Our students vary in age from 20's to 30's.....some have great experience and some have been out of school for a very long time, or have never gone to college. Our students must self evaluate every day via a "self evaluation form" and I try to utilize this...gearing off of their concerns and what they think they are doing well. It's valuable.
As a Dental Hygienist during the day and a Clinical Instructor at night, I am able to give my students everyday scenarios. This gives them an insight to where their careers will lead too. Grabbing their full attention.
Lisa,
Your last sentence says it all. You do have their attention with your working arrangement. You are bringing the latest technology, best practices and examples to class every night. This really makes it real for the students.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Corey,
Thank you for sharing this strategy with us. By using this method you are constantly getting a read on your students and helping them to stay on the success trail. This is a great support to have available that contributes to the career goals of the students in a very clear way.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I find this is helpful in the way I structure the flow of classroom learning too.
I teach in the paralegal program at my career school. I am very conscious of always relating the course topics to the "potential" client that may walk in the office or the potential legal issues the students may be called upon to address on the job. In addition to class discussions, all exams include hypothetical fact pattern questions and all final projects use a "client file" hypothetical for resolution.
Kristine,
I use a lot of case studies and problem solving activities in my classes for the reasons you state. The more relevancy and application students can see in the content the higher the level of engagement there is going to be.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Many of the courses I teach in Management do not specifically relate to specific student goals. One of my key jobs is show how the skills learned in one course can be applied in multiple situations. For instance, even though a student does not have a goal to be a professionalism sales person, a thorough knowledge of sales principles can be applied to any management position.
Jonathan,
I teach a general education course that is required for state certification. My job is to convince my students of the value of the content and how what they are learning can be used in their personal lives. It is such a great feeling when I am able to do that. I can appreciate where you are coming from with your course content. What you are teaching is so valuable in every setting so I wish you continued success in sharing the value of what you have to offer.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Adult learners have specific needs and expectations. It is important to know and understand these so you can easily prepare learning units that would show relevance to these learners.
Maria,
For sure. We need to be able to target their needs and then provide supports on an ongoing basis.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
The focus at our facility, for the students I'm charged with, involves becoming aware of what the student's needs will be post-graduation as they enter the field. I'll mention to them at least twice daily where the knowledge they are aquiring that day will be directly relevant to their upcoming field experience. This helps to keep them motivated beyond the daily lecture and lab routine. Reminders are also given to build upon each day's learning so that a thread develops between sessions, and also individual classes. We visit the short, medium, and long-term goals on a regular basis. One item that I'll stress to the students is the concept of confidence, not just memory, familarity, and ability, whether this involves testing and labs or after they graduate.
Robert,
I like your approach on how you reinforce confidence development in your students. This is so important because we need confident professionals that can problem solve and think critically about how to find solutions in their work setting. The more you can help them develop these skills the better prepared they are going to be.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I teach a beginer level sketching course which is more hands on than lecture so I find that a pretest a the begining of the term can help me identify which students have sketched before and which may need some extra help. This also helps to determine what areas of the course I should spend a little more time on.
The adult learner needs and expectations need to be addressed for the student to understand why the course information is important and how they will use the information in the future. One of the specific strategies mentioned in the course was to have the students demonstrate to younger learners how to complete a task. I would have students demonstrate to each other how to perform a specific task and give them feedback during the process. This would address the varied programs that make up my general education classes.
Gloria,
I use pretesting in my courses for the same reason you mention. I need to find a baseline on my incoming students so I can adjust my instructional delivery to meet their needs. I think it helps in getting the students engaged quicker because they can see where they need to increase their knowledge and skill base.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Nicole,
Peer sharing is a great way to get cross generational respect started. Students start to see that the life experiences they are bringing to the class can be shared and as a result growth is experienced by everyone.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Apply a pre test to admissions entry tour/enrollment and review past content linked to current content.
Angie,
I use pretesting for my classes because the results give me a baseline upon which I can plan my instructional delivery and activities. This lets me be more targeted in my approach.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Having students willingly engage themselves in class discussions helps me understand where the strengths and weaknesses of the lesson have been. To address the weaknesses, I'll review the material in some way, often "playing off the strengths" to sort of "weave" the lesson together, to show how "it all fits in".
