The way you start the class is of the utmost importance. It allows for students to understand the expectations placed upon them, which in many instances differ from what they dealt with in high school.
What I enjoyed most about this module was hearing the Harvard teacher discuss helping students feel smarter when they speak in class. She emphasized that this strategy makes students want to participate more and feel more confident about what they are learning. I also appreciated how important it is to help student buy into what they are learning and emphasizing the why when starting the class, so students have the motivation to learn.
It's important to establish that this is no longer high school and the rules are more guided to a real life experience. The syllabus is a contract that can help guide the students into getting out of the habbit of what high school taught them vs what we are trying to teach for getting them ready.
I learned the importance of groupworks and ice breakers during classes. Also, one thing that I have learned is that when students share to the class, it is the educator's responsibility to make the students feel that it is okay to share without expertise and as teachers, we have to work with them to make them sound better and better. In this way, everyone will be encouraged to share and speak.
