retention
I love to use class groups to help the student keep the information they have learned and use it. I also like to use the students as teachers to help them process the information differently.
Holly,
You are using some very good strategies to engage your students. Using students as teachers reminds me of a great saying I saw. It goes "To teach is to learn twice, once as a student and again as a teacher.". I love this because it is so true. The content retention rate goes up significantly when students present in classes so I know your students are going to enjoy continued learning success.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
thank you
I enjoy teaching and I enjoy hearing my students teach and pass on what they have learned. they hold themselves up so high and are so proud of themselves when they are teaching.
Holly,
I too use groups and student teaching as tools in my classroom. As students hash out ideas, I am able to listen to determine if they have understood the material that I have taught or that they have read. During student teaching, I am able to hear students explain the theoretical concepts to their peers, allowing me to ensure that they have an understanding of the material.
I use groups for lab settings where I pare strong and weaker students together. For the stronger student it helps them learn by teaching the weaker student, thereby reinforcing the knowledge in the stronger student. And for the weaker student it gives them the opportunity to learn without the pressure of student-teacher interface (stressful to some) and the lesson may be explained in a way that I missed thereby helping the weaker student gain the information.
When students teach other students I believe that they listen better. When hearing it from another person their age helps them to retrieve the information.
I agree with teaching what you know, or even what you don't know. I always tell my students that I have learned so much from teaching. You think you know everything until someone asks a question that you just don't have the answer to. This makes you look up answers and in the process learn more.
I also have found that group based learning is very effective. Walking around the room and wathcing those students engaged in thinking, sharing and discusssing can give you as the instructor, a gauge as to your lesson or assignment. It is often times refreshing to see students become so engaged they begin arguing. You cant ask for nothing bette than to see students totally engaged in the activity and they are willing to voice thier opiions. Wonderful tool.
agreed. We have purposeful groups assigned based on learning styles, so it becomes a team format. Really an interesting way to simulate the workplace and conflict resolution as well.
Love the current teaching in brain management!! exciting to know we never stop learning or renewing the mind, that science is catching up with man's abilities of mind over matter!
