Get Your Students Hired
Jennifer,
I think this is a great way to increase the value of the course. Through application you are showing your students the relevancy of what is being taught.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Alain,
In working with adult learners it is important for them to be able to use their life experiences in the course. As you mention they see that they often know more than they think they do and that they can be successful in the course if they use their life experiences in concert with their newly acquired knowledge.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
we incorp several service learning projects and trips over the course of a module.... theis allows students to utilize the skills they have aquired in a practical setting. also gives them an opp to building their networking skills.
I have observed that adult learners do share a lot of they're experineces in class. I use that as a tool so that they can incorporate what they have studied if they can do that thing over again. I have also used pretesting exams and quizzes to assess students abilities about medical terms before we go into a complex subject.
Richard,
Good way to stay relevant with your content while making adjustments as needed. This is a win win situation for everyone.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Shelia,
Good answer and one they need to understand. Clear and concise communication both written and oral is a must in all career areas. The better they are at it the more results they will see in their career development.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
For my courses we ask the customers what they need prior to the Design phase, have them review it during the Development phase, and then survey the students' management 3-6 months after a course for perceived return on investment. And, we have the flexability to adjust the content and delivery methodologies in response to the customer feedback.
My students don't have a problem with relevancy until they have to complete a term paper. They often ask why the paper is included in the curriculum. The answer to this is that they have to communicate with patients.
Kristen,
The more real life examples and applications you can make the better. Doing so increases the value of the course to the students and helps them make an even greater investment in the learning process.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Mohammad,
Relevancy and application needs to be a part of the instructional planning and delivery process. When students can see the relevancy and make application the value of the course increases for them.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Richard,
I am sure you get some very interesting information back from your students. By having this input you can develop a customized approach to that class and be on target to help your students succeed.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Eleana,
This is a critical part of the learning process. If students don't see the value of what is being taught and cannot make application of it then they are not going to want to invest in what is being offered.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
If they are in college in a specific program, they truly want to be there an want to learn information relevant to their career. I may ask for real life examples during class to make it relevant or ask them to comment on a discussion board about something pertaining to the content that also allows them to dig deeper and think about the given topic.
making the instruction relevant is very important for career school students. They always
think in future how they will apply the content of the courses in their job.
One thing i do a week before the start of class is send the enrolled students an email asking them to complete a questionnaire describing as candidly as they can their expectations for the course, any resistance they may have to taking the course (since it is a required class), and their perceived strengths and weaknesses in relation to the class. This allows me to determine the level of difficulty for the various assignments and to form groups based on such characteristics as "leadership" skills.
the students need to know that what they are being taught is necessary content for them to be successful in their careers in the medical field. Giving real examples of situation and teaching them the needed material is very important.
Amie,
This is what makes the instruction so valuable. The instructors have or are making their living in the field they are teaching. This is a relevant as it gets for the students that are taking their courses.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Most instructors in career colleges work in their field they are teaching and they can bring real working experience and examples to the class room to help make it more relevant.
Glenn,
Like your style. Get at the core and get the message across. By doing so you will be increasing the value of the course to your students.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
cut out the fluff and teach them what they need to know as it relates to the field of instruction.