Showing relevancy of course content
What are some ways you can show your students the relevancy of your course?
Hi Rassiel,
I concur! When students understand how the class will be useful to them either personally/professionally they understand the relevancy of the course.
Patricia Scales
by applying the techniques acquired througout the course you show the students the relevancy of the class. giving them examples of what you as an instructor have used the techniques in the outside world.
Hi Rachel,
I concur! We need to make it a point in every class to show students the benefit of the course so that they understand the importance of the course.
Patricia Scales
Hi Kassie,
Absolutely! Students love hearing stories as they apply to the real world.
Patricia Scales
I like to show the students why the work is important, especially for their GE classes. When students say "I don't care about sociology, I am a Respiratory Therapist." I like to show them why a degree program requires classes from different fields. They can show that they're better trained to deal with the world, and not just the area that they have the degree.
In a course, I like to encourage students to answer questions by relating it to a real life event. If they can take what they're learning, say for instance math, and relate it to a real world problem, they get so much more out of it.
I give real life examples. It is sometimes easier for them to retain the information given if they can put it in real life situations.
Hi Hector,
When students can see it then apply it, they have a better understanding for everything.
Patricia Scales
I find that many students are not so easily fooled into believing that everything covered in the course syllabus will actually be useful to their careers. It is after all difficult to convince a Vet Tech student that they'll need to be able to draw the Lewis dot model of sodium chloride to save a life. However, I find that plenty of real-world examples in other areas that will be of help to them makes these types of pills easier to swallow.
By either showing examples or demonstrations. I the Health care field we like to use both. I have a clinical side of instruction and will try to show examples with case studies.
Hi Elizabeth,
Great response! Students need to understand that what they will learn can apply to both or either their professonal/personal life.
Patricia Scales
I think it's important to show students how to apply the knowledge to their everyday lives. I am able to do this because I teach sociology, which is a discipline that teaches about the world and how to live in it. It's a discipline that includes the study of diverse groups of people and their cultures as well as the commonly shared patterns of human behavior. Since we interact with diverse groups of people from all different backgrounds and cultures, the more we know about them, the more efficiently we can interact with them. The more efficiently we can interact with them, the better the students' performance on the job with coworkers as well as with clients, customers, consumers, patients, etc.
Hi Carl,
When students understand how classroom learning impacts their career, they then understand course relevancy.
Patricia Scales
Hi Prairie,
I love it how you have the students come up with the importance of writing. Great eye opener for students.
Patricia Scales
course work should be used to demonstrate task that will be done on the job. In mathematics examples from the job can be used to teach math problems, English papers can be built around research into a field , topic or area of the job,so they see that what they are learning in the classroom has a direct use at their jobs.
Since I teach English Composition to students who are primarily taking medical classes, my initial goal is to have them tell me the ways that writing plays a role in their lives. At first they might just say that they have to write for other classes, but as we discuss, they realize that they write in all areas of their lives: texting, emailing, letter writing, notes to the plumber, etc. This discussion leads into the discussion about audience; in other words, who they are writing for, and how their writing shifts depending on who is receiving the message. Having students discover on their own the many ways that writing is important to their personal lives helps them to recognize the relevancy of the course.
By understanding and being able to communicate the information learned in this course they will be able to educate future employees, customers or consumers about how the skills and information that they have learned will be able to benefit them directly.
By giving them examples of what happens in the field.
Relating things in their language.
Hi Erin,
A painted picture provides great clarity for students. If students can visualize it, they tend to understand better.
Patricia Scales
One of the best ways to show relevancy is how that particular aspect will impact them. An example would be explaining how Medical Computer Applications is important. This is because one should be familiar with the functions of the software and how it will help them complete basic job functions.
