Get Your Students Hired
One of the greatest rewards in teaching is helping students discover their potential in spite of their self-doubt. Discuss some particular examples of cases, past or present, where this perception was clearly evident.
I finally wrote out a basic form of "help me to help you" information, ran off some copies and it worked much better for my last class.
I am a fairly new instructor and I have found that with the students that have such low self-esteem and self doubt it is very important that they realize that we, as instructors, are in their corner. They need to feel that we are there for them and they can count on us to help them get through this new journey they are on. With a lot of my students I've realized that we are the only support system they have. So when they say "I can't do this" I always have a "yes you can" for them. They need to feel that someone believes in them.
Most students that suffer from self-doubt in my class tend to let other answer the questions and take the lead in the activities. Usually, I will brake out into groups of 2 and answer a question or perform an activity. I will include myself and start by working with a strong student first. When we switch partners, I will then work with the student who is reluctant to participate. I have the student take the lead and encourage them when they ask the right questions or perform the activity correctly. The student usually enjoys being able to lead for once and realizes how much they understand simply by sharing. It might take a couple of times using the technique but usually the other students encourage the student and add to their confidence.
Yes I agree one of the greatest rewards in teaching is helping students discover their potential in spite of their self-doubt. I teach billing and coding and to see the light bulbs when a student find a code and get understanding it is amazing.
Many times, all a student really needs is to know that someone, anyone, believes they can do it. So, I try to find a good characteristic in each of my students and praise them for it whenever possible.
I am a clinical instructor and I see this on a daily basis with my students. One of the biggest motivation killers is self doubt. I work hard with my students on their confidence in their clinical skills. Self doubt is the reason why many student's don't master a skill.
Almost all students have some degree of self-doubt/lack of confidence. The more difficult the perceived task at hand the more doubt. If you can get them to relax and realize they no different than anyone else, learning something new for the first time, they can then see that they too can be succeed. Now real learning can begin.
Our students work on large Interior Design projects which require proficient CAD/REVIt skills, creativity, and the ability to solve design problems. Most of them come up with great solutions and are capable of producing a good final project. Then I have one or two that have so much self doubt that they spend hours reworking details, changing their mind, which causes them to fall behind, and miss the project deadline. At the presentations, they are quick to point out their mistakes. I have to work closely with this type, encouraging them and giving them a positive critique followed by how they can improve their work. They really need the guidance and positive reinforecement to know they can be successful.
I agree. Teaching is all about being patience and bring real world as a example to teach them from text books and skills performance
When teaching adults, that is one of the main obstacles I have observed in the classroom. I always try and assure them that although they maybe starting over it is never to late to start school. Moreover, I try to give as many real life examples so they will understand how learning will enhance their life.
I had a student who just was not able to grasp the content of the course so I had her relook at the way she was studying and to personalize the course to something that would be important to her self image. When she did she was able to grasp the concept and completed the course.
I find that when a student is unsure of how to proceed with a assignment, or unsure of his/her ability he/she will procrastinate. I tell students to break the project down into manageable bits, use time management techniques and don't be afraid of failure. I remind them that what many successful people have in common is that they are not afraid of failure. Continue to seek guidance and ask questions until the assignment is complete.
There are many times students are faced with many obstacles. For example in my class there are many students that will be first generation to finish college. Some of their parents did not even finish high school. Often times I give them examples of past students that have finished colleg and became successful that was faced with many challenging situations.
With teaching math the self doubt is very apparent. Some students volunteer that math is their worst subject. Using many of the principles you mentioned these self doubts often fade away as they realize that they have actually learned how to learn and now can apply that knowledge to even their most feared subject.
I love to see the joy on my students face when they pass a test that they just knew they would fail. They be so excited that they doubted thier selves but do really good on the test.
I teach mathematics. This is a subject that many people fear. Students continually doubt their ability in this subject area because of their former experiences with mathematics.
I had this student in Remedial Mathematics and she wasn't doing well. I agreed to meet with her on weekends because she had a busy work schedule. She was a fire fighter trainee, so I decided that might be security she needed to discuss her issues. So I talked to her about fire fighting and that opened her up. She was glad to talk about experiences in the Fire Dept. Then I showed her, she didn't know everything about fire fighting when she joined. She had to be trained. Same as in math. You're not expected to know everything right off the bat. You learn by making mistakes. Don't let other students intimidate you because they know the subject matter better. Give it a try, what's the worst that can happen? I'm here to help you succeed. She has now started doing more homework and is glad to see how the problem should be done if she is incorrect. She still hangs back a little in volunteering to do problems in class, but we're working on that.
One strategy that I use to encourage students to discover their potential is to really stick with them when they are interested in a particular topic and participate (i.e. volunteer to answer a question). In this case, I would let them know that their answer is excellent, and push them to take it further by asking their personal opinion on the topic and listening to their full response. I think it's really important to encourage students and listen to them carefully. I think this technique enhances security to help with motivation.