Keeping Students Interested in the Course Content
It can be a real challenge to keep students interested in the course content, but I think one way that instructors can continually do so is to ask students on a weekly basis if they have questions or concerns on anything from previous/current/upcoming weeks, because usually this will get some kind of response from them, whether straight to the point or a lengthy answer. In almost every case where I have asked this at the beginning of a live chat, I have had at least 5-10 students provide an answer. Also, I ask the students what they think will be most interesting for them to research/learn about for a particular week, because I think in this way they feel like there's a space to share their interests and thoughts and to hear my feedback right away. I think by keeping students participating, in my opinion, that is the best way to keep them interested and engaged in the classroom from week to week, especially in an online environment.
If you want to keep people interested in the course content, then the only way to do it is to make the content real. By this I mean that the content should be presented in such a way so that it can be of benefit to the individual student.
The problem with this statement is that this is no mean feat. In an online environment, or even a non-ground environment, we do not know what motivates people. The students come to class and as far as the instructors concerned, the only thing that we can assume is that the student is there to learn, and sometimes this is an incorrect assumption.
I can only state that if an instructor wants to engage his or her students in the course content, then it has to be made to be real. On the other hand, the student can do anything, and even ignore the instructor.
It comes down to the old adage: you can lead a horse to water, you cannot make him drink.
Dr. Sidney,
I always love hearing instructors discuss how they incorporate critical thinking into their classroom.
Shelly Crider
I have successfully used a method of response questions to online student learning activity responses that challenges them to analyze the second and third level of the learning objective....it generally compels students to apply critical thinking skills......or, develop them, to dig deeper into the subject.....I have found that even students less motivated than the class leaders find the experience rewarding, and it can often intensify their confidence, which leads to a higher level of learning.
Shaheen,
This is fantastic idea. However, one of the problem that I face is students do not interact or answer - neither in live chat rooms nor in discussion board area. Only the good students do. But with good students, they will learn no matter what we do. So, the question becomes how do we engage the weak students, not-so-motivated students :-(? I am constantly facing this challenge. Even if I send them emails and cc their advisors, still I do not get any response. When I bring this up to the higher authority, they shrug and say that there are many students like that.
Thank You,
Srabasti Dutta
Shaheen, you made an excellent point that we should do our best to have the course content be meaningful to each of our students. Maybe we can ask them in the first week of class what they hope to gain from taking the course (aside from fulfilling a program environment). We can refer to their responses throughout the term as we dialogue with them in discussion in order to have an idea of the types of questions to ask them or the types of comments we should make that will make the course material as relevant to them as possible.
I agree. Giving the students a chance to ask question about past lessons, helps them know if they have grasped the information.
Shaheen,
Having a discussion where students can interact, or explain what they didn't understand or what they felt was the best part of the reading assignment is a great way to keep students thinking.
Shelly Crider
I believe that it is important to keep students engaged in the classroom. However, in order to do that....we must employ certain techniques. I think that one important technique is to provide a "tie-in" between the contents of the material and real life scenarios. In addition, the instructor must be actively engaged and should ask follow up questions in order to encourage critical thinking. Another important technique is to post a wrap-up discussion and encourage students to share what their specific "take-aways" were and how the content may be applied to their professional lives.
Good points Shaheen. I have found that tieing course content to events in the news is as good way to increase students' interest in the course content. If students can relate the course concepts to examples in their everyday lives, or in events in their society, this increases their understanding.
