Lab
Lecture and hands on are what the student's respond to.
Anthony,
Thank you. What is the breakdown of lab to lecture in percentage of time?
Dr. Ron Hansen
In a healthcare learning environment, we have decided that although the lab time is intended for hands-on learning, the skill portion is meaningless unless the students are able to interpret / apply their learning to a sample situation. For example, it is one thing to take a blood pressure, it is another to recognize when a blood pressure is too high or too low. What can happen? How would we respond? For that reason, we lecture along with every skill, to make sure that the applicable meaning is attached to each skill. We do a 50/50 mix.
Lynn ,
This sounds like mini-lectures. It is teaching to the task. Students probably retain the information better than if they had an hour long lecture session and then went to the lab. Thank you for your post.
Dr. Ron Hansen
In the lab environment, I think that it is best to have a short lecture and then get them perfoming hands-on tasks so they can apply the knowledge learned.
Kevin,
Thank you for your post. Yes, hands-on is what is needed to learn the skills.
Dr. Ron Hansen
I teach in Culinary School and while I do lots of demos and lecture, hands-on is the way my students truley get the information down. It's also what they respond to best. When they have it in their hands and are making it themselves you can really see them understanding what they are doing and why.
Robert,
Culinary also has the added benefit of immediate feedback for the students when they complete their project.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
I agree that a hands-on lab is necessary. In our Networking lab, we find that the simulated lab software often does not include steps that the student faces in a "live" lab. For example, setting up a router in a virutal lab may not include the configuration steps -- steps that cannot be omitted when dealing with an actual router. Using the actual hardware/software is expensive compared to that offered in the virtual lab. Since the virtual lab is a more controlled environment, completing a lab on time is a big plus.
John,
Having the opportunity to perform a hands-on task in a real world, real time environment is helpful. It also confirms the student's ability to complete the task. However, If the student has completed the virtual version repeatedly they should be competent in a hands-on application of that task.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
Improper garbage disposal must be enforced every single laboratory session. It seems to be something that students tend to forget when learning a new skill. For example, it is their first time drawing blood and they are successful, they get so excited they forget about the other parts of the skill! Proper Sharps disposal can be an issue if the instructor is not right on top of the students. Major fines and consequences could occur. As mentioned on one of the pages in these lessons, every time a student sets foot into the laboratory my career and safety are on the line. If a student has to be reminded more then once about Sharps disposal they must write me a 5 paragraph essay on proper laboratory trash disposal with emphasis on OSHA standards and an explanation on each standard. It seems to work for most students. They seldom make that error twice.
Rachel,
Yes, there are many careers that require adherence to specific procedures, policies, and processes. Look at how these are introduced to the student. There are many ways to use group work, research, and game techniques to help students learn these important steps.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
I find lab instructions and safety topics should be addressed in class, then proceed to lab to perform tests and tasks to determine competence and ability.
Joseph,
Students should see how instructions and safety relate to the tests and tasks they will perform as well as to why this is important on the job.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
We do the same approach in our Veterinary Technology labs. Many times the classes are split into two groups, so it also gives another opportunity to be sure that everyone has heard the information at least once (although by then, it should be three times that they've heard the key points)
I agree. Knowing what to do when things are a little or a lot out of spec is a huge leap for many students. I like to throw in a out of spec sample randomly in class to get everyone thinking about what to do when things don't come out as expected.
Anita,
And they put the key points into practice how many times in the labs? Putting into practice what they learn assists greatly in the retention of that information.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
Liza,
What we quite often forget to highlight to students is the problem solving skills they develop during their education. Throwing in out of spec examples and asking them to solve develops these specific skills.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
Hands on always help reinforce what we learned in lecture. It gives the students a opperotinuty to used what they just learned in class.
John,
Yes, Hands on, discussion, teaching each other all help students to retain information best.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
