Get Your Students Hired
Hi Dave,
I like the three step approach that you utilize to generate excitement. I can see how this method will get a student excited.
Patricia Scales
Hi Thomas,
Students typically enjoy hands on. You may need to utilize a variety with hands on.
Patricia Scales
Depending on the class, I sometimes take the approach of a "car salesman" - I intro each class with what we're going to discuss and how this knowledge / skill will help them succeed in the working world and brighten their futures. "When you successfully complete this class, you'll have the skills to..." or "Understanding the conceopts of this course will give you the competitive advantage over others..." Sell with excitment, deliver the goods, and they buy-in.
With the type of class i teach, it is 95% hands on work. It can be difficult to keep attention without exhausting field trips or experts speaking...
I try to explain and use lab work to supplement the "in the real world of work" experiences.
Hi John,
It is always good to have fun in class even on the collegian level. Students really become more interested when they are having fun while learning.
Patricia Scales
The use of Ice Breakers are always fun and exciting ways to get students ready to participate in the class. Using the course content is a way to open students up to each other and ask questions about the course.
I feel like one of the most important aspects of teaching is first getting the attention of your students. Whether you do something silly when you first walk in the door to create a laugh. Tell a clean joke. Make fun of yourself to put others at ease. Showing your students that you are human and have feelings I think creates an immediate connection with students.
To get students excited I feel like creating an atmosphere of creative learning is what will get them excited about learning. Making games out of learning the skeletal system, making up songs, or creating acronyms to help the students retain their information. Hands on is one of the most important aspects of learning in my opinion.
I use example of what it was like for me learning the same technical skill that I teach to them, it allows them to relate to me having walked the same mile in their shoes. Also, at the same time letting them know that by sharing these personal experiences they can make the same strides that I have.
I'm not sure if any my students are excited in the beginning about the course content but they sometimes get excited about specific lessons that we've done in class. For example, the first day of my Strategy Management class, I kicked off the lecture by pairing up the students and allowing them to play 3 rounds of tic-tac-toe. We then discussed their "strategy" in winning or to prevent their partner to win. That got their attention. At the end of the course, I showed them a movie called "Start-Up.Com", which summarized everything we discussed in class. They definitely enjoyed that one!
Nicole,
I agree. Hands-on learning is a great way to go. It gives everyone a chance to actually experience the material and absorb it.
I am new to health care education. I would love to learn some ways and ideas to engage students and get them excited to learn. I am hoping this course will give me some ideas and insights into motivating students and getting them excited to learn. Some tips that I have gotten so far are to ensure that everyone is participating, initiate group projects or conversations, and use case studies so that students have "real-life" examples of the materials. I want to do everything I can to ensure student success.
Hi Jeanne,
Students really do enjoy this type of learning. Students buy in to the course by doing these type of activities.
Patricia Scales
As a massage instructor, I often have the students research a massage modality that they may be interested in. They then have to share or teach the rest of the students about it the next day.This provides them with an opportunity to share something they are interested in and provides them practice on communication skills.
Hi Christa,
Students love it when technology is involved. Students also enjoy visual aids. Visual adds flavor to the classroom.
Patricia Scales
I teach in the massage therapy program. Because I specialize in sports massage I have worked with athletes; professional and otherwise.I usually talk about some of the clients that I have worked with and the process in which I got to the point of being able to work with professional athletes. I also talk about the different events that I've volunteered at. The fun stuff seems to take the sting out of the amount of anatomy they will be required to learn.
Getting students excited about the course by allowing them to see the relationship between classroom activity and their final goal in the work-place.
Hands on definitely gets them revved up for whatever we are learning. I also find sharing personal stories and experiences from my own field work creates excitement for what they might get to see and experience.
Hi Aretha,
Math is a tough subject to get students excited about. I like the approach that you take with your students to make learning fun for them. There are so many students that are afraid of math. They do not look forward to taking the course at all.
Patricia Scales
I always like using the term "Real World" mentality. I describe to them the project and then talk about why this is important to learn, in regards to what they will be doing in their careers once they graduate. Once they see it in that way, they take more time and effort in creating it the correct way.