I totally agree with this because when students realize that whatever they are learning is going to help them out in their lives only then they really try to learn.
Hi Philip,
Students really get excited and very interested when you start to talk salary, income, money, dollars, revenue, etc.!!
Patricia Scales
Great I agree money is a great motivator and this gives them a goal.
Hi Mignonne,
Awesome! You use great things to get your students excited! Everyone loves having fun while learning. Money is always motivating!
Patricia Scales
I have experienced more success in getting the students involved and participating when I make it fun, unpredictable and share some real-life stories associated with the section under discussion.Another motivator is when I share with them the financial implications to their advantage once they have succesfully graduated from the course.
Hi Christine,
Role playing is the absolute best to get students engaged and to help them determine how the learning applies to the real world.
Patricia Scales
Hi Faith,
I love it! Students automatically feel invested when they have a sense of ownership. We need to give our students Real World Training and what I can Real World Learning. Our students need to know exactly how things are in the real world.
Patricia Scales
Hi Meredith,
Students must be able to connect the dots. When dots are connected students certainly understand the relevance. Students need to know the benefit of the course.
Patricia Scales
Hi Timothy,
You have an easy course to promote buy in. EVERYONE who is old enough to understand, really understands the importance of technology in today's society.
Patricia Scales
Hi Tim,
Students need to understand the relevance of the course in order to generate buy in. You make great use of local examples to help your students understand this course. Great job on promoting buy in!
Patricia Scales
Hi Maurice,
I agree! Discussion has always been away to get everyone involved and to help quickly determine those who are grasping.
Patricia Scales
Provide the goals and objectives from the get go.
Provide a class experience that engages all parts of the student. Not only lecture, but role playing, interaction, rewards.
Even have a theme if it's around the holidays for a project so that they can work and show off all that they can now do with the knowledge that they learned in class.
I give RWTs projects. Real World Training projects that require them to take a skill they have learned and complete a project based on an assignment they may have in the field one day. They are allowed some creative freedom, usually required to work in a group setting of some sort, and get peer feedback during and at the end of the project. I have found students take true ownership of their work and the course at large.
Teaching in a dental hygiene program, I can share actual clinical experiences that are relevant to the course content. The students who "buy in" can easily connect the dots from theory to reality and, therefore, see that the course "pays off."
Discussions can be an excellent strategy for enhancing student motivation, They create opportunities for students to practice and sharpen a number of skills, including the ability to articulate and defend positions, consider different points of view, and enlist and evaluate evidence.
Relating the material to their current job and life. I teach information technology courses but technology is everywhere and used by everyone. So even if the student doesn't currently hold a job in IT, they should understand how they address computer issues in their personal life, and in the working world so that it will benefit them personally and in their career. Even if they are not on the track of a Information Technology professional, they can still benefit from my course and apply what they've learned.
During the first class (of Environmental Science) I discuss with the students how they affect the environment and how the environment may effect them. I ask them for examples of environmental problems or issues that they see in their daily lives and on the news. I think the students understand 'conceptually' the importance of environmental science, but as we get into the details they may not see the importance. To address that I try to use local examples (an ecosystem - a stormwater pond on campus) or other examples they may be familiar with. Fortuently, many of our topics do effect them directly: food, water production, clean water, air pollution.
Hi Taiwan,
Students want to and need to know how the course applies to their field of study. Students gain interest and excitement when they know they are learning useful information, thus buying into the course.
Patricia Scales
Hi William,
You have it! Students love it when the courese applies to what they will be dooing in the workplace. Examples really add great clarity.
Patricia Scales
I have found a very useful tool to complement course content with professional experiences students encounter on a day-to-day basis throughout their careers.
