I have found that students find it very interestering knowing what can happend and what has happened with out past experiences.
Kathryn,
yes & drawing the connections for them to how it applies are great examples for the students.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
I had 20 years experience working as a probation officer prior to entering into the field of education. I think that it is important for me to be able to relate those experiences to bring home the points that I try to make in the classes. I know that, when I was an undergraduate, the instructors that influenced me the most were those who had experience in the field.
I have a large diversity in my students like we all do. Most of which are current or former military. I give analogies that have to do with the military when it comes to how electricity works. If I have a class that is many non military I typically use something of the horror film genre "zombies" to have that shock factor in how electricity works. I also use a real life worse case scenario for how detonation in a engine is a bad thing. I have had great success in doing these over the top graphic analogies. Almost every single semester I over hear students talking about how that drove the point home for them.
In Cosmetology it is effective for the students to hear an example of real life applications when lecturing.
It brings life to the books.
Dayton,
There really is something to be said for that ability to help the students make the connections between the concepts in class & how they play out in the work setting.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
It gives something tangible for the student to recall. The important thing is to make sure the underlying point is also remembered, so its not just a "great story." In my class (anatomy and physiology) I use examples of patients I encounter in my full time job to help drive home the particular system we are studying, and how it effects the patients that they soon will be working with.
I use my personal career experiences in my lectures to keep my students interested. I think it helps to remind them of the relevance of what they are learning to what they might it experience.
Kayla,
anytime we can show the real world relevance to the students they will be able to make those connections better, good job.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
Memorable examples also sets you as the authority of your subject matter. Often Instructors are one extreme or another not finding that right blend of enough, but not too much. Myself included, always learning and monitoring my own input.
I think people remember important bits of information if they are able to relate it to actual life events, rather than being fed dry facts. The more we as instructors can do to make that memorable example come alive in the students' mind, the better chance we have of the student retaining the course content.
It helps the student relate the material to real life examples, it puts the information into a context that the student can identify with.
Using pictures is a great way to use memorable examples. The brain retains memory better when there is a visual image to connect it to.
Richard,
yes, the real life stories & examples are a great way to engage the students with the material & help them be able to bridge the gap from classroom theory to real world application.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
I agree. And in my experiences when I give, real life examples I can keep there attention span a lot longer than just teaching from the book
I love to use silly examples when i am teaching new concepts. I feel that using a funny story or analogy really helps the students remember important points easier. Its like a funny joke you hear and you remember it later due to the fact that you found it amusing. My students are the same way with the silly stories i tell them. They have told me they remember most of the time "because it was so silly for the instructor to say"
I feel that using anecdotes and even allowing students to use real life examples helps them to apply the knowledge they are learning. Because I teach in the medical field students tend to share their history or the history of someone they know so this helps them to apply the technical aspects of what we are learning to the real life experience they had. I've noticed that classes where there is not a lot of sharing students tend to not retain as much knowledge; therefore I stress a bit of dialogue between concepts.
Kristina,
yes, this is an excellent point. I highly recommend the use of stories & real life examples as these provide great "pegs" on which the students can hang the concepts.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
I am a Medical Examiner for the State. The variety of cases that I come in contact with daily offers real life examples for my medical students, which keeps them interested and focused on the topics being discussed.
I agree. Not only does it show we make mistakes too. It also shows we are human, and not better than the students, we are the same as our students, because we were also students at one time. Which help them to relate to us better.
