studying as you know. These stories are what connect them to the content and why it is being studied. The more relevance and application they can be shown the more excited they will be about being in the class.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
My medical students are motivated through real life situations brought to them through my personal experiences in the medical field. They are truly interested in what happens in a medical office and the way different situations are handled. We have had many wonderful discussions and brainstorming sessions with life experiences of both the instructor and students
Shronda,
Not sure what this means in relation to the forum question. Will you expand on this?
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Students will become more motivated to learn as the relevency of the lesson becomes real and viable to the work they will be doing after graduation.
