I call upon my students and ask them questions or to join in on a discussion. If they are in the school to learn then they need to ask questions and be attentive.
I have seen that the group-activity involvement works really well. . . AFTER you begin to develop a rapor with individuals. I like to look at it this way: What if that individual was the only student you had? Would that make them less-shy? I think not. Instructors have to get their heads around the fact that "ALL" of the students are individuals, and each of them has a different personality. The Marine-Corps have a saying that goes something like this, "Adapt, Improvise, Overcome!" We're the "Leaders", and as such, we need to focus on "Leading", not being led.
I have observed this on occasion as well. I am going to try your suggestion. I have never assigned a "group leader", only certain roles to students.
What do you do when the silent student still remains silent within the small group?
I think that by learning why the student is silent in class an instructor can help him or her to become more comfortable the longer he or she is in class. Building personal relationships with students on breaks or during discussion helps them feel safe, and feel that they are in a safe environment where his or her thoughts matter and are taken into consideration. Students who work in small groups can also build relationships with other students and feel safe sharing his or her answer with a smaller number of people. Every student also likes to be recognized whether in a large group or one on one and that can aid toward building that positive relationship.
Hi Catherine,
Super! I do not believe in shooting down students. We need to be our students biggest cheerleader. You have made a great point.
Patricia Scales
I agree with this statement - we have no idea how previous instructors have treated the quieter students... Maybe they have become introverted because their ideas have been shot down in the past. I employ a lot of positive reinforcement in the classroom and privately with students. It seems to help tremendously
Like many of you I like to break students up into groups but I do change them up so they do not become too comfortable. The more silent students can benefit from the classroom experience as they grow into their careers
I have found the best way to address "the silent student" is to have group activities (within the lecture time frame) which engages the student in a less threatening way than to call on them in class.
One exercise I like to use when I notice that there may be a few silent students is I give them a quick quiz on some of the material that we had just covered. I tell them to keep their papers nameless, then collect them, shuffle them and redistribute them. I then go around the room and re-read the questions and a different student has to read the answer on the paper. It keeps the student who wrote the answer anonymous, while showing that even if the wrong answer is written, it will be addressed in a fair fashion. This allows the shy students to see that they do not have to be afraid to answer or participate, for they will not be compared or judged solely on if their answer is right or wrong.
I get to know each student in my classes. At least build rapport with them. I also try to include them in small discussions and encourage them when they make interesting points during discussions to build their confidence.
this is a very interesting part where you are faced with a student that will never speak out, but you have to know if they understand the concepts you give them. I actually have to go to them & encourage them to speak maybe give them points in class for answering right, if they do i let the whole class acknowledge that so that the student feels praised by the teacher & feels more confident in front of the class to answer farther questions.
I do prefer to engage them in groups to do assignments & home work but still i think confronting the student in the class to overcome the fear & to establish the sense of responsibility towards the few that are shy.
Givng silent students an important role in the classroom is key. As the teacher you can complimnt the student on a job well; and, students may also provide encouragement.
Hi Jennifer, I agree with your strategy in engaging the quieter students with the involvement of small group activities. I will ask the quietest student to be the one who introduces the subject matter and the other students. This approach seems to work for some and not for others. It is a work-in-progress.
I recently have been looking into many NLP techniques in Rapport that have really made a difference in not just teaching but my own life in general . One technique I use is mirroring . When I am talking to a student I notice their speech patterns , breathing style and tone of voice and basically return conversation back in the same manner . This produces a great rapport effect because the student feels an automatic comfort zone because they feel you the instructor are just like them and therefore open up in the class and to the instructor . Also in addition the small groups for projects works well .
Silent students are able to find their voices in smaller group activities. Activities such as these help build self esteem and create an atmosphere of teamwork.
One way to involve silent students in class is to engage them in role-playing. In literature classes, for example, I have a group of students assume the persona of various characters in a story or play--they play that character. The other students in the class ask questions of each of the characters based on the story or play. By assuming a role, the student is playing a part and is usually not so self-conscious. I was a somewhat shy student, and a teacher I once had conducted this strategy, and I was a participant. I actually enjoyed playing a part and was not self-conscious about myself.
I feel silent students should be brought into a group and encouraged to partipate with disscussions with the group as a whole.
Small group activities work the best in this type of situation. However, I have seen students sit silent in small groups as well. So, I give the students roles in small groups. I rotate the roles for each small group activity.
Hi Robert,
I like to involve silent students by having small groups of 3-4 students and give the silent student a leadership role.
Patricia Scales
