1) Showing previous students work
2) jumping in right away and being hands on. This show ability and results quickly and can realy boost the students confidence.
3) Adding bonus projects
4) bringing in guest speakers
What do you recommend when most of the course info is just for their background knowledge, and not necessary to their success in the field?
Engaging assignments and student interaction are key in increasing student excitement for a subject. Many in-class group assignments can be used to engage students into the material and build confidence in difficult subjects. This also helps students understand the material when it has been covered by the instructor as well as other classmates.
I think this is where having some real world experience in your chosen subject field pays dividends. I enjoy teaching a topic and then immediately explaining how it will apply to the everyday work they will be doing when they complete their program.
Hi Patricia,
When students can visualize the end, there is a sense of excitement generated.
Patricia Scales
I actually let the students see the end result of the class each student wants to be successful and want to accomplish the goal in the class by letting them see the complete result of the end the class they are more eager to get there
I think iti is very important to be able to get students excited about the course because this is their future! If they are excited at the beginning and start liking the career from the get go it will keep them excited about their career path.
I have shown short videos of my past classes doing a few different activities in class with one or two of the course requirements. The students see how much fun it is going to be to learn how to calculate a heart rate on a dog, they can't wait to start learning how to do it themselves.
I have shown short videos of my past classes doing a few different activities in class with one or two of the course requirements. The students see how much fun it is going to be to learn how to calculate a heart rate on a dog, they can't wait to start learning how to do it themselves.
Hi Angie,
Excitement starts with the instructor! Get excited! Bring in guest speakers, go on a field trip, have a scavenger hunt as it pertains to the class/lesson, have class at a restaurant/outside, etc.
Patricia Scales
That is something I am really trying to work on. I find it very hard ,because my classes are very small. The biggest class I have contains 6 students. Do you have any suggestions to use with this small number of students.
I sometimes use you tube clips, brainstorm ideas together, research and report findings.
Hi Michael,
Great way to get students excited. Students love seeing what they will be using, and they also like to try out what they will be using.
Patricia Scales
Hi Veora,
Enthusiasm is generally contagious! Let yours be catching!
Patricia Scales
Hi Nashon,
I concur! We must certainly be the leader!
Patricia Scales
Hi Joseph,
Students enjoy and love hands-on activities.
Patricia Scales
I completely agree. If you can share some of your experiences they seem to relate it to their future career.
Im the Lab Assistant here at Tucson College in southern AZ. What I do is show each new class at each new monthly mod what tools they will be using. Example Phlebotomy I break down the Phlebotomy Tray. Each tool is pulled out, showed, passed around (except needles) what it does and how they should use tool. This and some of my past career experience (some funny outakes too)motovates the class.
Sometimes doing a role play geared to how the course will impact their lives works well. Expressing how excited I am for them and about the rewardeing decision that they have made to take my course helps increase their excitiment level. Always showing my enthusiasm tends to be contagious (well for some).
As teachers we set the tempo...
I concur. I like to add in hands on examples/experiments to the lecture portion of our Modules. For example, making oobleck (Corn-Starch and Water) to illustrate Arndt's Law of muscle resistance to pressure.
