I do several things:
1- I talk about employment opportuntities and how one can realistically get into the field
2-use my personal experiences to try and develop a professional basis for students to sue as a guide for acceptable behavior in the field
3- I break the class into teams at times to work on a particular assignment. I do this in the classroom. In addition, I have the team make a PowerPoint presentation to get them used to developing a PowerPoint and talking in front of others. I have noticed the confidence the students gain thoughout the course by using these methods.
I agree with this and also the more you show how it will apply to their everyday, the more difference I believe it will make.
Hi Benetta,
I see your emoticon beside of some group activities are...why?
Patricia
Hi Sharon,
Mosts students will let you know what needs to be changed. Things learned through evaluations normally do not come as a surprise to me, because I have already heard/seen these concerns.
Patricia
Student evals are the best to see what the students see and need to change. We also can see day to day what the students see and feel they need. Interactions with the students also can be beneficial.
If I can impart the benefits of my profession or knowledge to be delivered then I can obtain buy in. I try to show my enthusiasm and love for my work and real life experiences. Find out the reason someone wants the information such as money, prestige ,or knowledge and remind them along the way that they are getting closer to reaching those things, goals.
I try to make my syllabus as complete as possible. The student can check the syllabus for test schedules and homework assignments. Class room activities are also listed in the syllabus.
All class room activities are student centered. Some group activities are:(1) Class presentations on topics covered in class. (2)Role playing,(3) games, such as jeapardy,and(4)question answer sessions at the end of lectures.
Passion is very important but having students understand real world applications can assist them even more.
The difficulty with math classes is that you're not only fighting the perceived applicability issue, but you're also fighting the fact that it's socially acceptable to say "I'm just not good at math," that makes people believe it's okay to think math is hard. The applicability issue is (comparatively) easy to handle; demonstrate that math is a coherent way of thinking about and organizing information.
The prejudice against math is another issue. Here I've found the key to get the why accross to students as you teach them how. Often I'll present a process by working a problem out and keeping notes along the side of why we're doing the steps we're doing. I even have them write journal problems where they take one (longer) problem and actually explain their solution (as opposed to the usual practice of just writing enough scratchwork to get to the answer). The easiest way to convince a class that math should make sense is to make sense of each piece as it comes. Granted, to do this, you better know your stuff. If you can't tell a student why they're doing what they're doing, math will always be a collection of magic formulas and equations that only those of who are "math people" will ever understand.
As a math teacher, I'm frequently assailed w/ comments like "I'm just not good at math." Fighting attitudes like this (the social acceptability of quantitative illiteracy is one of my biggest pet peeves) is the first challenge is a course. As you say, I've found demonstrating ethusiasm and telling students why you have that enthusiasm (for it was that math made sense in a way the rest of the world didn't) makes is easier for them to break down their own obstructions to willingness to learn (whether put there by themselves or their former teachers). Don't be and intimidating genius in front of a chalkboard; be an accessible human being who show them the understanding beneath the techniques and data.
Hi Mary,
Anytime you can make it real/live for the students, it is a golden opportunity to spark their interest. They want more...
Patricia
Hi Lauraine,
It is so important for our students to know that they need to read...afterall, they are in college. I have found that those who really read the chapters tend to grasp the material a lot faster.
Patricia
Students realize that learining isn't just sitting in a classroom waiting for the instructor to ask questions and go over the reading material, but it's more about sharing. As an instructor I give the students the opportunity to read the material in class, instruct them on how they can outline the material then do small bites to digest what they have read. Engaging them and encouraging them to explore the reading and think outside the box.
I am passionate and excitied about the subject area I teach and the students respond immediately. In my computer classes I work the problems with them and they get so excitied when they have learned a new complex formula or concept. Teaching gives me great pleasure and to see the students excitied even is more rewarding.
I get buy in from students by allowing the students tell their own experiences and by bring in guest speakers so that the students can hear what the real job force is like. I also take the students on field trips to offices so that they can see a real office in actions, therefore, the student will become excitied about entering the job force. I get excellent buy in by being excitied about the subjects I teach and relating the subject matter to the real world.
I use show and tell which allows the students to explain how what they are learning will help them in the future. I also take the students on field trips so they can see what the job market is really like. I use pair and share where the students pair up with someone they know very little about and tell what they have learned.I bring in guest speakers so the student can interact with people in the job world hoping for the student to buy in the learning process.
I get buy in from the students by giving examples of how the information they are processing will help them get a better job and to earn more money in order to support their families. Money is the key word to get adult students to respond to going the extra mile to learn a new concept. In Excel class I work the tutorial problem with the students and then give them the case problems to do on their own. If they have questions they may ask for help from me. This goes a long way in getting buy in from the students.
That's great--something concrete they might aspire to. Especially using real people who have achieved something in that field. For Army instruction/training, sometimes the motivator is "this will keep you and your buddies/fellow soldiers from getting killed." This is especially effective if you can provide examples. There are plenty.
I use real life situations to get the students to see the importance of learning.
I tell the students the monetary advantage of becoming an expert in the subject area which will help their families reach to a higher standard of living. Also, I try to give names of professional people who have reached their goals that they know or can relate to. The students see they can reach the goal so can they.
