Comfort Zones
I teach the beginning course at my school for most of our programs. It is basically a student success course, coupled with a professional development aspect as we are a career college. One of the topics we discuss at length is the idea of the comfort zone. We typically define the comfort zone as the familiar, the situation where you feel calm with no anxiety.
While listening about security, this idea kept popping in my head. I tell my students that in order for them to become better and achieve their goals, they must get out of their comfort zones and stretch themselves into something new. While saying this, and doing many things in class to get them out of their comfort zones, I also work hard to make sure that they feel secure enough to branch out and venture outside of themselves.
So, my question is, in what ways do you, as instructors, toe this line of getting them to do something new and different, while still helping them to feel secure in what they are doing?
jackie, what are some of the techniques you use to keep your class and subject matter interesting to students. Do these techniques work with every grouping of students or do you find you have to mix things up from time to time with different groups?
James Jackson
I try to keep my class interesting as well challenge my student's to learn the fundimental's ,This tends to have a better response and/or results when the student does get out of his/hers confort zone!
Mario, great post. Avoid controversial topics but find common bonds that are not controversial. Allowing students to know you like golf and cooking does not create near the tension as discussing religion or politics. Students do not need to know your religious or political beliefs to trust you as a leader.
James Jackson
i feel that if you tell the students something about yourself that they can relate with. They will tend to open up, like current events staying away from political discussions! first day of the course, is a good time to make notes on what students are into. for later conversations. always keeping the professional boundries in mind.if the student feels like you are one of them they will open up to conversations with the class making them more comfortable.
Courtney, well done. Students need constant reassurance that their mistakes that are part of the learning process will not be counted against them. Mistakes that are part of an assessment process is fair game with respect to counting against them in some way as it is a means of measurement for the instructor to know where students are in their understanding but even this level of mistake should be discussed so students totally understand how the learning process works and where they stand with respect to their peers.
James Jackson
I try to let my students know that they have the freedom to make mistakes here (in school). Our industry requires practice and repetition in order to improve with certain skills, so there has to be some level of learning from mistakes. I tell my students that if they did everything perfectly the first time that they would not learn as much as if they tried something new and needed to tweak a few things. I feel as though I provide an environment that allows them to feel ok about messing up (as long as they are not just goofing off.)
Willis, great experiences all for new students. Public speaking ranks higher than death on the all time list of fears for many individuals so breaking through this barrier is not easy but does come with its own set of benefits for both the student and the instructor. Thanks for sharing.
James Jackson
Althouh I teach in a Culinary school, as early as the first course of the program there is a 'public speaking' component or oral presentation. Many of the students get 'stage fright' and I have to explain to them that a good chef has to be a GREAT communicator. A number of times it has brought a normally shy student out of their shell and then I can't keep them quiet!
Also, attempting to butcher a chicken, clean a fish or successfully cook a dish that the student was not confident about brings them both intrinsic and extrinsic rewards.
Murielle, what techniques can you share with respect to how you have broken down their fears of public speaking? Thanks for anything you can share.
James Jackson
I teach massage and find that a lot of students are uncomfortable speaking in front of the class, I let them know that part of their job as a massage therapist will involve speaking to clients about the work they do, the benefits and so on, and I make public speaking a part of every class they take so that they get more comfortable with the whole process.
Joel , breaking down complex concepts is key to the learning process. Also important is to teach them how and why you break things down so they can learn how to decompress complex processes as this is a great skill to have in any work environment. Thanks for sharing.
James Jackson
Sandy, I like your approach and your method keeps your students on their toes which helps to keep their brain activity high. Keep up the great work.
James Jackson
I find that breaking the concept down in to the simplest form makes them have more security. Even though students are trying a new concept by breaking down you make them see the general order of things. If a student has a natural progression to follow they are more likely to try new things and be pushed out of their comfort zone without even thinking.
I know some may disagree, but I require all my students to change their seats at the beginning of every course; and since we typically get new students with each course one of the requirements is they have to sit at a new table with someone they have not sat with before. I believe this takes them out of their comfort zones, but also helps them build interpersonal skills and develop relationships with classmates they may not have with otherwise.
Thanks Travis. That was really insightful.
I help my students feel security in the classroom by never leaving any behind and always making everyone feel like they are valued.
* mindy *
LaShonda, great idea and one other instructors should practice. Good to get students comfortable being outside of their comfort zones as this will be the case when they begin their careers in new places and meet new people.
James Jackson
Randall, do you ever use quizzes to allow students to privately input their answers then review the correct answers so students avoid embarrassment? There are also some great tools you can use inside the classroom if your students have smartphones as many do. Students can use their smartphones to answer questions and then as the instructor you can review responses but they are not associated with any specific student so maintains a high level protection for students.
James Jackson
Hi Travis!!
(small world)
One of the things that my students have anxiety about--in the medical field--is the pronunciation of drug names seeing as how it can be like learning a different language.
For this reason, my students are responsible for 3 drug presentations per month so that they can practice saying these words out loud so by the time they leave they will feel more comfortable among their new peers.
Debra
Hank, for some students and for many individuals, being in front of a group and speaking is more fearful than death. Public speaking is actually higher on the list of all time fears than death. Good to see you have a great exercise that allows them to speak about comfortable topic. Do you have any other topics students can choose from in case family topics may be stressful to discuss? Thanks for anything you can share.
James Jackson
