Hi Guy,
I concur! Asking questions is definitely an attention getter.
Patricia
Moving around the room is an effective way to keep attention up. I also ask questions as I lecture and vary those from easy to hard. Asking inattentive students questions (as well as students that are focused)keeps them engaged & involved.
Hi Kerry,
Great tactics to utilize in order to keep students alert. Every opportunity I get I like to talk about money as to how it applies to their chosen field.
Patricia
To keep the attention of students i like to move around the room, change my voice, use hand motions, and ask non open ended questions.
This section on student behavior was interesting and enjoyable. I have taught on and off for 30 plus years and have seen a little of everything. Moving around the room, asking for classroom participation and making eye contact with students is extremely important in my book.
Instead of starting off with the topic of the day I add questions from the day before on the power point
Hi Tracy,
No one wants a dull and borain instructor. We have to bring a lot of engery and excitement into the classroom.
Patricia
before the start of each class i have the students to draw numbers for each group, once in their group i began my lecture using power point and visual aids as well as moving around the room. Each person in the group is required to have a question with answer at the end of the lecture. I then have the groups discuss the questions and answers. I then use these to make study guides for test, quizzes, bowl games etc.
The best way to stay mobile is have a piece in your hand that pertains to the subjecy, always be showing the unit,plus do your lecture around that unit. I always try not to be monatone because when you become that way all the student will here is bla bla bla. If I see more than one student looking tired I get them on their feet and take them to the lab area to show them certain components, this is a way to get the blood flowing to the brain and usually they become more receptive.
I try to motivate my students before every lesson. This may come in the form of a short video, a qoute I present before the lecture or any other type of method that will grasp the attention of my students.
Hi Catherine,
Yes it is! Students will follow you around the room when you are mobile. Great technique to utilize to keep students alert.
Patricia
One of the very first helpful hints that I give my new instructors is to move around the room when lecturing. Being animated in a classroom is powerful attention keeper!!
This sounds like a great idea. i am definitely going to apply this to my new class. They have a different instructor right now but I believe this will help me out using the right amount of energy with it.
I like to speak loud and be as animated as possible during class. If I see a student with their head down or talking, or drifting I will move towards them and try to get them re-engaged in the topic.
Hi Freda,
Try them! They really do work. They make a world of difference.
Patricia
Hi Barney,
I like it! You keep your students active while learning. Students enjoy active learning. This is a good way to keep tired students alert.
Patricia
Hi Charlene,
What a great way to get students involved. Students have to always be ready based on the way you do things.
Patricia
I try and come up with discussion points for each topic. There may be multiple topics during one class period. I either ask the students their opinion, have students form a group and have a group discussiona nd then present their findings or randomly call on students for their input.
I teach at a career college in the evenings - these students in many cases are exhausted from the work day. Some of them have been up since 4 or 5 am. I take real world broadcast examples that I have been subjected to in radio and flow my class that way. They have to write, ask questions and do public speaking so they are interactive with the class - not a bump on a log pretending to listen to a lecture.
I already answered this question in a previous thread, but thought I would throw out some personal examples I have seen from one of my University Professor’s. Once, the Professor got up on his desk and started acting out the park of Queen Elizabeth. Another time, when discussing medieval times, he brought into class a 4 foot ax and walked around class with it. Another time he just simply would take a textbook and slam it down on his desk, thus waking every student up. The methods he used matched the content and kept the class very lively, one of the best courses I was ever in. Just some food for thought, Chris Graves.
